Preface The brutal competition in the beverage industry has extended the battle to the last meter of shelf display. To increase sales, attract attention, and boost purchase volume, beverage companies are pulling out all the stops to secure the best terminal displays.

01 "Buddy Pack" Multi-Packs Beverages are among the high-frequency consumer goods in FMCG, with relatively large daily consumption and purchase volumes. As beverage varieties and flavors increase, consumers have more choices. With this trend, multi-packs are increasingly adopted by beverage companies. Multi-packs are generally used for large-capacity beverages, where two bottles are connected at the neck, forming a "buddy pack" or "sister pack." These can be same-brand same-product or different-flavor combinations, or even cross-brand pairings, though different-product pairings are more common to meet diverse consumer needs and flavor complementarity. A typical example is Coca-Cola's pairing of Sprite and Coca-Cola, or Coca-Cola and Minute Maid, often seen in hypermarkets during hot summers. Subsequently, brands like Dahu and Huiyuan adopted this for large-capacity juices. Pepsi's Tropicana Twister also uses a multi-pack with Pepsi-Cola. Products with multi-packs typically have high purchase volume and frequency, and the multi-pack offers consumers a discount. For large-capacity beverages, multi-packs not only facilitate carrying but also help amortize the cost of the connector and the discount. Since multi-packs effectively increase the per-customer purchase quantity, and given that consumers need to buy beverages regularly, offering a discount with multi-packs greatly enhances appeal and effectively increases consumption.

02 Bundled Gifts Gift promotions are also a common method, widely used across FMCG sectors. Gifts are usually practical and value-for-money items, and the choice is flexible, varying with the promotion's positioning. There is a clear primary-secondary relationship between the gift and the product. Depending on product characteristics, some choose different product categories as gifts for convenience; others use joint promotions between brands to complement strengths; some use small samples of new products as gifts to gauge consumer reaction; and many simply bundle two identical or similar products, such as buy-one-get-one, buy-two-get-one, or buy-a-case-get-several. For example, Uni-President's Apple Drink uses bath balls as gifts, considering summer bathing needs, though pairing beverages with toiletries is unconventional and not very coordinated. Kirin's Afternoon Tea uses Glico's Pocky as a promotional item, a complementary pairing between two Japanese companies that offers consumers value and uses a peak-season product to boost off-season sales. More common is buy-one-get-one on the same product, as seen with Taizinai and Xuefeili herbal tea. However, buy-one-get-one on identical products is a double-edged sword. If simply bundled with rough packaging, consumers may perceive the products as slow-moving or near-expiry, harming sales. Therefore, companies must carefully design buy-one-get-one promotions, as the method, quantity, packaging, and product choice directly impact effectiveness.

03 Necklace Marketing Adding hang tags to beverages is vividly called "necklaces." This method is increasingly used on small-capacity beverages, especially for new products. Necklace marketing serves several purposes: First, to highlight a new product's concept or feature, such as Yuanye's tag stating "100% brewed from tea leaves" or Nongfu Spring's tag indicating pH 7.3, weakly alkaline water; second, to promote activities, like Tenwong Tea House's Mayday concert or Afternoon Tea's digital camera giveaway; third, to more effectively identify the product, such as Mizone's new packaging with tags emphasizing new features; fourth, to promote product image, like Pepsi's Tropicana Twister with Louis Koo's image, or Master Kong's Cool Wheat Tea with Yang Lan's image to attract attention. Adding tags is a hot trend in terminal displays, mainly because it's low-cost and yields direct results. Beyond product placement, companies strive to secure more shelf space and attention. A tag, combined with advertising, effectively triggers purchase associations at the point of sale. For new products, a necklace reinforces unique attributes and distinctiveness. The popularity of necklace marketing reflects the intense competition at the terminal, where brands use the product itself as an advertising medium. However, it's important to note that necklaces vary in length and tags in size; manufacturers should tailor them to avoid compromising display aesthetics and product visibility.

04 Nth Item N% Off The Nth item N% off is an evolution of bundling. For example, the first item costs 15 yuan, the second at 20% off (12 yuan), and the third at 50% off (7.5 yuan). In practice, buying two items gives only a 10% total discount, and buying three gives about 24% off—not very high, especially since many stores only offer a second-item discount. Yet this method is effective at the terminal because buyers are often attracted by the lowest discount, which can be misleading. This approach has at least four other benefits: First, it increases sales volume, especially for low-margin products; second, it avoids the need to repackage or unpack for bundling or multi-packs; third, it offers flexible product selection, allowing both attack and defense. It can be seen as making profit on the first item and not on the second; through low-cost trials, you can find price-sensitive products. Finally, it's particularly effective in competitive areas with multiple supermarkets, forcing rivals to keep up.

05 Joint Displays Box or case packaging is common in beverage distribution, but except for dairy and dairy-containing beverages, few are placed directly on shelves. Some brands are now improving case displays on shelves. These joint displays differ from simple case stacking; they feature attractive exterior designs that act like small billboards. This method was first used in beer, and now some functional or premium beverage brands are adopting it, combining individual and joint displays to maximize shelf space, complementing vertical and horizontal displays to deepen consumer impressions. It also promotes both small and large packages simultaneously, killing two birds with one stone.

06 Pallet Displays and Counters Pallet displays are the most common promotion method in beverage retail, and an effective pallet can catch consumers' eyes. Pallet displays vary widely in design and location, with vastly different results. Some elevate pallet design to an art form, saying "a good pallet speaks for itself." Current beverage pallets mostly use shelf end-caps, aisle pallets, and dedicated promotional platforms at store entrances. Each type has specific strengths. End-caps typically feature promotional items within a category, like a juice brand's pallet in the beverage section. Aisle pallets highlight products with distinctive features or price advantages. Entrance platforms usually showcase the store's promotional theme or hero products. Because pallets are so common, problems abound. For instance, product B might be placed on product A's pallet, which happens frequently. Some pallets are messy or not replenished in time, looking incomplete and unattractive. Meanwhile, some premium beverage brands are opening counter-style shelves in stores, which differ from pallets in that they are fixed locations with larger display areas, but also higher costs. Thus, they are typically used for high-end products like Rijiaman and K-ke. Undeniably, the battle for the last meter is intensifying in the beverage industry, and brands are innovating in displays within limited space and time. Shelves are finite, but products are infinite; turning limited shelves into golden resources is a puzzle. However, I must remind that while companies spend heavily to grab shelf space, they should cherish this hard-won territory. Unfortunately, some products suffer from dented bottles, peeling labels, crooked necks, or leaks, even among major brands and star products.

-END- Excerpt from "Terminal Sales Visit General Model" September 10, 2015, 20:00-21:00. Long-press the QR code below to register for 9.9 yuan.