Summary

This study analyzes consumer preferences for three brands of flavored water and investigates the impact of print advertisements on brand perceptions. 82 people participated in the study. The collected data was analyzed using SPSS conducting a variety of statistical tests, including t-tests (paired and between-groups), chi-squared significance tests, frequency counts, simple correlations, regression and discriminant analyses, ANOVA/MANOVA, and finally, factor and cluster analyses. The statistical significance was set at p≤.15, indicating that in 85 samples out of 100 samples drawn from the same population as this sample, similar results would be expected.

The three brands tested in this research were Dasani, Tropicana, and Kellogg's. Overall, the brands were liked almost equally; however Dasani had the highest mean Brand Index Score and was the most preferred brand before ad exposure. Dasani was still the most preferred brand after ad exposure, however, its mean brand index score decreased considerably after respondents saw the ads, whereas Tropicana's and Kellogg's brand preference increased noticeably after ad exposure.

The Kellogg's and Tropicana ads had an almost equally positive influence. 35 people (43% of the sample) had positive change scores after viewing the ad for Kellogg's, and 33 people (40% of the sample) had positive change scores after viewing the ad for Tropicana. The Dasani advertisement had the least influence in promoting favorable brand opinions. As a matter of fact, after viewing the Midori ad, more than half of the sample reported feeling less favorable towards the brand. 43 respondents (52% of the sample) had lower Brand Index Scores during the post-test, while only 17 respondents (21% of the sample) had higher Brand Index Scores, or an increase in brand preference.

Because there is a weak correlation between the brand index scores of Dasani and Tropicana, those respondents who reported liking Dasani might exhibit a similar preference for Tropicana. These results are statistically significant and thus can be projected to the population.

Survey results indicate an extremely weak relationship between how respondents rated brand attributes and how they responded to the advertising, so we cannot accurately predict Up-Movers and Down-Movers based on the Likert item responses. For Dasani, only 3.7% of how much respondents liked the Dasani ad is explained by how much they like the brand. Tropicana exhibited a slightly stronger, but still very weak, relation than that found for Dasani; 19.5% of how much respondents liked the Tropicana ad is explained by how much they like the brand. And finally Kellogg's also evidenced a very weak relationship with only 16.1% of how much respondents liked the Kellogg's ad being explained by how much they liked the brand. The Likert items that best explain the variance in the pre-post change scores, and are significant are: “Kellog's is a good brand of flavored water” and “I would recommend Kellog's flavored water to my friends.”

However, there are also limitations with this research that need to be considered. Although adequate for the purposes of this study, a sample size of 82 respondents is relatively small. Additionally, due to constraints of both time and resources, a convenience sample was used instead of a preferred random sample and control group.

In conclusion, although Tropicana and Kellogg's were initially clearly outperformed by Dasani, both brands caught up considerably concerning consumer preferences. Nevertheless, both brands still have to fight with perception and acceptance problems in this new product category of flavored water; whereas Dasani is clearly associated with flavored water, respondents found it difficult to think of the other two brands as “flavored water” products (respondents especially noted in the comments that they clearly associate Kellogg's with cereal and can't see it as a brand offering beverages/flavored water). This study could serve as the basis for further research into consumer perceptions of flavored water and the brands that attempt to break into this market.