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ROADMAP

STAGE 1

a) Know Your Market
Continued

Do you know your target consumer?

Customer ‘Immersion’:
Start by going to leading bars and outlets in the on-trade and key retailers in the of-trade.
Observe the category layout, menus, range of products & brands. Look at shelf pricing and any
promotions on display in the outlet. Then engage staf in outlet and explore what they observe
from consumers and what needs they have in serving drinks. Keep in mind they will be busy at
peak times, so engage them when they typically have more time to speak with you.

This same customer immersion process can also be applied to the on-trade. Start by identifying
the outlets that you believe best match where your brand will sell to your target market.
Then immerse yourself in those outlets to observe what’s going on around brands and their
consumption.

In terms of a distributor, arrange to travel with a sales rep on his or her customer calls to observe
and probe behaviours around various brands that you want to understand. There is a useful
Immersion Guide available to plan your own immersions at (Immersion Guide click here)

You should now have a clear understanding of what you do not know.

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