Advertising and Pepsi Refresh

order show window Pepsi Can a soda Reall(a)y Make the World a Better Place? This year, PepsiCo did something that shocked the advert solid ground. After 23 straight ageing age of running ads for its flagship brand on the exceedingly Bowl, it announced that the number- devil aristocratic imbibition cleric would be absent from the Big Game. precisely when in the weeks leading up to exceedingly Bowl XLIV, Pepsi was still the second-most discussed advertizer associated with the event. It wasnt so very over untold what Pepsi wasnt doing that created such(prenominal) a stir as much as what it was doing.Rather than continuing with the same overaged messages of the past, focusing on the y appearhful dis nonplus of the Pepsi Generation, and using the same old mass-media hold bys, Pepsi is taking a major gamble by breaking advanced ground with its advertizement program. Its latest exertion, called Pepsi review, represents a major sacking from its old promotion eff orts in 2 ways (1) The message centers on a theme of neighborly debt instrument, and (2) the message is creation delivered with a fat dose of neighborly media. At the center of the track down is the Pepsi think bulge.PepsiCo has committed to award $20 zillion in ap designates ranging from $5,000 to $250,000 to organizations and individuals with radicals that pull up stakes make the area a better place. The refresheverything . com clear range greets visitors with the headline, What do you c atomic number 18 to the highest degree? PepsiCo accepts up to 1,000 proposals all(prenominal) month in each(prenominal) of six opposite argonas wellness, arts and culture, forage and shelter, the planet, neighborhoods, and education. Then crowdsourcing takes over, as consumers vote for their favorites. Pepsi awards the grants each month.One-third of the way through its one-year run, the ac confederacy had funded more than 100 projects, giving salutary to the highest degr ee $5 jillion back to local communities. The society stated that the project was proper(ip) on target to award the in opinion(p) $20 gazillion by the demolition of the yearlong effort. INTEGRATING DIGITAL completion-to- mop up THE PROMOTIONAL MIX The Pepsi Refresh campaign has been a groundbreaking effort, in office because of its heavy use of societal media. PepsiCo is capitalizing on a growing trend in a way that no other(a) major brand has done so far.The company is quick to point out that Pepsi Refresh is non a companionable media add-on like almost others, where an ad simply directs masses to a Web site for reasons that may or may non be relevant to the message. Nor is it a social media campaign as such, where the integral campaign takes place through social media. Rather, social media are the glue that holds together a truly integrated trade communications effort. Its not about digital as its own channel anymore, orders Bonin Bough, director of digital an d social media for PepsiCo. Its how do we infuse digital across all of our cour chatting programs? For starters, although PepsiCo by poke outed the Super Bowl, it is not ditching broadcast media. To the contrary, Pepsi is running minute ads on the main net whole shebang as well as 30 different cable channels. The ads ab initio informed people about the Pepsi Refresh campaign, directing them to the refresheverything. com site. But shortly subsequently the first grants were awarded, ads began highlighting projects that had been funded. Traditional media efforts extend to 10 print publications as well. And PR plays a role through agreements such as the one with NBC Universal for salaried pitches on the Today constitute.But this campaign unders meanings a shift in how PepsiCo is spending its ad dollars. According to CEO Indra Nooyi, the worlds number two soft make whoopie seller is shifting as much as one-third of its trade calculate to inter maskive and social media. This mo ve involves not only the Pepsi brand still likewise Mountain Dew, Doritos, Sobe, and PepsiCos other brands. Certainly, PepsiCo is not alone in the trend toward digital and social media merchandising. But analysts point out that its approach, moving away from high-profile spots in favor of heavy spending on a digitally focuse social responsibility campaign, is both compelling and risky. I applaud Pepsi for embracing social media and technology, express Marc Lucas, an publicizing executive. On the flip side, I think its very nervy to not be in a place where you know youre deprivation to beat an audience. The refresheverything. com Web site is just one component of the brands online efforts. PepsiCo is spreading the message through the enormous networks, such as Facebook and cheep, and even partnering with them for advertisement opportunities. For example, Pepsi Refresh held the lead ad position on Facebook during the Super Bowl.Pepsi has also partnered with Hulu to booste r its first original series, the reality show If I Can Dream. It amplifies an advertising campaign by making it something people tittle-tattle about, more of a social conversation, express Jean-Paul Colaco, senior vice president for advertising at Hulu. PepsiCo even partnered with Spin magazine, medicinal drug festival South by Southwest, and two Indie bands in a Web-based debate where music lovers could vote for their favorite. Metric welt out Broken Social look for a $100,000 grant that it gave to the Womens patronage Network.As another component of the integrated campaign, the company has not shied away from using renown endorsers. Through clever network spot ads that place celebrities wrong a life-sized, threedimensional laptop computer made of tagboard, Kevin Bacon appeals to people to vote for his cause, 6Degrees. org. He is quick to point out that this has energy to do with the cult trivia game, Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon. Rather, he proposes using a $250,000 gran t to hand out good card game that people can use to present to any of more than a million different charities.But Bacon goes on to explain that the powerfulness of SixDegrees comes from the social networks of good card recipients. They spoil more good cards and pass them on to others, and as social networking works its magic, that $250,000 grows into millions. Among various other celebrities, Pepsi has also recruited Demi Moore NFL players crossing Sanchez, DeMarcus Ware, and Drew Brees and NASCAR veterans Jeff Gordon, Dale Earn stifft Jr. , and Jimmie Johnson to apply for grants and act as spokes psyches for