Stealth Marketing and the Case Study
The main purpose of stealth marketing is creating a buzz among customers. This conversation builds interest in a product without necessarily letting the target audience know the products in question are being marketed to them (Bhasin, 2018). Stealth marketing is particularly useful when responding to drastic market changes, such as the trends Kraft experienced. The trend increased preference for more transparent, simpler, and natural ingredients (a disdain for preservatives and artificial coloring). Response to these trends required the company to rethink its product formula for one of its domineering brands, Kraft Mac and Cheese. Rethinking required abandoning artificial coloring, which would affect the orange hue and sauce consistency that distinguished the brand. It decided to maintain these aspects after creating a new formula, without informing clients. This was meant to maintain the brand identity while simultaneously responding to market changes. A buzz was created after the company decided to make the changes public. This stealth marketing approach in reformulation was successful because of its digital campaign, announcing the changes. The digital campaign’s timing was also crucial since they rolled out the reformulation campaign only after sales numbers suggested customers’ indifference towards the new formula.
How Kraft’s Strategy Could Have Backfired
One of the main ways the campaign would have backfired was if the company’s loyal customers noticed a difference in the product, albeit with disdain. A simple thing like an online conversation that goes viral would initiate and exacerbate conversations and criticisms that may prove detrimental to a brand (Martin & Smith, 2008). If the reformulated product’s reception reached this step, and the company announced the reformulation after that, the company would lose its customers’ trust and tainted the brand’s image. The company might respond to this situation by reintroducing the old formula and introducing a new product that meets the changing market needs and preferences. This would help in reassuring loyal customers while meeting changing market trends, albeit through mutually exclusive product types.
An example of a company that used the stealth marketing approach is Starbucks ‘ fake Christmas mug controversy in 2015. The company created a false hype and conversation regarding its 2015 Christmas mug, which did not feature Christmas related printings as was the custom (Abad-Santos, 2015). This resulted in a lot of staged criticism from prominent online personalities and conservatives, which induced backlash from non-conservatives that did not find anything wrong with the exclusion of Christmas related printings like snowflakes and imageries of Santa Clause. The result was more people noticed the mug, and sales increased. The mug outsold any other previous Christmas-themed mug.
How Kraft Should Respond to Changing Market Trend
The company should respond to changing market dynamics through further product differentiation. They should attempt to create an alternative brand, using simpler, more transparent, and natural ingredients. Emphasis on these ingredients should be the focus of the product’s marketing campaign. The company could jointly market the reformulated brand together with the new product as part of a more significant marketing campaign. This broad marketing campaign should primarily take place in the digital media, engaging with clients, especially the younger generation, since it is the most far-reaching and response-efficient marketing media available (Van ‘t Riet et al., 2015). The company could satisfy changing market preferences while still reassuring long-standing customers of the product’s authenticity.