Coke hopes its new ads conjure up the old magic
ALWAYS EVOLUTION
Highlights from Coca-Cola’s advertising over time:
1886 : Drink Coca-Cola
1929: The Pause That Refreshes
1963: Things Go Better With Coke
1969: It’s the Real Thing
1971: I’d Like to Buy the World a Coke
1979: Have a Coke and a Smile
1982: Coke Is It
1990: You Can’t Beat the Real Thing
1993: Always Coca-Cola
2000: Coca-cola. Enjoy
2001: Life Tastes Good
2003: Coca-Cola … Real
2005: Make it Real
2006: The Coke Side of Life
Source: the company
Marketing swagger fades with U.S. sales; last hit slogan in ’93
Advertising owes many of its landmarks to Coca-Cola Co.: There was the 1969 slogan “It’s the Real Thing,” widely considered one of the most effective ever written. And Coca-Cola’s 1971 “Hilltop” commercial turned a jingle, “I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing,” into a peace anthem.
And then there is the recent Coke advertising. Remember the commercial where actress Penelope Cruz guzzled a Coke and belched? How about the sweaty basketball player who stuck a cold can of Coke in his armpit before offering it to his buddy?
“It was painful to watch,” says Kevin Keller, a marketing professor at Dartmouth College, of Hanover, New Hampshire, and a former advertiser to Coke.
Those spots, hallmarks of the doomed “Real” campaign created by maverick ad agency Berlin Cameron & Partners, a unit of WPP Group, were just the latest in a series of advertising mishaps at Coke.
The last time Coke had a hit ad campaign was “Always Coca-Cola,” which it introduced in 1993 and discarded in 1999. Last year, an effort to update the “Hilltop” commercial for Coke Zero was a resounding flop.
Now Coke is trying once again to recapture its marketing swagger with a new global slogan: “The Coke Side of Life.” The first spots in the campaign, created by Portland, Oregon, agency Widen+ Kennedy, are set to air this weekend. Coke plans to deploy the ads in other countries by midyear.
Rarely has Coke had so much riding on an ad campaign. Sales of Coca-Cola classic in the U.S. fell 2% by volume last year, contributing to a 10% decline over the past five years.
But it’s far from clear that a new ad slogan alone can reverse Coca-Cola’s decline in the U.S., as more consumers swear off sugary sodas and turn to bottled water and energy drinks. Coca-Cola’s rival, PepsiCo’s Pepsi-Cola, has reacted to declining demand for sugary soda by emphasizing Diet Pepsi. Coke has had mixed results introducing lower-calorie alternatives.
Coke hasn’t disclosed spending for the new effort, including outdoor ads and online promotions as well as television. Last year, the company boosted its $2 billion global marketing budget by $400 million. Ad spending on Coca-Cola Classic in the U.S., the world’s largest soft-drink market, fell to $124 million last year from $210 million in 2000, according to TNS Media Intelligence.
Behind the scenes, Coke marketers in recent years have been locked in an internal tug-of-war over their 120-year-old brand’s image. Traditionalist executives were determined to preserve the icon, steeped in Americana. New marketers at Coke, including Coke’s former president, Steven J. Heyer, were pressing for a hipper identity.
Mr. Heyer, a Madison Avenue veteran, hired edgy ad shops, including Berlin Cameron, whose sweaty-armpit ad aired for a short time in 2004. The spot brought the behind-the-scenes struggle briefly to light, after veteran Coke executives had it yanked from the air.
Mr. Heyer left Coke in 2004 soon after Neville Isdell was named chief executive and chairman. Mr.Isdell has vowed to return Coca-Cola to its former marketing glory. Last year, the company stabilized its global market share, with fast growth in emerging markets such as Russia and China helping to offset sluggish sales in the U.S.
The marketing ranks at Coke had been thinned considerably by cuts in the work force at headquarters starting in 2000. Mr.Isdell has criticized previous management for cutting ad spending to meet short-term profit goals.
