1.2      Marketing strategy and understanding competitors

To understand better Toblerone we have to look at the market and see how it performs compared to the competition.  In order to do that we have to understand the mission statement of the mother company, Mondelez. Mondelez mission is to create delicious moments of joy. (Mondelez)

Being owned by a big company, means that it has a lot of competition. When looking at the competition it can be seen that it comes from different sections. For example, a main competitor regarding brand products might be Snickers because it contains almost the same elements with small variations( caramel instead of honey, peanuts instead of hazelnuts). A different kind of competitor for Toblerone might be of a generic nature, which contains small local products. For example, there is a product named Kolumbo in Croatia which has even the same shape as Toblerone. Of course, the quality is not the same but is a cheap alternative to Toblerone. Another type of competition might be of a product form nature, such as a homemade chocolate using the same ingredients.

 Considering that, Toblerone has a competitive advantage being a market challenger. Being on the market for more than 100 years, it established its name on the market. Also, the quality didn’t drop, so, it brings more and more customers. (Toblerone)Toblerone alsohas the history in its advantage and also it helps a lot being the first patent product that uses the actual ingredients. Overall, Toblerone has made an image over the years and has a huge advantage in appealing to customers than other newly entered products.

When you look at the Ansoff Matrix, the growth strategy that fits Toblerone could be Market Penetration. The product already has a good image and a rebranding might be disastrous like Coca-Cola attempt to rebrand in order to cope with Pepsi. It seems that the brand matters more for the customers than the actual product. Considering that, Toblerone can appeal to the existing customers by being in as many places as possible, which is already doing. To illustrate that, try and think of how many people come with a Toblerone chocolate bare from the airports in general and the answer will be quite a lot. That is because Toblerone is seen as a luxury chocolate bar in customer’s heads. The brand and quality maintains its position. 

 Sources:

Mondelez. (n.d.). our dream belief and values. Retrieved 09 14, 2016, from Mondelez: http://www.mondelezinternational.com/about-us/our-dream-belief-and-values

Toblerone. (n.d.). our history. Retrieved from Toblerone: http://www.toblerone.co.uk/