Public relations plan for Pilsner Urquel - Research Paper Example

?Public Relations plan for Pilsner Urquell Introduction: Pilsner Urquell is operating in the international beer industry for many years and is known to be one of the prime golden beers. Pilsner is currently operating under SABMiller along with three other international brands (SAB Miller, a). Despite of being one of the premier and famous beer brands in US, Pilsner Urquell has been facing serious issues in the market of United States mainly because of the fact that the beer provided in United States is not as fresh as that served in the Czech Republic. This is because of the three main factors which are time involved during shipping, temperature, and light. The company is trying to overcome this issue by coming up with new supply chain and shipment solutions. At the same time it is important for the company to come up with effective and efficient PR plan to communicate the new improvements in the supply chain to the key audience and gain back the trust of the consumers in the market of United States. This in turn will allow the company to increase its sales and capture more market share. The company is already involved in different PR and marketing activities in this regard like recently company celebrated its 170th anniversary and arranged a complete program and event in this regard (Bloomberg Businessweek; SAB Miller, b). Along with this the company organized second annual master home brewer competition (PR Newswire, a). In this report an attempt has been made to understand the market research process of the company and provide them with the PR plan on the basis of the current situation of the market and industry. Background Research and Situation Analysis: In order to come up with the proper public relation plan it is important to do the initial research of the background situation and overall industry trends in effective and efficient manner. This in turn facilitates the company to come up with the PR plan which is effective and conveys message to all target market. The market research can be done either through secondary research sources and methods or primary research sources and methods. Pilsner Urquell is using different primary and secondary research methods including survey and third party research reports in order to work on the organizational, audience, and media research. This in turn allows them to come up with effective and efficient strategy and marketing plan, as they are able to identify and understand important trends and changes in the market on timely basis. The interview from the company representative revealed that the company collects and analyze all important statistics regarding the consumer behavior and taste preferences with the help of different qualitative research and testing methods. However, the company has its own labs for testing the quality and taste of the beer. Regarding the media analysis, the company keeps check on different internet and social mediums including their own websites and monitors the stuff posted along with the response of the customers. Pilsner Urquell also monitors and keeps a check on the content posted by different bloggers about the beer. Some of the findings generated from the market and consumer research have been presented and explored here. The management of Pilsner Urquell is working hard to overcome the issues related with the freshness and shipment of the beer to US market. For this purpose, the company is well aware of the current situation of the market with the help of the research activities. The company use set of primary and secondary research methods in order to get hold of important information regarding important market trends. At the same time the management of the company is focusing on new innovative strategies and classify themselves as the trailblazer in the industry, as mentioned by the Pilsner representative. Along with this the company does keep an eye on the actions taken by the competitors but focus more on brining its own strategies and ways. For instance the representative of the company mentioned that some of the imported brand of beer like; Beck’s, Bass, and Trumer Pils have started to brew their beer in the United States in order to overcome the challenges being faced regarding the quality and taste of the beer. On the other hand Pilsner Urquell is working on improving its supply chain and shipping process and network in order to maintain the taste and quality of the beer and to improve the profitability of the company. In order to come up with effective and efficient PR plan it is important to The Company has been serving to the complete geographical market of United States however, according to the representative of Pilsner Urquell, the company is doing well in terms of sale in the metropolitan cities. The bars which are serving the beer of Pilsner Urquell are more mostly upscale and generally they are craftier. At the same time the company is also targeting the white tablecloth restaurants. The drinker of Pilsner Urquell in United States has higher than average income, is well educated, and belongs to the middle to upper class market segment (Company Representative). Due to the shipping and freshness issue the imported foreign beer companies operating in the beer industry of United States are facing serious issues regarding taste and quality. The management of Pilsner Urquell is focusing only on their own issues and operations and are not focusing on the researching about the taste of other competitive products. The company has been able to understand the needs and demands of the local customers in United States and has been able to deliver the right message to them. For instance the positioning of the beer as express shipped cold has been widely accepted in the country as the education consumers highly value and appreciate the highest quality beer (Company Representative). In order to overcome the issues associated with the freshness and taste of the beer the company has invested to improve its supply chain. The company is focusing on providing the customers with the beer packed in cartons which are fully enclosed and are transferred to the region within 30 days in refrigerated containers. This in turn facilitates the company to avoid the aging process and maintain the quality and taste of the beer. At the same time the distributors will also keep the beer in the pre specified conditions and temperature (PR Newswire, b). According to the representative of the company in during the process of shipment of beer to the bar and restaurant customers the beer is stored in the cold section of the warehouses of the wholesales. When the wholesales deliver kegs it is generally in the refrigerated potion of the truck, but is difficult for the company to keep 100 percent control on the delivery process of the wholesalers (Company Representative). The company provides the wholesalers and distributors with the required guidance related to the shipment and delivery of the beer and it is strongly recommended that the beer should remain cold from the time they receive it until the time they deliver it. For this purpose the company has a special policy guide for bars that educate the bar owners regarding the required conditions related to the temperature, cleanliness, velocity and other related elements for keeping the beer fresh (PR Newswire, b; Company representative). Apart from this, according to the representative of the company, Pilsner Urquell has education resources for the teams of field sales and distributors in order to share them with the owners and operators of the bar. Before coming up with this new supply chain and packaging strategy of cold shipped beer, the company had scientific taste panel data from the quality labs and worked on qualitative testing. The company did not commissioned any focus groups but worked on providing the new story and beer to different bloggers and beer writers in order to test the concept and promote and communicate the message (Company Representative). Right from the start the company has been focusing on marketing element in order to capture larger market share in the region. The company has been focusing on generating a unique positioning and marketing strategy rather than going for individual and distinct personalities for different brands. In order to promote and communicate the new message regarding the improved supply chain and quality, the company has focused more on communicating the message through the packaging and delivered the express shipped cold message along with the heritage platform for the brand which gives it additional credibility (Company Representative). The company is aware of the fact that the people do not easily build connection of Pilsner with the town name ‘Pilsen’, and for this reason is trying to bridge up this gap in order to make people aware that the beer is from the Czech Republic. For this reason the company has changed the previous tagline on the packages i.e. ‘The original pilsner from Pilsen’ with the new one i.e. ‘The world’s original Pilsner’. Along with this the company has also placed the key message of ‘express shipped cold’ on the packaging. The company has changed the language and graphics in order to communicate to the customer regarding the freshness and quality of the beer. Apart from this in order to prevent light strike of the beer the company has come up with fully enclosed six pack box (Company Representative). This resulted in overall structural change in terms of the shape. Along with this, the company has opted for thicker cardboard to strengthen the package to withstand condensation (Company Representative). According to the representative of the company, there are no major sponsorships/partnerships for the brand in United States. The partnership and public relation activities of the company in United States are limited to reaching out to various press outlets and personalities and communicating through them the story of the brand. Apart from this the company also sponsored a Pilsner brewing competition by Brewlab (PR Newswire, a). Pilsner Urquell’s first priority is to enhance and improve the overall experience of the beer drinkers and maintain the quality and freshness of the beer. For this purpose, the company has taken necessary measures in order to eliminate the issues associated with time, temperature, and light during shipment: Other threats that Pilsner have to face are growing competition in premium lager segment as well as restrictions of advertisement. Whereas, popular brands from Pilsner Urquell own group eat-up the market share making it difficult for the Pilsner Urquell to increase its market share. A research conducted by Nielsen shows that the Pilsner Urquell is at 32nd position in brewery industry with the sale of $10,210,147. Foster’s lager is giving a tough time to the company with a sale of around $32,659,789. Pilsner Urquell had a volume change of $-848,029, which means the company is currently operating in loss. In order to overcome all these issues the company should come up with proper public relation plan to communicate with the key audiences regarding the changed supply chain strategies and promoting the positioning of ‘express shipped cold’ and ‘The world’s original Pilsner’. For this purpose the company should identify the key audience and come up effective and efficient pubic relation and communication strategies. Action Plan: Before coming up with the communication strategies it is important to devise proper goals and strategies. Along with this it is important to identify the Goals: Pilsner Urquell shall be directed to achieve the following goals: Improve overall market perception about the Pilsner Urquell To reinforce positive image into the minds of beer drinkers mainly associated with freshness of Pilsner Urquell Awareness about the overall improvement integrated in shipping and distribution mechanism To recover trust of the beer drinkers of United States To regain market share in US as at first stage. To be main destination for beer drinkers on social media. Objectives: To achieve the outlined goals, Pilsner Urquell shall follow given objectives: Improve perception to by 2 points on 5 level scale by increasing awareness about the overall improved supply chain elements with the help of media coverage and press releases. Focus on improved quality variable mainly freshness in every interaction with the help of different events. Emphasis on the quality with indistinguishable taste from Pilsner Urquell available in the Czech Republic by with the help of the heavy and smart use of social media. Focusing and emphasizing on new packaging style (i.e. 4-pack cans, 6-pack bottles and 12-pack bottles) with the help of special endorsements and OOH activities. Achieving sales increase by 15%. Increasing interaction with customers increasing website visitor by 25%. Increasing interaction with customers on social media and you-tube by 28%. Achieving 10% improvement in the handling by in bar handling bars and restaurants carrying brand with the help of special training and learning programs. Key Audience: Key audience for the Pilsner Urquell PR plans includes: 1. Beer drinkers of United States. 