When the “Christmas Caravan”, a holiday-themed delivery truck carrying Santa Claus and a group of carol singers, rolled into your friendly neighbourhood outlet, it was a part of Coca Cola India’s compelling holiday campaigns.
The campaign – an extension of the global ‘Open Happiness” marketing platform – was deployed in more than 90 countries this year through TV commercials, digital experiences, in-store promotions and packaging. And India had to be a part of it.
There is a good reason why Coke has been so active this winter. While the summer months register almost 30 per cent of the total Coke beverage sales, monsoon and winter account for the rest. That’s a huge potential as sales go up 20 per cent during the winter.
It’s in Coke’s interest to keep the momentum going as per capita consumption of soft drinks in India is still very low at nine bottles a year as against developed countries with per capita consumption up to 365 bottles per year. “Since the pie is really small, we need to be constantly innovating, launching relevant and contemporary beverages and communicating rightly to our consumers about our products”, say Coke executives.
Coke tied up with many food joints, cafes, pubs and bars with the underlying theme being people would relish their food even more with a bottle of Coke. Company executives said “Coca-Cola stands for optimism and as a brand, we believe that people are happier when together. This spirit also resonates very well with the winter festivals that we leveraged through our campaign and activations”.
So Coca Cola this year formulated a three-pronged strategy under one theme – ‘Consumer bonding’ – to ensure a profitable year-end. The strategy comprised launch of a ‘shadow campaign’ which went on air this month featuring actor Imran Khan and launch of brands that go well with the chilly weather.
The shadow campaign, launched in December, was first released on online media and later on television. It was the first time in advertising history that a company launched its campaign on mobile phones and digital space before releasing it in mass media.
Anand Singh, Director-Marketing, Coca-Cola India, says, “We aim to establish a strong emotional connect with today’s youth through the Open Happiness campaign that highlights the thought of enjoying a bottle of Coca-Cola while taking a pause from the daily routine to connect with the people around us in our busy cosmopolitan life. I am sure this campaign reminded people that Coca-Cola is always there to offer that little moment of fun and refreshment when one needs it.”
The campaign has already been downloaded and previewed by over 300,000 consumers and already has over 90,000 referrals. Using visually exciting elements of shadow puppetry, the latest ‘Shadow’ film showcases how a bottle of Coca-Cola acts as a catalyst in making an instant connect between two strangers. The silent yet unique interaction of the two protagonists bridging the gap of urban isolation and connecting over a bottle of Coca-Cola has been explained by the tagline ‘Coke Khule Toh Baat Chale’ (Coke Opens Up Possibilities).
The company has been innovating quietly. If energy drink Burn was launched at the fag end last year in select high-end market segments, 2010 saw ‘Minute Maid Nimbu Fresh’, a juice that tastes similar to home-made lemonade and ‘Maaza Milky Delite’, a ready to drink juice. The ongoing winter season was no exception as the company launched Nestea, a ready to drink ice tea, made for what Coke says on-the-go adults.
