Exploring Positioning Ideas

Challenge

 

Exploring transitional whiskey drinkers’ impressions of potential positioning ideas so that a premium whiskey brand could meaningfully renovate its proposition and fuel growth. 

With 30+ years of struggling to find its place in the market, our client wanted to articulate its brand identity and build a proposition that would allow it to compete so that it could build a marketing mix that would drive growth for the next 30 years.

Approach

We started laying the foundations in a collaborative workshop with the client team to identify positioning concepts that could fit the brand, and more importantly, capture the rapidly evolving whiskey market. We then tested these positioning statements against consumers in discussion groups across the US, Europe and Asia, giving us insight into both who transitional whiskey drinkers are as people, and how they like the taste of the potential positioning concepts.

Impact

Our research set the guidelines and guardrails for how to optimize each positioning concept to its fullest potential with actionable recommendations for further development. Blending in human tensions and truths, as well as market nuances throughout, allowed the client to build a positioning that will mature beautifully with age.