2. Customers in general and specifically Restaurants and bars. 3. Media and market analysts. 4. Consumer groups activist representatives 5. Investors and financial analyst. 6. Related government officials. All these constitute the traditional key audience. Contemporary public relations require addressing customers and consumer in communities than individual group. Therefore, media and social media in the form of communities are key audience to address. Strategies: Pilsner Urquell should use social media to influence the market and communicated about the pure heritage of golden with snow-white head beer. They should regularly post regarding different events and news in order to communicate with their target audience on social networking sites such as Twitter, Facebook and Youtube. This will not only help to maintain their position but will also result in attracting the beer drinkers towards the Pilsner Urquell due to sense of belongingness. Pilsner Urquell should not only rely on Social Media for interacting with the beer drinkers, but should also work on publishing articles in different magazines and blogs by providing them with the brand stories and details which will result in keeping the beer drinkers of the United States updated about the new packaging as well as any events organized by the Pilsner Urquell. Pilsner Urquell should also organize special events from time to time, not just for the sake of publicity but to gain insight of beer drinkers regarding Pilsner’s golden beer. This can be used to identify problems that are being faced by the beer drinker. The insight of beer drinkers in United States will help Pilsner Urquell to take initiative step regarding the freshness of beer and make timely changes. Pilsner can also sponsor big events to gain more recognition as it has done in the past. By sponsoring events such as golf and Master Brewer Annual Competition, Pilsner Urquell can increase the awareness among the beer drinkers about the original golden beer which will ultimately leading to increase the market share. To increase sales and export, the company should consider quality and availability around the globe. Pilsner should not just limit the beer to some regions of the world, but it should use the parent company i.e. SABMiller’s support to reach the globe effectively like other leading global beers. It should globally expand as there are opportunities created due to high consumption of beer and the changing cultures. Pilsner can also rely on its heritage and goodwill while entering new markets to give the Pilsner’s beer a competitive edge over the local beer. The more specific strategies which should be implemented by the company in order to accomplish the objectives are as follow: Improve perception to by 2 points on 5 level scale by increasing awareness about the overall improved supply chain elements with the help of media coverage and press releases. Focus on improved quality variable mainly freshness in every interaction with the help of different events. Emphasis on the quality with indistinguishable taste from Pilsner Urquell available in the Czech Republic by with the help of the heavy and smart use of social media. Focusing and emphasizing on new packaging style (i.e. 4-pack cans, 6-pack bottles and 12-pack bottles) with the help of special endorsements and OOH activities. Achieving 10% improvement in the handling by in bar handling bars and restaurants carrying brand with the help of special training and learning programs. Communication Plan: Communication plays a vital role in reaching the target audience as it’s not only a way to exchange information but it a way to create mutual understanding between Pilsner Urquell and its target audience. To communicate with the company’s key audience (i.e. consumers, customers, media and shareholders), Pilsner Urquell should use both internal and external communications. It is important to communicate with the potential consumers in effective and efficient manner in order to increase the awareness and interest among the consumers regarding the product. Pilsner Urquell closely monitors the relationship that they have with their customers and considers communicating with their customers as their priority. Media is considered as one of the quickest tools to communicate as immense importance is given to media in today’s globalized era. Apart from this it is also important to properly communicate the shareholders and investors as they are the owners of the company. Following tactics and techniques can be used in order to effectively communicate with the key audiences of the company: To publish press release regarding the new packaging style in order to provide beer drinkers of United States with fresh beer Social media should be used to inform the consumers regarding different events To host events in order to grant consumers a firsthand experience of high quality Pilsner’s beer To host exhibitions to provide the opportunity to experience Pilsen pub Be being active on social media, as the customers tends to take influence from the company’s presence on all social media tools including Facebook, Linkedin,Twitter and Youtube By keeping the customers informed through articles in the magazine regarding their achievements and web postings Press releases should often be used as the media provides an opportunity for good public relations To use