Gatorade officially changing its name: good idea??

[hifigator]

www.palmbeachpost.com/news/co...svc=7&cxcat=46


Does anyone think this is really a good idea?

[jgalt]

Hifi, that link is dead, and i couldnt find anything about this from a quick google search. what did the article say?

[Boz]

Gatorade is becoming "G."

It has "new Coke" written all over it.

OK, maybe not that bad, but you have to ask the question: why?

[hifigator]

For some reason, they removed the link from the thread. I will try to find it again, but here is the original post on the thread:

GAINESVILLE — — The "Gatorade bath'' is synonymous with championship celebrations. But when University of Florida football coach Urban Meyer was doused with a bucket of the sports drink after the Gators won the national title last week, he technically took a "G bath.''

That's because Gatorade Co. is re-christening its product simply as "G'' — a bold move that has angered the family of the man credited with inventing the legendary beverage.

"We're mad about it, if you want to know the truth," said Mary Cade, 79, a Gainesville resident and the widow of Dr. Robert Cade, a former UF professor who helped create the drink in 1965. "I don't think I talked to anybody that wasn't upset about it."

The new bottles and packaging feature a dominant "G'' with "Gatorade'' appearing in small type.

Several years ago, Gatorade introduced a commercial that retraced the origin of the drink. The ad featured footage of Gator games at Florida Field, legendary college football announcer Keith Jackson and Robert Cade.

Cade died in November 2007, and his wife knows how he'd feel about the "G'' campaign.

"He'd be pretty upset," Mary Cade said. "I wouldn't want to say the words that he might say."

Khermouch said Gatorade is "taking a big chance" with its "G" campaign, and the magazine Advertising Age called it a "risky strategy." Of 576 people who responded to a poll on CNBC.com, 64 percent said they didn't like the "G" idea.

"I don't think the risk is so much that the consumers are going to forget the name," Khermouch said. "They're kind of destabilizing the whole franchise, untethering the brand from all of its roots. And that's always risky, because you could start losing shelf space."

Cade said the company assured her that some bottles with "Gatorade'' labels will be displayed prominently for now, but they'll eventually be phased out. She also said the company plans to return the Gatorade name if the new approach isn't successful.

Still, said Cade, who now owns just a minority share of Gatorade and doesn't control the patent, her family isn't happy about the change.

"Everybody is totally against it, but we don't really have any clout," she said.

[hifigator]

Jan 15, 2009 17:24:21 GMT -5 Boz said:

Gatorade is becoming "G."

It has "new Coke" written all over it.

OK, maybe not that bad, but you have to ask the question: why?

Yeah Boz, the original Palm Beach article had 2 pages of comments from readers at the end and a lot of them centered on comparisons to the "failed" new coke idea. I put that in quotes however, because apparently that new coke idea is viewed positively. It was apparently successful in keeping the name at the forefront of conversations and whatever sales they lost during the experimentation with the new formula, was repaid with interest in boosted sales when they came back with "Coca-Cola Classic."

For a very short while you could get the "new Coke" or the "Coca-Cola Classic." I don't think I ever met a single person who said that they liked the new coke better. Strangely enough, to me the new coke was extremely close to Pepsi. I have run into some people that admit liking pepsi better than coke however.

[jgalt]

Jan 15, 2009 17:35:54 GMT -5 hifigator said:

Jan 15, 2009 17:24:21 GMT -5 Boz said:

Gatorade is becoming "G."

It has "new Coke" written all over it.

OK, maybe not that bad, but you have to ask the question: why?

Yeah Boz, the original Palm Beach article had 2 pages of comments from readers at the end and a lot of them centered on comparisons to the "failed" new coke idea. I put that in quotes however, because apparently that new coke idea is viewed positively. It was apparently successful in keeping the name at the forefront of conversations and whatever sales they lost during the experimentation with the new formula, was repaid with interest in boosted sales when they came back with "Coca-Cola Classic."

For a very short while you could get the "new Coke" or the "Coca-Cola Classic." I don't think I ever met a single person who said that they liked the new coke better. Strangely enough, to me the new coke was extremely close to Pepsi. I have run into some people that admit liking pepsi better than coke however.

