Iconic drink continues aggressive marketing campaigns to cement top position

MOST, if not all, Malaysians can recall a delightful experience of starting the day with a cup of hot Milo or lining up for a cup of frothy cold Milo from the green van on a hot day.

The chocolatey malt beverage is often thought of as the drink that Malaysian children love and grow up with.

Milo, a tonic food drink from Nestle, has certainly made its mark in Malaysia since it was first introduced in 1950. Many would agree that Milo has become a household name synonymous with children and sports.

And after 60 years of capturing the lion’s share of the health drink market, Nestle (Malaysia) Bhd has yet to rest on the success of Milo. If anything, Nestle is intensifying its marketing efforts.

The iconic brand will be launching a Milo Nutrition Campaign this month to reinforce the nutritional value of Milo as a source of energy and as the ideal breakfast beverage for children.

“If you look back at some of our advertising from around those times, it featured sports people. We’ve always been talking about nutrition, sports and energy.

“That is the positioning we have taken till today. So it has been a very consistent positioning over time as a nutritious drink,” said Nestle’s coffee and beverage business unit executive director Don Howat.

According to Howat, Milo holds the lead in Malaysia with a 90% share of the fast-growing health food drinks market.

However, Howat noted that the times have changed from when Milo was introduced back in 1950 as there are more competitors today. He added that not only are there more malt-based beverages in the market, but also other health food beverages that are taking up market share as consumers grow wiser and become more health conscious.

These include isotonic drinks, fruit juices, yoghurt-based drinks and so on.

“People are being bombarded by more messages today more than ever. That is why we want to reinforce and remind people of how nutritionally balanced Milo is. And we find it is particularly relevant at the moment. People may get very familiar with Milo but may forget what is in there,” he said.

Milo currently holds about 50% share of all consumption amongchildren aged six to 12 years, and 25% of all adults’ consumption.

Despite dominating the market, Howat said there is still plenty of opportunity to grow consumption in Malaysia.

“People still drink lots of tap water in Malaysia. So, the beverage market itself is still relatively undeveloped. There is still a lot of room for growth,” Howat said.

Milo makes up the bulk of Nestle’s beverage revenue. In 2010, the beverages segment was 49.3% of Nestle’s total turnover of RM4bil.

This is an increase from a contribution of 47.9% of total revenue of RM3.7bil in 2009.

Nestle has a range of Milo products to cater to various groups of consumers including Milo Fuze and ready-to-drink Milo in cans.

Last year, it launched Milo Sejuk to give consumers a taste of the cold Milo-from-the-van in the comfort of their own homes.

Howat said Malaysia generally recognise Milo as a breakfast drink and most consumers still drink it hot although people like queuing up for a cup of cold Milo from the van.

“Only 8% of Milo is drunk cold and this includes those drunk at the mamak outlets. We are looking at growing this segment as well, and given the small percentage at the moment, it can grow,” he said.

Nestle is also looking at increasing its share the adults’ segment and recently launched a range of products targeted at this age group.

“We have researched potential market reception for these products and we are quite positive about them,” he added.

Howat said Nestle will always find ways to market and promote Milo no matter how big its presence is in the beverage market because there is always room to develop the drinks industry.

Additionally, Howat noted that there are new mothers every year, which means a new generation of Milo consumers. Thus, he said it was important to continue to market Milo.

“This coming campaign is quite a heavyweight campaign,” he said.

The Milo Nutrition Campaign will include a new television commercial, school visits with the Milo van, road shows and a heavy presence on social media.