Marketing Communications

CASE 12 413

Table 12.5 Consumption trend for candy bars

Dec. 04 Mar. 05 Jun. 05 Sep. 05 Dec. 05 Mar. 06

Occasions per buyer 10.29 9.91 9.59 9.30 9.12 9.18

Kg per occasion 0.538 0.534 0.530 0.525 0.525 0.524

consumers bought candy bars fewer times per year and

less volume per purchase (see Table 12.5 ).

Combined with Mars Belgium’s own research, two

important consumer insights were generated. Firstly,

consumers in general, but also youngsters in particular,

focus increasingly on a good balance between eating and

exercising. At certain moments (e.g. just before exercising,

at moments when they are hungry) they want products to

fulfil their energy needs but, in general, they are looking for

healthier and less heavy snacks.

Secondly, the persons in the household responsible for

shop ping want both lighter snacks and greater value for

money. Mothers especially prefer a greater number of

smaller portions in a pack. Children do not notice the differ-

ence, but mothers feel less guilty if they can give their

children a lighter snack. Moreover, more portions in a pack

means they last longer.

The Perfect Size concept

To activate chocolate bar consumption and to regain

gatekeeper acceptance on its core brands (Mars, Twix

and Snickers), Mars Belgium introduced its Perfect Size

concept. More specifically, Mars Belgium differentiated

the bar weight according to consumption moments (see

Table 12.6 ). When consumers buy a bar in the out-of-

home (OOH) channel (e.g. from a vending machine, at a

petrol station, at the cinema, in an amusement park, etc.),

they are often driven by impulse and looking for energy.

At these moments, concern about calorie intake is low

and a larger bar is preferred. Therefore, for the ‘buy now,

eat now’ moments, Mars Belgium provides the regular,

single bars in OOH outlets. Consumers also like to eat bars

during a break or for pleasure at work, in school or at home.

This consumption is usually planned in advance and the

shoppers’ (i.e. parents as ‘gatekeepers’) concerns of less

weight per bar and more bars per pack play an important

role here. For these ‘buy now, eat later’ situations, Mars

Belgium replaced its three-pack with a four-pack, its

six-pack with a seven-pack and its ten-pack with a twelve-

pack. The weight per portion went down from 54 to 45 g

for a Mars bar, from 58 to 50 g for a Twix and from 60 to

50 g for a Snickers. For consumers who like to indulge

themselves once in a while at home, minis varying in

weight from about 15 to 20 g are ideal. Finally, for social

sharing and gift-giving, miniatures are offered, such as in

the Celebrations box. The latter buying acts are assumed

to be more conscious and planned in advance, and are

more likely to take place at retailers.

Early qualitative research results indicated that consumers

really liked the concept. Comments from consumers included:

‘with smaller bars, I can eat more often a snack to keep me

going’; ‘a smaller bar gives me the opportunity to control

the balance for me and my family’; and ‘the larger the pack

size, the more value for money we get, and the more snack

times I get with my family’.

Figure 12.15 Moving annual turnover for Mars’ products

Source : NV Mars Belgium SA

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