pinkberry: cateogry,competitive,consumer insights

Pinkberry is a frozen dessert restaurant originally from Los Angeles, California.

Most Pinkberry locations are located in California and New York, but the company has expanded into locations throughout the US such as Illinois, Colorado and Connecticut.

Pinkberry not only offers frozen yogurt, they also offer smoothies, greek yogurt, shaved ice, yogurt parfaits and hot chocolate year round. 

Customers can choose toppings for their treats such as strawberry, raspberry, blueberry, blackberry, , Fruity Pebbles, granola, mochi, lychee, to name a few.  

Pinkberry believes they provide sensible snacks and treats for their visitors.  Many of their items are low calorie, use premium ingredients without trans fats, high fructose corn syrup,

hydrogenated oils and yogurt made with hormone-free milk.

Pinkberry’s nickname?

Crackberry

Pinkberry’s Background

Pinkberry’s Demographics

quantcast.com

Pinkberry’s Audience Interests

quantcast.com

Indicates the customer base is overwhelmingly female, interested in personal appearance and cosmetics and

has higher disposable income for luxury goods.

The Pinkberry Customer

Most Popular Cities: New York,CaliforniaBostonTexasIllinois

Majority of visitors to Pinkberry.com are female as they over-index by 1.25x

25-34 year olds are the majority by 25% with 35-44 year olds following by 19%

61% have no children within their household

Most customers have graduate and post-graduate degrees, 36% at least have a college degree 

Interests of Pinkberry customers include: Fashion and cosmetics, luxury goods and jewelry, fragrances and cosmetics.

These customers like to look and feel good.

Pinkberry.com Visitor Stats

Pinkberry.com Stats Mobile visits surpass online unique

visits.

Online has more page views overall.

Last Month Uniques People Visits Page

Views

Web

Mobile Web

Online

132,456 114,879 203,679 468,171

69,116 105,043 204,305

63,340 98,636 263,866

September 2013-October 2013

quantcast.com

Overall Pinkberry Insights

These are affluent, educated individuals with great spending power. Minorities, especially Asians, over-index as Pinkberry visitors.These are image-conscience individuals who care about health, luxury items and how they look.  These are also mobile-savvy users who access the site via cellphones as much as web.  These visitors are likely looking for their local Pinkberry store hours, flavors and calorie information and accessing the app. Women visit Pinkberry more than men. While 61% do not have children, 39% do have children. Many users could visit Pinkberry via their mobile device to search for dessert options/treats while out and about with families/children.

We Want To...

Raise awareness of Pinkberry as they continue to expand throughout the US and present Pinkerry as a healthy dessert option or treat.

Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/27917561@N00/2837040778/

Google Trends: Pinkberry Search

Google Trends

Most Pinkberry search terms correlate to areas where stores have just opened (Rhode Island, Lousiana).

There is almost no interest ]the midwest and southern states.

Pinkberry’s search terms consists of users searching for locations and hours of operation.

Google.com/trends

Google Trends: Pinkberry Interest

Pinkberry interest was unusually high in April 2013, likely due to the company announcing their Greek yogurt smoothie.

Other than that, Pinkberry displayed higher interest during summer months with interest lowering as fall approached.

http://www.foodnavigator-usa.com/Manufacturers/Pinkberry-bids-for-slice-of-the-action-in-fresh-Greek-yogurt-with-roll-out-of-Pinkberrygreek

Pew Internet: Cell Internet Use in 2013

Nearly two thirds of cell phone owners use their phone to go online, and one in five cell owners do most of their online browsing on their phone

http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2013/Cell-Internet/Main-Findings/Cell-Internet.aspx

Cell Internet Use 2013: Demographics

Demographics of cell internet phone users:

18-49 year oldsMinorities (Black, Hispanic)

College-Educated High incomes

Urban/Suburban Dwellers

http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2013/Cell-Internet/Main-Findings/Cell-Internet.aspx

Google Think/Insight:The Mobile Path to Purchase

A majority of mobile searches are conducted using a search engine of some kind.

http://www.google.com/think/research-studies/mobile-path-to-purchase-5-key-findings.html

Google Think/Insight:The Mobile Path to Purchase

Customers using mobile to search are ready to make their purchasing decision within the day.

http://www.google.com/think/research-studies/mobile-path-to-purchase-5-key-findings.html

Google Think/Insight:The Mobile Path to Purchase:

Mobile experiences heavily influence people’s purchasing decisions with over half moving forward with making a purchase

in the restaurant category.http://www.google.com/think/research-studies/mobile-path-to-purchase-5-key-findings.html

Category Research Insights

- The majority of Pinkberry search interest is within areas where Pinkberry stores have just opened, mainly on the east coast. There is hardly any interest within the Midwest or Southwestern US.

- Interest in Pinkberry and other frozen yogurt stores is high during the summer months (June-August) and begins to taper off as fall approaches (September-October).

- About 55% of adults receive information on local restaurants/bars/clubs. Those 55% are made up of: women, urban/suburban, aged 18-39, minorities (Black, Hispanic), highly educated and upwardly mobile.

- 38% of adults use search engines to find information about local restaurants. Social factors very little within the search process.

- Over 74% of mobile searches are conducted using a search engine.- 55% are looking to make a purchase within the hour; 83% want to purchase within a day.- Within the restaurant category, 54% of those who used mobile to search went on to make a

purchase.

Competitor: TCBY

TCBY is the largest U.S. retailer of soft-serve frozen yogurt.

The first TCBY opened in 1981 in Little Rock, Arkansas. 

TCBY stands for "The Country's Best Yogurt".

Healthy offerings from TCBY include, Super Fro-Yo (a reformulated version of its yogurt with a more nutrient-rich profile) and Greek Yogurt. 

Google Trends: TCBY Search

TCBY search is mostpopular in Southwesternstates such as Arkansas,Louisiana, Nebraska,Colorado.

Google.com/trends

Google Trends: TCBY Interest

Also shows that TCBY definitely misses out on opportunities to other frozen yogurt brands. In June 2013, frozen yogurt indexed at 100 vs. TCBY at a mere 13. 

Google.com/trends

TCBY.Com Visits

TCBY has less visits than Pinkberry.com and less rank in Food and Drinks/Restaurants category.

SimilarWeb.com

Taco Bell and Subway are considered competitors.

This may indicate that TCBY is considered a lower end fast food place than a frozen

yogurt shop.

TCBY’s Competition

Compete.com

TCBY’s Facebook Status

Only 88K likes and 585 people "talking about" the TCBY Facebook page.

Also, most of their Facebook traffic is from Costa Rica, which seems irregular.  

Indicates that the social media efforts within the United States are not as strong as other frozen yogurt chains. 

Facebook.com/tcby

TCBY on Twitter

Significantly lower number of followers than competitors.Many CTAs reaching for more followers on social media.

http://twtrland.com/profile/TCBY

TCBY on the Blogs

Much discussion about TCBY’s new Silk Chocolate Almond product launch--an innovative product within the fro-yo community.

TCBY: Public Perception

Public perception of TCBY via social channels has not been very positive.

TCBY by the numbers

Between 2002 and 2012, the number of TCBY stores declined by 1,188.Total number of restaurants: 500

2012 sales: $98 millionTotal decline in sales: 61.2%

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/america-disappearing-restaurant-chains-211245093.html

Competitor: Red Mango

First Red Mango opened in South Korea in 2003; first US location opened in Los Angeles in 2007.

Key difference from Pinkberry is Red Mango prefers to operate near college campuses rather than metropolitan areas.

In 2011, Red Mango was named the No. 1 Zagat-Rated chain in American for smoothies and frozen yogurt.

Pinkberry’s Biggest Competition?

They're McDonald's, while we're a homemade burger"-- Pinkberry co-founder Young Lee on Red Mango

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2007/05/28/100033688/index.htm

Red Mango’s Facebook Stats

Red Mango’s most popular city is New

York, while Pinkberry’s is currently Los

Angeles.

Red Mango also has more total “likes”.

https://www.facebook.com/redmango

Red Mango’s Twitter Stats

Large number of Red Mango’s tweets are @ replies, which indicates

more interaction with customers.

Red Mango has significantly more

followers than Pinkberry

http://twtrland.com/profile/RedMango

Social Thoughts on Red Mango

Red Mango sentiment is generally positive across

Twitter and the blogosphere; whereas Pinkberry is still

dealing with fallout of their co-founder’s conviction of beating

a homeless man.

Red Mango Named Top Mobile Brand

Red Mango was named the top mobile brand for Q1 whereas

Pinkberry was #26

http://rsmindex.com/2013-top-mobile-brands-q1/

The Search Performance Leader

Overall, Pinkberry leads in search performance, with the exception of total internal links, page trust and internal followed links going to Red Mango.opensiteexplorer.com

Red Mango’s Thought Leader

Daniel Kim, Red Mango’s founder is considered a thought leader, not

only among the frozen yogurt crowd, but also within the business and

digital space.

Kim is active on Twitter, cultivates an Instagram feed and has a Facebook fan page with over 200K of his own

fans.

Competitive Insights RecapTCBY seems to be having an issue with being considered as hip or fresh as Pinkberry and other newer frozen yogurt chains. 

Pinkberry's strategy has traditionally focused on opening in metropolitan areas whereas Red Mango has focused college towns .

