Brand preference high in colas; low in other beverages - Top Brands Part II: Consumer Survey

Discount Store News, Oct 19, 1992

Cola carbonated drinks, as expected, were consumers' favorite beverage and dominated the category, one of three new classifications added to DSN's Top Brands Consumer survey this year. Beverages were added as part of DSN's exclusive survey of the nation's major brands as reported by discount store shoppers.

Coke and Pepsi, in that order led the listing of the new beverage category which, overall, contained a variety of carbonated and non-carbonated drinks. In past surveys, beverages had been listed as part of the foods, candy and snacks category.

The 10 leading beverages are made up of seven carbonated drinks and three non-carbonated beverages: one juice, one sports drink and one children's drink. In all, 15 different products were cited by name.

Coke's and Pepsi's dominant standing among all consumers--55% cited the former and 43% the latter--was mirrored by those shopping at Wal-Mart and Kmart. Target customers preferred Coke by a wider margin, 57%, as against the 38% who cited Pepsi. The bottom line is that each of these cola sodas was cited by about half of all consumers, while the best percentage any other drink could garner was in the single digit.

The two colas strong showing testifies to the promotional support each receives--cola beverages are among the nation's most advertised products--and the consumer appeal that results from this effort.

By comparison to consumer preference for colas, shopper interest in other beverages is flat. Among all discount store customers, 7-Up and Dr. Pepper--each of which is specifically marketed as an alternative to cola drinks--were the beverages capturing the next largest citation, 6% of the consumers surveyed, with even fewer mentions for other brands.

The more interesting differences in the performance of the top 10 brands can be found in how the beverage category is viewed by consumers and by store managers, who were the subject of the previous Top Brands report.

Of the 10 beverages mentioned by consumers, only six were cited by store managers as among their best performing brands, and the standing of those noted were much lower than the consumer rankings. 7-Up tied with Dr. Pepper for the third spot on the consumer tracking, was No. 9 on the store managers' listing and Dr. Pepper didn't make the managers' Top 10.

Gatorade's status was similar in both trackings, No. 7 among consumers and No. 5 among managers. Kool-Aid and Hi-C were at the bottom of the consumers' ranking but were Nos. 7 and 4, respectively, among managers.

Besides Dr. Pepper, Sprite, Mountain Dew and Canada Dry didn't show up among the managers' Top 10. Instead, the managers cited Ocean Spray, Sam's American Choice (a Wal-Mart private label), RC and Welch's, four beverages that didn't show up as major brands for consumers. [Tabular Data Omitted]