Mary Minnick, president of global marketing, strategy and innovation, is Coke’s fourth marketing chief since 2003. She awarded the plum Coca-Cola account to Wieden + Kennedy following a creative shootout that included Berlin Cameron. The new campaign will be supplemented by ads created in local markets around the world.
Coke announced the new campaign Thursday. Rooted in youthful optimism and the brand’s core values of refreshment and comfort, it seems to signal the pendulum has swung back toward the traditionalist view. A central image of the new ads will be the contoured Coca-Cola bottle. Some commercials close with the fizzing sound of a freshly poured Coke.
The new work “understands that Coke trade dress – the red colour, the ribbon, the contour glass, the logos - are magical icons with immeasurable power,” wrote Advertising Age’s Bob Garfield. “It understands that the fizzing, bubbling sound of a soft-drink pour is one of the most fetching, evocative and appetizing sounds on earth.”
Ms. Minnick told analysts and investors at a December meeting, “We have one objective and that’s to make choosing Coke a purposeful act.” Still, she has cautioned that Coke can’t “go back to yesterday” by recycling old slogans.
But Jack Trout, a marketing strategist based in Greenwich, Connecticut, recommends that Coke literally feature some creative device in commercials to take young consumers back in time to 1886, when an Atlanta druggist concocted the secret Coke formula. ‘“They should go back to ‘the Real Thing,’ ” he says.
Even that couldn’t work in the modern media environment, argues Tom Pirko, of consulting firm Bevmark, of Santa Ynez, California. Coke’s best-loved ads aired when consumers had far fewer beverage choices and were much easier to reach through mass-market TV commercials. He doubts the “Coke Side of Life” will register. “Marketing magic cannot be recreated,” he says.
“It has to be created with an original thought that is breakthrough.”The data at the top comes from the Coca-Cola Co.
This article was written by Chad Terhune in Corporate News for THE WALL STREET JOURNAL – Asia, published Friday – Sunday, March 31 – April 2, 2006.
Property in Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa on http://www.hotpropertyincapetown.com
Highlights from Coca-Cola’s advertising over time:
1886 : Drink Coca-Cola
1929: The Pause That Refreshes
1963: Things Go Better With Coke
1969: It’s the Real Thing
1971: I’d Like to Buy the World a Coke
1979: Have a Coke and a Smile
1982: Coke Is It
1990: You Can’t Beat the Real Thing
1993: Always Coca-Cola
2000: Coca-cola. Enjoy
2001: Life Tastes Good
2003: Coca-Cola … Real
2005: Make it Real
2006: The Coke Side of Life
Source: the company
Marketing swagger fades with U.S. sales; last hit slogan in ’93
Advertising owes many of its landmarks to Coca-Cola Co.: There was the 1969 slogan “It’s the Real Thing,” widely considered one of the most effective ever written. And Coca-Cola’s 1971 “Hilltop” commercial turned a jingle, “I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing,” into a peace anthem.
And then there is the recent Coke advertising. Remember the commercial where actress Penelope Cruz guzzled a Coke and belched? How about the sweaty basketball player who stuck a cold can of Coke in his armpit before offering it to his buddy?
“It was painful to watch,” says Kevin Keller, a marketing professor at Dartmouth College, of Hanover, New Hampshire, and a former advertiser to Coke.
Those spots, hallmarks of the doomed “Real” campaign created by maverick ad agency Berlin Cameron & Partners, a unit of WPP Group, were just the latest in a series of advertising mishaps at Coke.
The last time Coke had a hit ad campaign was “Always Coca-Cola,” which it introduced in 1993 and discarded in 1999. Last year, an effort to update the “Hilltop” commercial for Coke Zero was a resounding flop.
Now Coke is trying once again to recapture its marketing swagger with a new global slogan: “The Coke Side of Life.” The first spots in the campaign, created by Portland, Oregon, agency Widen+ Kennedy, are set to air this weekend. Coke plans to deploy the ads in other countries by midyear.
Rarely has Coke had so much riding on an ad campaign. Sales of Coca-Cola classic in the U.S. fell 2% by volume last year, contributing to a 10% decline over the past five years.
But it’s far from clear that a new ad slogan alone can reverse Coca-Cola’s decline in the U.S., as more consumers swear off sugary sodas and turn to bottled water and energy drinks. Coca-Cola’s rival, PepsiCo’s Pepsi-Cola, has reacted to declining demand for sugary soda by emphasizing Diet Pepsi. Coke has had mixed results introducing lower-calorie alternatives.
Coke hasn’t disclosed spending for the new effort, including outdoor ads and online promotions as well as television. Last year, the company boosted its $2 billion global marketing budget by $400 million. Ad spending on Coca-Cola Classic in the U.S., the world’s largest soft-drink market, fell to $124 million last year from $210 million in 2000, according to TNS Media Intelligence.
Behind the scenes, Coke marketers in recent years have been locked in an internal tug-of-war over their 120-year-old brand’s image. Traditionalist executives were determined to preserve the icon, steeped in Americana. New marketers at Coke, including Coke’s former president, Steven J. Heyer, were pressing for a hipper identity.
Mr. Heyer, a Madison Avenue veteran, hired edgy ad shops, including Berlin Cameron, whose sweaty-armpit ad aired for a short time in 2004. The spot brought the behind-the-scenes struggle briefly to light, after veteran Coke executives had it yanked from the air.
Mr. Heyer left Coke in 2004 soon after Neville Isdell was named chief executive and chairman. Mr.Isdell has vowed to return Coca-Cola to its former marketing glory. Last year, the company stabilized its global market share, with fast growth in emerging markets such as Russia and China helping to offset sluggish sales in the U.S.
The marketing ranks at Coke had been thinned considerably by cuts in the work force at headquarters starting in 2000. Mr.Isdell has criticized previous management for cutting ad spending to meet short-term profit goals.
Mary Minnick, president of global marketing, strategy and innovation, is Coke’s fourth marketing chief since 2003. She awarded the plum Coca-Cola account to Wieden + Kennedy following a creative shootout that included Berlin Cameron. The new campaign will be supplemented by ads created in local markets around the world.
Coke announced the new campaign Thursday. Rooted in youthful optimism and the brand’s core values of refreshment and comfort, it seems to signal the pendulum has swung back toward the traditionalist view. A central image of the new ads will be the contoured Coca-Cola bottle. Some commercials close with the fizzing sound of a freshly poured Coke.
The new work “understands that Coke trade dress – the red colour, the ribbon, the contour glass, the logos - are magical icons with immeasurable power,” wrote Advertising Age’s Bob Garfield. “It understands that the fizzing, bubbling sound of a soft-drink pour is one of the most fetching, evocative and appetizing sounds on earth.”
Ms. Minnick told analysts and investors at a December meeting, “We have one objective and that’s to make choosing Coke a purposeful act.” Still, she has cautioned that Coke can’t “go back to yesterday” by recycling old slogans.
But Jack Trout, a marketing strategist based in Greenwich, Connecticut, recommends that Coke literally feature some creative device in commercials to take young consumers back in time to 1886, when an Atlanta druggist concocted the secret Coke formula. ‘“They should go back to ‘the Real Thing,’ ” he says.
Even that couldn’t work in the modern media environment, argues Tom Pirko, of consulting firm Bevmark, of Santa Ynez, California. Coke’s best-loved ads aired when consumers had far fewer beverage choices and were much easier to reach through mass-market TV commercials. He doubts the “Coke Side of Life” will register. “Marketing magic cannot be recreated,” he says.
“It has to be created with an original thought that is breakthrough.”The data at the top comes from the Coca-Cola Co.
This article was written by Chad Terhune in Corporate News for THE WALL STREET JOURNAL – Asia, published Friday – Sunday, March 31 – April 2, 2006.
Property in Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa on http://www.hotpropertyincapetown.com
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