Much has been written in the past few weeks about Pepsi’s success in Quebec and the brand’s campaign celebrating its 75-year history in the province. In its Sunday issue, Montreal’s The Gazette published an article entitled ‘Ici, c’est Pepsi’ – but why?. I was quoted and so was Ottawa marketing professor Luc Dupont.
One of his points was that “subconsciously, Quebeckers identify with products that are No. 2.”
That’s an interesting observation. I guess it would require
knowledge of which brands are No. 1 and No. 2 in various product categories.
And that’s something that few consumers know about unless they have access to
market share data from firms like Nielsen or the brands claim the No.2 position (e.g. Avis. We're No.2 but we try harder).
Implicit in Dupont’s assertion is the notion that Quebeckers would rather support the underdog than the market leader. I can’t say that I have seen evidence of this. However, in some product categories the No.2 brand is the local Quebec brand that competes with the leading national brand. That’s perhaps what Quebeckers identify more with than its share ranking.
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