Project 1

Executive Summary

Hershey’s, a well-established brand synonymous with chocolate, is famous for its candy products –
Hershey, Kisses, Reese’s, Twizzler, Kit Kat, etc. – also provides grocery products – baking chocolate,
cocoa, syrup, chocolate milk, etc. With customers in all demographics, Hershey’s has potential in all age
groups, genders, and income levels, however, since the majority of the purchasing power, as well as
tradition implementation, lies predominantly within the mother’s realm, Hershey’s is targeting this
market. The biggest obstacles seem to be the nutritional aspect of our product. Concerns including the
high carb, low nutrition elements of our snack foods.

Product/Service Consumer Behavior Insights

Many snack foods interest consumers from potato chips, to pastries, to cookies. In the candy
department, Mars and Nestle are the primary competitors to the Hershey’s company, as well as some
comparisons in grocery arena. The main attributes that affect consumers decisions can be narrowed
into the following categories.

 Ingredients: Consumers appreciate quality as measured by being nutritionally sound, flavorful

tastes with a variety of centers and textures, and low guilt consumption (calories/carbs).
 Price: Snacks are secondary in the budgeting priorities and need to maintain a moderately low
sticker price while providing as much quantity as possible.
 Packaging: Purchasing appeal is both large portions as well as smaller individualized packages.
The simplicity of eating the snack is also important for grab-n-go with minimal risk of a
chocolatey mess.
 Purpose: Whether it is a sweet tooth or a special holiday tradition, a reward for a job well done
or the perfect gift for a friend, packing the kid’s lunchbox or parent/child date - the purpose of
the consumer is pivotal in determining which product to buy. Familiarity with the brand
increases the determining factor for a variety of purposes.

Competitive Environment

Strengths

Weaknesses

Opportunities

Threats

Political

Legal
Eonomic

Socio-cultural

Technological

Competitive

Market Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning