Product Differentiation
Ben and Jerry’s produce their products in environmentally, animal friendly ways and supporting local farmers especially from Vermont (Dennis, Neck, & Goldsby, 1998). All farmers who provided dairy had agreed to use no bovine growth hormone (BGH) (Polk, 2014). This has made their ice cream become an all-natural and high quality in the same time. In 1998 Ben & Jerry’s introduced the eco-pint, the ice cream industry’s first pint container made from unbleached paperboard, avoiding the use of chlorine in the production of the packaging, a major source of dioxin and recognized as one of the earth’s most toxic chemicals (Freese, 2007). They also advertised the use of recycled materials to make their cartons (Liberman, 2011). …show more content…
Started from only three production plants in late 1980s, they have become a known ice cream company through their social strategy. By getting close to the community they get a large support after being listed in NASDAQ on 1984 (Page & Katz, 2010). Many of their business decisions were made by focusing on an environmental mission. They started to expand their scoop shop from Canada to Europe. These scoop shops serve as a major employment resource and a source of revenue for non-profit groups (McWilliams & Siegel, 2001). Unilever’s acquisition of Ben and Jerry’s in the year 2000 has led to a wider scope for the ice cream maker (Hoover’s Inc., 2010). The company now franchising 750 Ben and Jerry’s Scoop Shops worldwide. Additionally, Unilever struck a deal with Dreyer’s, which has expanded the distribution of Ben and Jerry’s products to 24 countries (Hoover’s Inc., 2010). In addition, Ben & Jerry’s gains a competitive advantage by franchising and expanding market share, increase their revenue and marketing the company’s brand name using the minimal amounts of startup …show more content…
The unique product of Ben & Jerry’s may not be valued highly enough by customers to justify the higher price. The customer experience can narrow customers’ perceptions of the value of a product’s differentiated feature (Hitt, Ireland, & Hoskisson, 2009). By example, a customer that has positive experience with less expensive ice cream may lead to a conclusion that Ben & Jerry’s product are not worth of extra cost. Ben & Jerry’s must continue to meaningfully differentiate their product from time to time for customers at a price they are willing to
Ben and Jerry’s produce their products in environmentally, animal friendly ways and supporting local farmers especially from Vermont (Dennis, Neck, & Goldsby, 1998). All farmers who provided dairy had agreed to use no bovine growth hormone (BGH) (Polk, 2014). This has made their ice cream become an all-natural and high quality in the same time. In 1998 Ben & Jerry’s introduced the eco-pint, the ice cream industry’s first pint container made from unbleached paperboard, avoiding the use of chlorine in the production of the packaging, a major source of dioxin and recognized as one of the earth’s most toxic chemicals (Freese, 2007). They also advertised the use of recycled materials to make their cartons (Liberman, 2011). …show more content…
Started from only three production plants in late 1980s, they have become a known ice cream company through their social strategy. By getting close to the community they get a large support after being listed in NASDAQ on 1984 (Page & Katz, 2010). Many of their business decisions were made by focusing on an environmental mission. They started to expand their scoop shop from Canada to Europe. These scoop shops serve as a major employment resource and a source of revenue for non-profit groups (McWilliams & Siegel, 2001). Unilever’s acquisition of Ben and Jerry’s in the year 2000 has led to a wider scope for the ice cream maker (Hoover’s Inc., 2010). The company now franchising 750 Ben and Jerry’s Scoop Shops worldwide. Additionally, Unilever struck a deal with Dreyer’s, which has expanded the distribution of Ben and Jerry’s products to 24 countries (Hoover’s Inc., 2010). In addition, Ben & Jerry’s gains a competitive advantage by franchising and expanding market share, increase their revenue and marketing the company’s brand name using the minimal amounts of startup …show more content…
The unique product of Ben & Jerry’s may not be valued highly enough by customers to justify the higher price. The customer experience can narrow customers’ perceptions of the value of a product’s differentiated feature (Hitt, Ireland, & Hoskisson, 2009). By example, a customer that has positive experience with less expensive ice cream may lead to a conclusion that Ben & Jerry’s product are not worth of extra cost. Ben & Jerry’s must continue to meaningfully differentiate their product from time to time for customers at a price they are willing to