Red Mango appears to be more socially engaged with more Twitter followers and Facebook fans and "likes".  Also, Red Mango seems to have more curated content and Tweets/updates.

With Red Mango being named #1 Top Mobile Brand, indicates that Pinkberry should

work on having a stronger mobile strategy for a higher rate of mobile social interactions. 

Red Mango's founder, Dan Kim, appears to be extremely involved with the Red Mango brand and even comes across as a thought leader in areas of social/mobile/branding.  That sort of engagement is not present with Pinkberry.

Stars Love Pinkberry

Reality TV stars, such as the younger Jenner sisters and Jill Zarin, constantly profess their love of Pinkberry to their hundreds of thousands of followers.

Topsy.com

Pinkberry’s “not so shining” Moment

Pinkberry founder’s conviction garnered over 4K tweets--the most between October and November

And the comments were clearly not favorable.

What’s Your Favorite Flavor?

On Twitter, users like to identify their favorite frozen yogurt flavors as a badge.

People also like to share their trips to Pinkberry as they see it as a healthier, guilt-free treat.

Pinkberry User Interests

Red Mango is the only other frozen yogurt brand named.Other audience interests for healthy diet include calorie restriction, dieting and veganism.Other frozen treats such as gelato, sorbet, frozen custard and ice cream are top of mind as well.

Audience: 1,700,000Women: 1,360,000

Men: 340,000

The Frozen Yogurt Debate

People feel that the frozen yogurt market is over-saturated and there are too many frozen yogurt shops that look the same.Compared to other frozen yogurt shops--especially soft-serve shops--Pinkberry is expensive. People look for alternatives than the cost-heavy toppings of Pinkberry. 

Taste the Difference

People wondering about the difference between Pinkberry and Red Mango: Pinkberry is more tart and icier; Red Mango is creamier.

People who like Pinkberry aren’t necessarily looking for sugary sweet taste; instead they are looking for a clean or light finish.

The Pinkberry In-Store Experience

Customers generally enjoy store visits as the customer service reviews are generally positive.Also, while there are concerns about the higher price, many note the higher quality of the frozen yogurt and fruit offerings makes it worth it.

Audience Persona: The Pinkberry Lady

Christine is a junior engineer. She is now living on her own for the first time in Boston, Mass. Christine works long, intense hours, but she works hard to maintain a solid work/life balance which includes staying fit and active, going out with friends and dating in her adopted city.

In her free time, her guilty pleasure is watching mindless television, including reality television shows (Real Housewives) or TV dramas (Revenge, Nashville).

Christine tends to eat a healthy diet for the most part, but she likes to indulge in a guilt-free treat after a good run or Saturday yoga class. For Christine, frozen yogurt or smoothies are much healthier options than sugary ice cream or candy.

She doesn’t indulge often as she’s likes to stay in order within her budget and she prefers not to eat fast food, but she looks forward to a Pinkberry treat 1-2 times a week.

Christine | 24 | Junior Engineer

Consumer Insights Recap People are discussing how frozen yogurt became a popular trend and its sustainability with all of the frozen yogurt shops popping up everywhere.

People wondering about the difference between Pinkberry and Red Mango (the competitor).  The answer: Pinkberry is more tart and icier; Red Mango is creamier.

Although the price of Pinkberry frozen yogurt is higher than most soft-serve shops, consumers feel it is worth it for the higher quality toppings and pleasant in-store experience.

To many people, frozen yogurt--while seen as a healthier option--is not as preferred as ice cream or gelato.  People tend to go to Pinkberry mostly for the health benefits.

The preference people have for Pinkberry over the competitors is due to the tartness and smoothness on the palate than their competitors.  Pinkberry lovers aren't necessarily looking for the sweet finish that others may seek out. 

Pinkberry’s Top 5 Insights

Pinkberry customers are young (18-39), upwardly mobile, city-living, and educated people. The average customer tends to skew towards female. Their most popular cities are LA and New York. Their customers tend to care about being healthy, looking good and taking care of themselves. Going to Pinkberry is a more guilt-free treat for them to indulge in.

While Red Mango is considered Pinkberry’s top competitor, their strategic location placement is different; while Pinkberry are located in metropolitan areas, Red Mango’s are largely located in near college campuses.

Pinkberry’s brand perception has suffered as a result of their co-founder being found guilty of assaulting a homeless man.

There are opportunities for Pinkberry to leverage in mobile and social media as they expand. Pinkberry has some catching up to do with their main competitor, Red Mango.

Pinkberry customers acknowledge the premium topping and frozen yogurt costs, but they enjoy the tart taste of Pinkberry. They also appreciate the high-quality toppings and attentive customer service. This leads to a loyal customer base while many frozen yogurt franchises are opening and people are beginning to express frozen yogurt fatigue.