LO1 advertising campaign 4

Coca-cola - share a coke campaign
                                                                                 

In the summer of 2016 Coca-Cola released the 'share a coke' campaign in the UK, this started a colossal chain reaction of people talking about finding their own name on the bottle of one of their favourite soft drinks. This campaign was particularly successful as it captivated a massive target audience particularly those whom prior to this struggled to find their name on anything- These personalised bottles were available to everybody able to access a supermarket during the time they were on the shelf and provided a starting ground for people to give these drinks as a gift to show appreciation which Coca-Cola soon caught onto and used very regularly in their televised advertising. More importantly that this due to no hike in price these bottles were appealing to those of every NRS rating which meant the target audience was broadened even more. Due to the product being personalised, it appealed to both male and females, young and old, rich and poor hence why it became one of the most successful advertising campaigns of 2015.

The primary message of the campaign was to show people that they are appreciated and spread a sense of community throughout the country as again these products could be given as a token of gratitude from one person to another which was highlighted in one of the aired TV advertisements were various members of the public were asked whom they would share a coke with and why. The fact that Coca-Cola were broadcasting such a positive message to the people of the united kingdom caught on, and soon it became a rush to grab a bottle that had your name on. 

As a company, they organised events all across the country which gave those with more obscure names a chance to get their hands on a free bottle of coke with their name on which wasn't necessarily as readily available in shops. As a result Coca-Cola portrayed themselves as a brand that truly cares about their customers and reinforces the message that the campaign is based around - that it is nice to share and give back. In amongst all this Coca-Cola were successfully selling their product easier than before due to a deep desire of the public to have something specifically for them.  

No other company before Coca-Cola offered their customer a personalised product with no extra charge therefore when the idea was first released and advertised, it caused a nationwide out cry of people rushing to search for their names. This is a clever way to engage a wide variety of people because above all - everybody has a name and they took advantage of the buzz that as children everybody got when they saw some form of stationary or gift that had their own name on . In addition Coca-Cola printed and put into circulation unique names that were not as available to us as children.  

By using members of the public at the forefront of campaign material that had the ability to reach vast amounts of people of all different walks of life meant that we as the audience began to evaluate the positivity behind giving and sharing. For a younger audience this proved to be educational as it was highlighted that sharing is a popular thing to do , it also gave young adults/adults the opportunity to reconnect with old friends which again was shown through the medium of a woman saying openly that she would share a coke with her art teacher simply because she deserved it.

The thing that made the advertising campaign as successful as it was, was the appearance of not only the Web and Tv advertisements looking the same, but also the print based and social media. This assisted the audience in making a connection with the house colours made famous by Coca-Cola and the product on the shelves which further reinforced the message of the campaign which was the main reason behind why it became so popular amongst the people of the UK. Particularly for younger viewers, the fact that the message was across all platforms exposed them regularly to the idea that sharing is a positive experience therefore when seeing the product on the shelves were inclined to ask to purchase it due to them relating it to something that does good which after all is the companies selling trait.

During the production of these products it was important for the company to print labels of not only common 'British' names, but those of a more diverse background as now the united kingdom as a whole is a more multicultural society. Should they have not done this, it would have been seen as unethical and wrong which could have resulted in a backlash from those excluded from the craze due to their names for some reason or another not being in circulation. When using members of the public and their stories in some of the main material for advertising, Coca-Cola would have had to take into consideration the importance of data protection in regards to airing those who's stories were used. Most importantly it was vital for the brains behind the 'share a coke' campaign to copyright the content of the advertisements but also gain a trademark over the idea as a whole so that other companies didn't use the same content or idea for their own products.

In order to prevent their image being destroyed and a loss of reputation, Coca-Cola ensured that when people were choosing names to print onto the bottles on the internet - they weren't of an explicit or harmful nature. They achieved this by placing an interface on their web page that rejected words/names which could be perceived as offensive by certain groups of people/the public. This helped them retain the positivity which the campaign prides itself upon.