I definately agree, this isnt going to work the way they hope it will. but i dont think it will be as bad as New Coke because they are not changing the product itself just the marketing (i hope). but it wont make it any more popular.

chances are it will be like Reebok who switched to RBK in an attempt to pull in younger "street wise" consumers but they have now switched back to Reebok only a few years later (and they havent regained their popularity of the 90s with either name and in my opinion have only regained respectability/financial stability because they bought some hockey equipment companies and secured the contract for the NHL)

[vcjack]

I don't care what its called (or that I have to watch creepy mimes dancing on my tv) but if they Edited around with the taste I will never buy a Pepsi product again.

[SFHoya99]

Knowing someone who works in the industry, Gatorade has been getting slaughtered for the last couple of years.

Most of it is simply more competition. It was just them, then Powerade, but now you've got all these new entrants, and Vitamin water and its ilk have been very strong.

Will this fix it? No. But I think they are probably flailing a bit, looking for an answer. G2 was another thing -- Gatorade never really adjusted from "for athletes" to "People working out to lose weight."

[HoyaFanNY]

i thought is was going to be changed to 'Tebowade'.

mgoblog.com/sites/mgoblog.com/files/images/YoureDoingItWrong_9AEF/tebowcreation.jpg

[hoyainspirit]

10K tastes better. No aftertaste.

[PhillyHoya]

Gatorade would be fine if they didn't stop discontinuing my favorite flavors.

[hifigator]

While we are on a somewhat related subject, does anyone remember back in the early-mid seventies, Gatorade was sweetened with sacharine? I swear I remember that but none of my friends do. I vaguely remember that the reason they changed it was because of the phobia of sacharine causing cancer in laboratory rats. In those days, the "diet" drinks were Tab and Fresca -- both featuring sacharine. In any case, does anyone else remember artificially sweetened Gatorade or did I dream it?

[jgalt]

Jan 16, 2009 10:54:02 GMT -5 PhillyHoya said:

Gatorade would be fine if they didn't stop discontinuing my favorite flavors.

They should at least stop creating new flavors called "Mountain ocean blast ice" or whatever, i have no idea what that would taste like and because it is an opaque purple-green-gray i have no intention of finding out. if it tastes like cherry, call it cherry and make it red, if it tastes like grape, call it grape and make it purple

[CTHoya08]

My all time favorite Gatorade flavor was called "Lemon Ice." It was transparent in color. I hadn't seen it for years until I came across one at the airport in the Dominican Republic on the way home (in time for the UofL game!) from Spring Break last year.

[SEAHoya]

Man, Lemon Ice, that was my favourite as well... Lately I had become a fan of the Lemonade flavour but now that has mysteriously disappeared as well.

As for the name change, I happen to think it's a terrible idea, but it's not going to keep me from drinking the stuff post workout/alcohol binge.

[AustinHoya03]

Jan 16, 2009 10:23:39 GMT -5 hoyainspirit said:

10K tastes better. No aftertaste.

Is 10K still available? I haven't seen that stuff on a shelf in years.

Does anyone remember All Sport? Mmm...carbonation...that's what I crave right before a tennis match. Come to think of it, I believe it was Pepsi that distributed that short-lived product, so G wouldn't be its first bad decision in the sports drink biz.

And, for the record, the new name is a terrible decision (was G2 named in anticipation of the re-branding?), as was adding any flavor beyond Lemon-Lime and Orange. Gotta stick with the originals.

[SoCalHoya]

I went to a gathering with Jeff Green where he became a spokesperson for glaceau's VitaminWater. They had posters with "Mean Jeff Green" or something on it. Anyway, for whatever reason, the color of the drink Jeff Green was sponsoring was...red. I don't know who missed that call.

Anyway, if you really want to hydrate and replenish vitamins, drink water with a banana or apple. Then, the best thing way to replenish spent muscles is with good old chocolate milk. I'm not joking. Don't give these soft drink companies your money.

[jgalt]

Jan 18, 2009 20:27:35 GMT -5 SoCalHoya said:

Anyway, if you really want to hydrate and replenish vitamins, drink water with a banana or apple. Then, the best thing way to replenish spent muscles is with good old chocolate milk. I'm not joking. Don't give these soft drink companies your money.

True. If you can afford it though, i have had success with some of those post work out drinks from supplement companies, but they are expensive and only for after a really tough work out (more than your average run/jog for excercise). for most people bananas, apples, oranges, milk and water are great (maybe some salted nuts for protein/salt)

[hifigator]

I think that the "replenishing" really falls into two categories -- fluids and vitamins/minerals. After especially strenuous exercises, like running, basketball or soccer, above all else, we are thirsty. The hotter it is, the more humid it is and the harder and longer we exercise, the more in need of fluids we are. While good old water works ok for this, I honestly do think that sport drinks work "better," but this could simply be because we are inclined to drink more and more quickly. As for the vitamin/mineral end, I am certainly not a nutritionist, but I would tend to agree with those who say that natural fruits work at least as well, if not better than the Gatorades of the world. However, once again, eating an apple or a banana immediately after a strenuous workout doesn't sound very appetizing anymore than having other things I absolutely love like guacamole, a ribeye steak, a Heineken or a pull from a "water pipe." In that regard, I think that Gatorade wins in a landslide. If however, the workout is less aerobic, like lifting weights, doing yardwork or even a friendly game of flag football, then I think that many from that other list are, in fact, desirable. I know that after working in the yard on a Sunday afternoon for instance, I will often grab a beer, jump in the pool and then relax on my couch with an orange or tangerine. After basketball, the pool is the only part of that, that sounds even remotely appealing.

SoCal, I am certainly not going to argue with your familiarity in nutrition, but I can at least speak for myself in saying that after a workout of just about any level, chocolate milk is very far down the list of desirables. I remember when I was a kid and my dad used to take me to the police gym to work out. There was another father/son that were often on the same schedule. After the workout, we would stop at the convenience store around the corner. I would always get a green gatorade and a pack or Tom's salted Peanuts. Half of the Gatorade would be gone before we made it back to the car. The other kid would get a Yoohoo and either a moon pie or a little debbie snack cake. I still remember wondering how in the hell he could want either of those things right now. Granted, I never was a Yoohoo fan, even at other times. But after a workout, it just seemed disgusting to me.

Looking back on it, I don't think he really worked out much at all. He just sort of played around in the gym. So maybe that would explain why I didn't want sweets and he did. In any case, milk is not what I crave in the slightest after a workout -- much less, chocolate.


On edit: I meant to mention, that after talking about this, I must admit that the new ad campaign has kind of "jumped out at me." Over the weekend, I don't know how many TV ads I noticed promoting "G." And then just yesterday, I noticed a 2 page ad in the Parade magazine. The first page just had a "G" in the middle of it, with no explanation. The second page had another word, which escapes me, but the word was broken up over three lines. There was no real indication what the ad was really "for." So I have a sneaking suspicion that the "Big Plan" might be to flood the market with references to "G" in virtually every avenue of advertising possible, trying to get casual observers thinking to themselves, "just what the heck is this "G" thing anyway?" Then they might try to tie it all together with special Super Bowl ads. The timing woud be about right. Just a thought ...

[hifigator]

A Gatorade employee responded to negative feedback:

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So after seeing the awful G commercial for the 50th time, my husband decided to write Gatorade to let them know just how much he disliked where they were taking the brand. Thought I'd share their ingenious response with you. Here's his comments:

"Please go back to your old branding. I don't want to drink "G", I want Gatorade. This is an awful campaign that will result in the loss of your customer base, including my family. Fire your ad agency and find one that has a clue. Thank you, Richard F."

After a day or two, here's the response he received:

"Richard:

We're sorry you're disappointed with the change to "G" as the new symbol for our brand. Your feedback is important to us and we'll certainly share your comments with our marketing team.

First and foremost, the efficacy of our product has not changed! Like always, G still rehydrates, replenishes, refuels and keeps you at the top of your game (whatever it may be).

"G" is the visible symbol of our new attitude. It represents the Glory, Gutsiness, and Greatness of the full spectrum of athletes; it's a badge of pride that travels beyond traditional playing fields.

We're beginning to re-define what it means to be an athlete and the way people think about sports drinks through our bold new packaging. The goal is to invite more consumers to see themselves in our brand, because whether you're in it for the win, the thrill, or better health, The Gatorade Company sees you as an athlete.

We understand that change is difficult and sometimes confusing, but we're still Gatorade, the company that asks: is It in you? Only now, rather than focusing on the question, we're encouraging consumers like a coach might, telling them to be tough, bring it, allow no excuses, and shine on. These new expressions are replacing our former line extension names like Fierce, for example, which is now Bring It.

We hope your family will follow us on the Quest for G in the following weeks, Richard, and can come to appreciate the excitement we're trying to create. Please accept the coupon we've sent via US Mail to enjoy a bottle of G on us; it should arrive in about a week."
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