5 Marketing Tips from Coca-Cola

Last week, Luke and I had the chance to explore the World of Coke in Atlanta and we were surprised by how great Coke’s marketing story is and how much we, as business owners, can learn from it.

The story began when Coke did, in 1886.  A pharmacist in Atlanta, Dr. John Pemberton, created a completely unique product for his soda fountains that, at the time, sold for 5 cents per glass.  Don’t we wish that was the case now?

And that leads us to marketing.  Coke’s first marketing efforts were coupons that promoted free samples of the soda.  This was completely unheard of in 1887, but thanks to Coke, it’s widely practiced today.  By the 1970’s, Coke was developing a brand that was associated with fun, leading to slogans like “Coke is It!” and “Can’t Beat the Feeling.”  Then, of course, came the memorable Coca-Cola polar bear, one of which is at the World of Coke for visitors to take pictures with.  And today, Coke has become THE brand associated with happiness, with its Open Happiness campaign featured in the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.

So what did Coca-Cola do in terms of marketing to make it successful?  Here are a few marketing tips:

1. They developed a unique, iconic logo.  The red and white Coca-Cola logo is recognized by 94% of the world’s population because it’s simplistic, but has a unique and recognizable font.
2. They understand the importance of advertising.  Coca-Cola spends more money on advertising than Microsoft and Apple combined.  That’s not to say that you need to spend billions as a small startup company, but understand that your advertising/marketing budget is not one that should be cut in hard times.
3. Their brand is about more than the product.  People will buy your reason and your passion exponentially more than they will buy the product.  Of course, you have to have a good product, which Coke does, but their ads are about bringing happiness to people.  And that exact same message was portrayed in ads decades apart.
4. They create intrigue.  The Coke “secret formula” was deemed so valuable that it was used as collateral for a loan at the bank.  It’s kept in a highly protected vault in the World of Coke and only two people know it at one time.  By creating the intrigue over the secret formula, Coke draws more attention to themselves.
5. They’re innovative.  Coke didn’t follow the normal trends in their market.  Instead, they developed a completely new contoured bottle and used innovative marketing techniques like free sample coupons.

To conclude, check out this Coke commercial from 1979 that clearly highlights their brand: