Are you aware of how heavily guarded Coca Cola’s secret formula is? For more than 125 years, there has allegedly only been one printed copy of its formula, and it is said to be stored in a vault in the World of Coca Cola in Georgia. The printed copy aside, only two employees of the brand are allowed to know the secret formula at any time. Nobody knows who these employees are, and they are not allowed to travel together just in case something happens.
There were also various instances when Coca Cola pushed the limits to prevent their secret formula from being shared. In 1977, for example, they pulled out of India to avoid having to share their ingredients list with the government. Why does this matter? Well, all of these things have spawned a lot of comments and theories online, in person, and even in the news. People have talked about Coca Cola because of it. Everybody knows about how heavily guarded Coca Cola’s recipe is, showing just how effective their marketing is.
On that note, these stories behind their secret recipe have also ingrained the perception that nobody else can replicate Coca Cola because nobody else knows their secret formula. This isn’t true, though. A lot of people know their formula and many chemists are fully capable of replicating their drink. So why don’t other brands replicate the taste and sell it themselves? Well, no one would want to buy another drink that tastes exactly like Coca Cola when they can just buy Coca Cola itself, right?
Besides, people don’t just buy Coca Cola because of the taste. Thanks to their effective branding and marketing, Coca Cola comes with a lot of nostalgia. How many Coca Cola ads can you remember from through the years? From their iconic Santa Claus to their cute polar bears, Coca Cola has created iconic images that people think of during Christmas time.
They also feature famous personalities regularly, showcasing that they also know how to effectively put television to use in marketing. They again come up with trending online videos, such as the “Happiness Machine”, making many people smile and laugh. Their Super Bowl commercials are usually funny, too. Coca Cola definitely knows how to entertain and make people notice; and if you can elicit emotions out of people, they are more likely to remember your product, buy it, and stay loyal to it.
They extend this to their slogans, too. They once had a very relatable slogan called ‘Friends for Life’ which made people feel that Coca Cola was created for people exactly like them. This made them look like a real friend in the eyes of their consumers. In 1948, they also came up with the slogan “Where there’s Coke, there’s hospitality.” This was another clever slogan that successfully evoked the feeling of friendship and fellowship.
In 1971, they used the theme of unity in their slogan “I’d Like to Buy the World a Coke”, where they featured people of different cultures singing in unity from all around the world. After people requested to turn the song into a single, Coca Cola agreed and then donated the proceeds from the song to UNICEF, showing that they also have a heart. Yes, Coca Cola is definitely one of the best brands out there in branding and marketing. In fact, not a lot of brands have been as successful as Coca Cola in this regard. There is definitely much to be learned from them.
Coca Cola has shown us that successful campaigns are memorable and can make people smile, so you have to develop ways to reach out to people and have them relate to you. Make people laugh. Create songs they won’t soon forget. Treat them as a friend. These are just some of the techniques that Coca Cola has used through the years to successfully market their brand and turn it into a recognizable product the world over.
