Pepsi wants you to be the next Southern Original.

It takes 5 to 7 years to affect a significant culture change. We had to create a long-term solution to keep Pepsi out front and loud.

Challenge

In 2011, Coke sold 1.59 billion cases for 17 percent of market share. Diet Coke sold 926.9 million cases for 9.9 percent of market share, edging out Pepsi, which sold 891.5 million cases for 9.5 percent of market share. In the Southeastern United States, the percentage market share differentiation is far greater. Coke, first bottled in Vicksburg, MS, found itself the darling of the Deep South thereby cementing it as a “Southern” icon. A group of independent Pepsi bottlers offered us a challenge. Pepsi wanted to assert itself as ‘the’ definitive softdrink choice of Southerners. Define Pepsi as “A Southern Original” and help move the needle on market share in the Southeastern states.

Music brings us all together.

Our research determined 4 major demo groups, all having very different cultural interests. We did however find a very strong common component within all 4 groups – Music. Our research then turned to how we could use music to solve an engagement issue. Attempting to affect culture change requires years of commitment. We need a long-term solution that caused continued involvement.

Solution

We designed a recurring music contest that is primarily social media and app driven. A conventional advertising component including radio, print ads and point of sales supported the ongoing music contest by displaying QR codes for quick access to voting and competing. The point of sales efforts included specialty items like guitar picks and scan-and-win prizes.

Client
Pepsico and Wis-Pak, Inc.

Industry
Beverage, Manufacturing, Distribution

Think
Business design, Research, Competitive analysis, Financial modeling, Brand identity, Messaging, Marketing strategy, Interior design, Process design,

Build
Naming, Logo development, Web development, Publication/editorial, Digital ads, Conventional ads, Company collateral,

Share
Digital marketing, conventional marketing, Public relations, Social media