the project.These celebrities are vying for votes to award grants to such organizations as the Girls Education and Mentoring Service, the the Statesn crabby person Society, and the Brain Aneurysm Foundation. PepsiCo is also acquire its message out to consumers at the point of purchase. Cans, bottles, and multipacks feature updated graphics that minimize an all lowercase P epsi logo written vertically and highlights a new Pepsi brand mark a large circle with swaths of red, white, and blue. That type replaces any o in Pepsis packaging and promotional materials.Thus, both Do Some Good and Doing Good hundred and one each carry four of the new Pepsi circles. To draw people into retailer outlets to see the pointof- purchase (POP) materials and hopefully buy its soft drinks, Pepsi has partnered with Foursquare, the social network that connects people through GPS in real time. Foursquare members are directed to Pepsi retailers and chip inn offers as an fillip for them to visit. DOING WELL BY DOING GOOD despite the growth of cause-related marketing, PepsiCos effort is perhaps the first example of a major brand making social responsibility the main theme of its campaign, rather than an add-on.This does not downplay the efforts of companies like Target, which has given $273 million to local schools since 1997 through its RedCard program. But PepsiCos effor t is built around a theme that drives the concept of doing good as much as it drives the brand. Coca- Colas response to Pepsi Refresh, donating a dollar to Boys and Girls Clubs of America each time a visitor to Cokes Facebook page shares a virtual Coke gift, illustrates how most advertisers causerelated marketing efforts are computer peripheral to other advertising activities. Nooyi kneads the centrality of Pepsis socially responsible message into perspective.The Pepsi Refresh Project is a platform, but at the end of the day, what we are doing is awarding the grants, we are modify connections. Its having a catalytic effect on people who are very embracing these organizations. So, were not only benefiting the person who acquire the grant, were benefiting the people who are the recipients of the outcome of that idea. With schools, for instance, its not just one classroom thats benefited. Its all the kids who will be able to go to that classroom. And there sustain been people who have worked so hard to get this money that others have stepped in and matched the money they receive.Projects funded thus far are too numerous to lean. But they let in more than high-profile efforts like the celebrity campaigns. some awards are being given to popular people just trying to correct their own little corners of the world. Calvin Cannon received $5,000 for Clothe the N. A. K. E. D. Prom Date, his venture to assistant low-income, upstanding dudes in Shelbyville, Tennessee, by give for their tuxedo rentals for the prom. Jeanne Acutanza from Kirkland, Washington, got $5,000 for her childrens school so that it could manage a sustainable garden and give the harvest to local nutrient banks.And the Associates of Redlands Bowl received $25,000 to support perform arts in the community of Redlands, California. Im proud of every idea were funding, but its the simple mindedness of these ideas that is so innovative, says Nooyi. You would never have melodic theme that one simple thing could bring about a big diversify in the community. IN SEARCH OF THE consecrated GRAIL All this cutting shore promotion and the effort to change the world are wonderful. But at the end of the day, PepsiCo has to sell soft drinks. After all, it is the fiftieth largest publicly held corporation in the issue 500.Pepsi is also the 23rd most semiprecious brand in the world accord to Interbrand. If this experiment fails to support sales of its core brand, PepsiCo will no doubt abjure its innovative promotion efforts and return to its old ways. As one social seller states, This is big, new, getting a lot of attention. Its impactful its innovative. What the industry is talking about now is, is this a gamble that was worth taking, in terms of a overturn in sales? Thats the saintly grail. But PepsiCo remains extremely optimistic. In the first few months of the campaign, the number of Facebook fans doubled.The company formerly got a Twitter go every five minutes or so . Now, it receives more tweets per minute than a person can read. But just what is the treasure of a Facebook or a Twitter fan? Although many advocates of social networking say questions like that are irrelevant, budget-strapped chief marketing officers want to see return on investment. Thats why Bough and his team have developed a scorecard that ties different elements of the Pepsi Refresh campaign back to the health of the brand. Using standard research methods, PepsiCo will be measuring whether or not this campaign merits the expense.Pass or fail, many observers inside and outside PepsiCo will learn much from this first-of-its-kind social media and social responsibility campaign. Ana mare Irazabal, director of marketing for PepsiCo, wants this campaign to fetch the model of the future. We want people to be aware that every time you drink a Pepsi you are actually supporting the Pepsi Refresh Project and ideas that are spill to move this country forward. We may be the first to do something like this, but hopefully, were not the last. Questions for Discussion 1.Consider PepsiCos advertising throughout its history. (For a list of Pepsi slogans over the years, visit http//en. wikipedia. org/wiki/PepsiSlogans. ) Identify as many commonalities as possible across its various ad campaigns. How is this campaign reconciled with PepsiCos brand image? 2. sway all the promotional mix elements used in the Pepsi Refresh campaign. What grade would you give PepsiCo on integrating these elements into an integration marketing communications campaign? 3. Describe PepsiCos target audience. Is the Pepsi Refresh campaign coherent with that audience? . As completely as possible, analyze the campaign according to the go listed in the chapter for developing effective marketing communication. 5. Will the Pepsi Refresh campaign be successful? Why or why not? Sources Natalie Zmuda, Pass or Fail, Pepsis Refresh Will Be Case for Marketing Textbooks, Advertising Age, February 8, 2 010, p. 1 Stuart Elliott, Pepsi Invites the exoteric to Do Good, New York Times, January 31, 2010, p. B6 Elaine Wong, Pepsi Community social movement Finds Fans on Social Nets, Brandweek, June 8, 2010, accessed at www. brandweek. com.