ENG 1001 Home Page Target Market Outline and Sample Paragraph

Support (specific details and explanations of how they prove the identity of the target market for the advertisement):

Detail: Home page: Cam Newton
Explanation: Establishes immediate focus on athletics, success, and youth

Detail: Athletes link and pictures/biographies
Explanation: Creates appeal to aspiring athletes in virtually any sport and both genders

Detail: Celebrity endorsements
Explanation: Imply many professional athletes already use Gatorade (making aspiring athletes more likely the target market)

Detail: FAQs
Explanation: Provide answers to questions that aspiring athletes would have (professionals more likely have trainers)

Detail: Programs: "Keep Her in the Game," "Quest for Greatness," and "Everything to Prove"
Explanation: Show aspiring athletes at different levels: children, young adults, even professional rookies
 

Gatorade’s target market is aspiring athletes striving to maximize their performance and reach greater levels of success. Cam Newton on the home page places an immediate emphasis on athletics in general, and, as a young NFL star, Newton has particular appeal to the younger adults who probably make up the largest percentage of the target market. His recent entry into the NFL (just two seasons ago) also makes him more relatable to aspiring athletes. The rest of the professional athletes Gatorade features through the athletes link appeal to a broad range of amateur athletes: young (Cam Newton and Coco Ho, a professional surfer), middle-aged (Michael Jordan and Kerri Walsh), male and female, and into a wide range of sports (from mainstream sports to BMX racing and dance). The very fact that Gatorade uses these celebrity endorsements implies that their target market consists of aspiring, amateur athletes, the very people most likely to admire and emulate these stars. It is also interesting to note the less obvious link to FAQs at the bottom of the home page. Answering questions such as whether an NFL linebacker and a high school gymnast need the same amount of Gatorade, how much sodium is in Gatorade, where to buy it, and how to read the expiration date addresses issues of interest to aspiring athletes in training. This link also implies the target market of aspiring athletes because they are the ones who would depend on such information, unlike the professional athletes, who often have hired training staff. Lastly, the Gatorade video programs provide a focus on various categories of aspiring athletes: from young girls (“Keep Her in the Game”), to amateur athletes trying to break into the professional level (“Quest for Greatness”), to NFL rookies trying to prove they belong in the professional ranks (“Everything to Prove”).