Imagine that you are a marketing executive at a major food conglomerate that is preparing to launch a new line of diet food products to women. Using the information presented in the text regarding Kraft's South Beach product line, describe how would you obtain information regarding women's frustrations and difficulties in managing their weight.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

When it considered the launch of its South Beach product line, Kraft hired Communispace to create a virtual community (an online network of people who communicate about specific topics) of target consumers: 150 health and wellness opinion leaders and 150 women who wanted to lose weight became a virtual community. The participants openly shared their frustrations and difficulties managing their weight because the community environment prompted them to sense that everyone else on the site struggled with similar issues and concerns. By monitoring the community, Kraft learned that it would need to educate consumers about the South Beach Diet and offer products that could address cravings throughout the day, not just at mealtimes. Six months after the line's introduction, Kraft had earned profits of $100 million.