How to Prepare for Brand Management Interviews Extracted from a Quaker Oats Presentation (Oct ’00)

Agenda What is the goal of recruitment? What do Brand Companies want? How to handle Marketing Case questions? How to get ready for the process?

What is the goal of recruitment?

How do we identify true interests and aptitude? Identify understanding of and interest in brand management and marketing concepts Identify competencies -- Top performers are more likely to exhibit these competencies more often and more completely for better results Understand past performance -- Your past performance is the single best predictor of future performance

What competencies do marketing companies want? Communication Skills Analytical Abilities Ability to Learn Strategic and Conceptual Thinking Leadership Teamwork Creativity Cultural Fit with the organization Understanding of Marketing Concepts

How to get ready for the questions? Prepare for behavioral questions Capitalize on your strengths Prepare examples of how you have exhibited the desired traits Tell your story, not a text book philosophy Know your weaknesses and be ready to respond when they are be probed Prepare for marketing case questions

What are Marketing Companies expecting from case questions? We don’t expect that you had a past in marketing, but we do expect that you understand marketing concepts We really want an opportunity to understand your potential in a brand management career How you apply your skills and competencies to solving marketing problems How versatile your skills are We are not looking for one specific answer, we ‘re trying to understand how you think

How to handle Marketing Case questions? Approach each question with a framework Think broad, then narrow Think strategically, then tactically Use the 4 P’s (price, product, promotion, placement) or the C’s (consumer, company, competitor, category) Be concise and focused

New Product Launch How would you develop and potentially introduce a new product, a toddler snack, from the Quaker Oats company? Currently, there are a only a few products available, from Gerber, located in the baby food section of the grocery channel Gerber dominates the baby food category with Beechnut a distant second

New Product Launch Identify if consumers want and need this product? Try to segment the market Understand the competition Where are the opportunities in the market? Determine the target and positioning What is the differentiated point of difference that is meaningful to this target? What core competencies are needed to deliver the proposition? Do we have them? Can we get them? What do the financials look like? Determine the proposition, the 4 P’s? If financials make company hurdles, Launch

New Product Launch Should Quaker introduce a toaster pastry? Should we extend one of our equities into this category? How would you assess? Quaker Chewy Granola Bars are #1 granola bar, Quaker Fruit & Oatmeal Cereal Bars are now #2, behind Kelloggs Nutrigrain Bars. Kellogg’s Pop Tarts brand is the dominant leader of Toaster Pastries.

Competitive New Product Launch Malt-o-Meal has just launched an Instant Oatmeal brand at a reduced price vs. Quaker Instant Oatmeal. How would you figure out whether or not to defend? Samples received show that the product offers more oatmeal per pouch, but the flavors are not as good tasting Quaker Instant Oatmeal is the dominant brand in the instant oatmeal category

Create a new product Develop a new energy drink, targeted to MBA students? How would you approach it?

Business Situations Understand the sales, profits, and market share situation. Where is the problem? What’s happening with the consumer base? Determine relationship between sales, profit and share Identify the category size and trend + or – Identify the competitive situation Strength of other players Recent changes from other players Attempt to strengthen the problem area

Business Situations Your brand’s market share is up, but sales are declining. The company wants brands that grow or at least are more profitable. What is going on? What can you do?

Category is declining. What now? Why? Shrinking market or changing preferences? How quickly has this happened? Are competitors impacted too (broader than your category)? Choose: exit or grow category or maintain at more profitable levels If Grow, How? Alter product Increase usage Create new use Leverage brand into other categories Sell into new distribution channels

Business Situations Your brands sales are declining and the category is growing. What is happening?

Market share is declining. What now? Why is category growing? Consumer preferences? Competitive moves (new products, new positioning, price)? Why is your brand not growing? Consumer – right target? Competitor – right position? 4 P’s (product, placement, promotion, price) Action

Business Situations Your competitor just announced a superiority claim over your product. What do you do?

Competitor Claim Understand the risk Assess responses and implication? Assess threat of competitor/brand Assess strength of claim with your consumer target Assess marketing support behind claim Is the claim legal? Do you respond legally? Assess responses and implication? Product – match claim, introduce other? Price – Change value equation? Promotion – Divert attention? Increase loyalty? Place – Other channels? Respond

World Class Advertising Commands Attention Arresting Engaging Surprising, Unexpected “For Me” Relevance Holds an emotional “kernel” of truth or insight Touches the heart or tickles the spirit Ownable - differentiates the brand vs. competition Only your brand can say it Only your brand does say it

Tell me about a great advertisement Evaluate advertising using your heart first, then your head React with your gut Then, observe the strategy Answering the question Describe the ad, the target and the positioning Describe how the execution commands attention, is “for me”, and ownable

General Marketing Questions Tell me about an example of great marketing One that holds a strong, relevant position in people’s minds and is well-marketed through the 4 P’s Tell me about a bad example One that has a confusing positioning or holds a significant gap or inconsistency in the 4 P’s Tell me about a well-marketed web site One that holds a strong, relevant positioning and delivers against the 4 P’s

Other questions If you were a web site, what would it be like? If you created an advertisement for yourself for this position, what would it be like? Why do you want to work for my company? Why do you want to go into brand management?

How to get ready for the process? Practice Find your own best approach/framework for case questions Don’t let limited information throw you Practice with small groups Don’t rest on internship laurels Visit the channel Observe yourself responding to marketing with your gut Be concise and focused in your answers Research the companies you are targeting

How to get ready for the process? Then, after all of that preparation and practice… Be true to yourself Relax Be yourself Have fun Find the fit that is right for you