mass media to present Pilsner Urquell in an attractive way to stimulate interest in the audience Organizing special events such as press conference to update the beer drinkers of United States with the latest change in the Pilsner Urquell packaging and shipping Sponsoring events to gain publicity Relating the brand with the well known and famous personalities who are related with Pilsen Organizing and sponsoring different concerts and fun events Newsletter and technology can be used to communicate information with the shareholders Formal communication including annual reports, factsheets and other important documents to be corporately published Annual meeting can be arranged to communicate with the shareholders Virtual meetings can also be used to communicate with the shareholders Pilsner Urquell can also use its website to communicate financial information to the shareholders Evaluation Plan: To measure the success of PR plan of Pilsner Urquell, the company should measure the results against the business objectives. One of the mostly used tools in this regard is of media hits, which provides the company with the opportunity to compare it from year to year. But the domain PR is not restricted only to media coverage; it also includes the relationship development, awareness generation, and creation of positive perception regarding the brand and product. The success of the PR plan of Pilsner Urquell can be measured through following methods or techniques: 1) Sales activity and market share The ultimate function of PR is to improve sale and overall market share. PR activities have the goal in mind to increase sales. For this reason the company should track the year over year sales of the Pilsner’s beer in order to evaluate that whether PR exposure has influenced buying patterns or not. 2) Social media and Web-Statistics Increase in the fan count on social networking sites also give clear information regarding the awareness of the product in the market and how the PR methods and techniques affected the sales. Apart from this the feedback and comments of the customers and consumers on these social media sites will provide clear insight regarding the market image of the product. Counting the visitors on Pilsner’s site can also help determine the awareness the PR plan has created. Fan counts on Facebook, Followers on Twitter, views on Youtube, and website traffic will also help the company to analyze and evaluate how successful was the PR plan. Web stats tells you how many potential customers are visiting the website and returning back to your web and for how long they stay on the site. 3) Media measurement Media measurement could be defined as the number of people attracted through the advertisement. This in turn will facilitate the company in analyzing the impact of the media coverage on the buying behavior and will help in evaluating the success of the PR plan 4) Audience response through Surveys Once it is determined that the message has reached to the target audience, Pilsner must evaluate the target response. It will help predict whether the message extract a favorable or unfavorable reaction. It can also determine if the message has been able to attract the attention and encouraged the consumers to take specific actions. Audience response with the help of the survey allows the company to get information easily and accurately and gives everyone the chance to participate by giving opinions. Pre and post surveys can facilitate the company in the process of analyzing the effectiveness of different PR activities and strategies. Surveys can be posted on the company’s website or can be taken by social networking sites. Surveys can be helpful in order to determine the effectiveness of PR plan, as it is one of the classic method for collecting data. It provides a unique opportunity to obtain detailed insight. 5) Media content analysis The company can use the method of media content analysis in order to come up with analyzes and evaluation regarding reach of different media uses and whether the main issue has been addressed or not, the message has been conveyed to the key audience or not. All this will allow the company to analyze and evaluate the effectiveness of different medium used. 6) Accomplishment of Goals Last but not the least method to measure the success of PR plan is to analyze the accomplishment of Pilsner’s goals and objectives. If the goals set by Pilsner are accomplished, it means that the PR plan was successful. But on the other hand, if the goals are not met by the PR plan effectively, it means that there were flaws that led the plan to failure. Works Cited Bloomberg Businessweek. Pilsner Urquell Will Celebrate its 170th Anniversary on Pilsen Square With an Original Programme, Video-mapping, and Beer Draughted From Big Oak Barrels (Translation). Sep. 2012. 01 Nov. 2012. http://investing.businessweek.com/research/markets/news/article.asp?docKey=600-201209251136M2______EUPR_____00a600000885313a_3600-1¶ms=timestamp%7C%7C09/25/2012%2011:36%20AM%20ET%7C%7Cheadline%7C%7CPilsner%20Urquell%20Will%20Celebrate%20its%20170th%20Anniversary%20on%20Pilsen%20Square%20With%20an%20Original%20Programme%2C%20Video-mapping%2C%20and%20Beer%20Draughted%20From%20Big%20Oak%20Barrels%20(Translation)%7C%7CdocSource%7C%7CM2%20Communications%7C%7Cprovider%7C%7CACQUIREMEDIA PR Newswire. (a). Pilsner Urquell Brews Up Its Second Annual Master Home Brewer Competition. Apr. 2012. 01 Nov. 2012. http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/pilsner-urquell-brews-up-its-second-annual-master-home-brewer-competition-147913525.html PR Newswire. (b). Pilsner Urquell Launches Major Initiative Focused On Freshness. Jul. 2012. 01 Nov. 2012. http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/pilsner-urquell-launches-major-initiative-focused-on-freshness-162198805.html SAB Miller. (a). Global Brands. 2012. 01 Nov. 2012. http://www.sabmiller.com/index.asp?pageid=1633 SAB Miller. (b). Pilsner Urquell Will Celebrate its 170th Anniversary on Pilsen Square With an Original Programme, Video-mapping, and Beer Draughted From Big Oak Barrels (Translation). Sep. 2012. 01 Nov. 2012. http://www.sabmiller.com/index.asp?pageid=149&newsid=2020 Read More