The World’s Favorite Cookie

During my consumer behavior class, we examined the global marketing strategy of Oreos. Surprisingly, America’s favorite cookie didn’t focus outside of USA’s market until the mid 1990s. Oreo first decided to move into the Chinese market, but realized it had to dramatically change its strategy to succeed outside of USA.

Oreo had to change its packaging, pricing and product to capture sales in China. Based on consumer research, Oreo decided to introduce smaller packages in the Chinese market. Instead of the rather large packages in USA, China’s packaging only holds seven Oreos. This is because Chinese people have less pantry space, stores have less shelf space and consumers shop on a more frequent basis than Americans.

Strawberry and Vanilla Oreo Wafers sold in China

Oreo also learned that Chinese citizens are extremely conscious of cost, so the company decided to sell the cookies in packs of seven for only 29 cents. That’s a pretty big difference compared to the packs of 30 that cost $3 to $4 in USA. Next time I buy a pack of Oreos, I’ll go to China for the best deal.

The most dramatic change Oreo made, was changing its product altogether to capture the Chinese market. Oreo decided to introduce fruit flavors in the cookie to satisfy the taste preferences of the market. The company also created wafers covered in chocolate instead of the classic round cookie.

Double-Fruit Raspberry and Blueberry flavored Oreos

After its move into China, Oreo focused on consumer research before launching its products in other countries. The business now has Oreos in over 100 countries, and no cookie is sold in the same way. Maybe one day Oreo will be the world’s favorite cookie.

Strawberry and Vanilla Oreos in Argentina