Coca Cola Advertising Analysis

1545 Words7 Pages
This research paper will trace Coca-Cola’s advertising. Coca-Cola (Coke) is a carbonated soft drink brand, created in 1886, that has steadily grown into one of the world’s most valuable and recognisable brands. It has been recognised as the 3rd most valuable brand by Interbrands in 2015, ranking far above their main competitor Pepsi (ranked 24th). It has been officially available in all countries except North Korea and Cuba. (Hebblethwaite, 2012) There have been a total of 12 variants other than the original under the brand name Coke over time. (Bold, 2014) Coca-Cola’s main competitor is Pepsi, though it does have other competitors such as Dr Pepper, Red Bull and Mountain Dew. (Lovejoy, 2015) Coke and Pepsi have long since been rivals with…show more content…
The advertisements and slogan were part of the “It’s the Real Thing” campaign which began in 1969. The TV commercial featured youths from all over the world lip-syncing to the song “I’d like to buy the world a Coke” with Coke bottles in their hands on a hilltop. The youths wore clothes that represent their countries (dashikis, kimonos, a dirndl, Nehrus and more) and held Coke bottles branded with different scripts (English, Arabic and even Thai). The song began with a line about “buy(ing) the world a home” and “furnish(ing) it with love” and continued with a line on “buy(ing) the world a coke” and “keep(ing) it company”. (Ryan, 2012) This effectively appealed to the ideals and values of the 1970s (peace, love etc.). The beginning lyrics were representative of society’s and Coke’s target audience’s wants and its values. Additionally the advertisement’s use of youths from all over the world meant that the advertisement would involve the entire US market for Coke, regardless of race or colour. Coke was able to make its advertising relevant to their target segment at that point in time (1971) by relating Coke to the ideas of love, peace and company – values which were synonymous with those of society. (Whylly, 2010) It also included various races and propagating the idea that they were all equal and thus making its advertising…show more content…
(Moye, 2014) The campaign involved debranding Coke cans and bottles, replacing the Coca-Cola logo with popular names. This gave consumers the chance to express themselves through Coke’s products as well as share them. The power of using something as personal as someone’s name was obvious in its sales, Coke sold more than 250 million named bottles and cans to a country of just under 23 million people in the first summer alone. (Moye, 2014) Research also found that while Australian teens and young adults enjoyed Coca-Cola as it “was big and iconic”, they felt that Coke was “not talking to them at eye level”. (Moye, 2014) The campaign corrected this by making Coke cans and bottles something personal and thus increasing consumers’ desire for the product. Younger audiences also tend to favour personalised products with 43% of 16-24 year olds attracted to personalised goods. (Black, 2015) The campaign encouraged consumers to share Coke not only in real life but also through social media sites such as Twitter and Instagram. In 2011, 30% of Australians used social media at least once a day making it a relevant platform on which to reach out to a younger target audience. (Emarketer.com,

More about Coca Cola Advertising Analysis

Open Document