City of Chicago Announces Recycling Deal with Coke

via http://www.chicagotribune.com

Photos of company's products will appear on household carts it buys

Mayor Rahm Emanuel talks Monday with young people in Coca-Cola T-shirts before he announces a new partnership with the soft drink giant at Fernwood Park on the Far South Side.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel on Monday announced his latest partnership with Coca-Cola: The soft drink giant will pay for 50,000 blue recycling carts for Chicago homes and in return gets to put images of Coke products on the lids of the familiar bins.

Emanuel tied the $2.59 million grant to Earth Day, saying the company was helping Chicago become "a greener, more sustainable city," even though the mayor previously had credited himself for saving enough money to pay for citywide recycling by switching to grid-based garbage pickup.
Unmentioned at the mayor's news conference was that photos of bottles of Coke and cartons of Coke-owned Minute Maid orange juice will be part of the diagrams on the Coke-purchased blue carts that explain to residents what they can and cannot recycle. Many other city recycling bins feature images of generic, unlabeled bottles.

Under the terms of the deal, Coke's philanthropic arm, the Coca-Cola Foundation, will pay for 25,000 household blue carts this year as part of Emanuel's push to finally extend recycling to every house and small apartment building in Chicago by the end of the year. The company will pay for another 25,000 carts over the next five years to replace those that get damaged around the city.
In exchange, Coca-Cola, which has been fighting government efforts around the country to place restrictions on its sugary beverages, gets to be linked to a large-scale environmentally friendly program in a big city.

"We see this as an incredible way to be able to give back to Chicago, give back to the United States, and to be able to keep our pledge, which is to be sure that every bottle, plastic bottle, can in which our products are packaged and sold will find its way back into a recycling bin," said Sonya Soutus, a Coca-Cola marketing executive who joined Emanuel in front of stacks of blue carts at a news conference at a park in the Roseland community area.

Coca-Cola's contribution replaces city revenue that would have paid for the carts, according to city spokesman Bill McCaffrey. The Emanuel administration did not need the Coke money to complete the household recycling rollout, he said. No plans have been finalized about what the city will do with the money it saves thanks to the corporate contribution, McCaffrey said.
Emanuel's appearances alongside Coca-Cola executives have become a common sight in recent months. The public initiatives began last October, when the mayor was joined by top Coke executive Steve Cahillane and other soft drink executives to announce that Chicago would compete this year against San Antonio for a $5 million national beverage lobbying group grant rewarding city workers for being healthy.

At the time, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg was fighting to limit the size of sodas sold in some businesses there, and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino had ordered city departments to phase out the sale and advertising of sugary drinks to fight obesity and rising health care costs.
Emanuel, however, said he believed in "personal responsibility" and struck a deal with the soft drink manufacturers to include calorie information alongside their products on vending machines in city buildings. The move was criticized as a half measure by some advocates for healthy eating.
In November, Cahillane came to a Near West Side park to announce that Coke would contribute $3 million for Chicago Park District nutrition classes to fight obesity and diabetes as well as exercise classes run by armed forces veterans.

Asked then whether he could do more for children's health by limiting their access to sugary drinks, Emanuel said Coca-Cola's contributions were complementing his efforts to improve kids' lives. Emanuel's predecessor Richard Daley sits on Coke's board of directors.

Guerrilla Marketing: 7UP MELTING MACHINE

via http://www.guerrillacheesemarketing.com
  How long does it take for a gigantic block of ice to melt? Well probably not fast enough for these passerbys.

This guerrilla marketing stunt, deemed the ‘Melting Machine,’ was part experiential marketing and part insanely thirsty audience. 7UP teamed up with BBDO Argentina to design this non-technological vending machine campaign made of ice that didn’t ask for money, but their participation. Participants were allowed to freely grab a carbonated beverage, and would guess what time the last can would be accessible from it’s vending machine encasement, and tweet their guesses.
Nice job, BBDO & 7up – thanks for the great guerrilla marketing idea.

New Coke Zero Spot - Taste Under Hypnosis

App Lets Users Write & Send Physical Letters From Phones

There’s something about sending an actual physical letter which an e-mail will never replace. Tech startup Lettrs to encourage people to send snail mails again by integrating the process with a digital twist. 

 

This week, Lettrs launched its iPhone app that essentially allows users to send e-mails and photos as paper post letters. The whole operation is currently conducted from Collinsville, Connecticut in the U.S.

On the screen, users are able to select from different backgrounds, themes, and fonts. There’s even the ability to directly attach an image to the letter. Once users are happy with the letter, they have the option to either send it electronically, or as a snail mail to the recipient.


Drew Bartkiewicz, founders of Lettrs, commented that:

Technology is what we make of it, and no app has yet been designed to dust off the previous — though timeless — aspirations of letter writing. I hope people will choose to take time to create a ‘lettr’ when more purposeful words are desired, but with the efficiencies of mobile and social firmly intact.

Lettrs is currently only available on the iPhone, with an Android and iPad app already in the works. Watch the video below to see how the app works:

Coke Runs First All-Digital Effort, Focusing on Teens and Mobile

Coca-Cola has emerged from an extensive round of teen panels and believes it knows what those kids want from the brand—fun, "snackable" digital experiences that center on mobile consumption over desktops. The beverage firm today unveiled "The AHH Effect" initiative with agency partner Wieden + Kennedy that will eventually include dozens of digital games and other content based on their recent research.

Pio Schunker, svp of integrated marketing communications at Coca-Cola North America, put the effort into historical perspective for the brand this morning during an online presentation. "Very importantly, this is going to mark the first all-digital campaign by Coca-Cola," he said. "And critically, this signals a whole new way in which we've decided to create marketing content."

Schunker added: "Mobile phones are [teens'] lifelines. It's not that they don't watch TV. But mobile is their first screen."

Seventeen digital experiences, such as games called "Ice Toss" and "Guide the Bubble," are live today via dedicated sites that involve images that could be described as interesting if not random or even psychedelic. To be clear, while Coke believes most of the activity will happen on smartphones and tablets, the effort can be accessed from desktops. A digital media push involving 19 teen-friendly media partners like Alloy, Vevo, Buzzfeed, Facebook and Twitter will be in the offing, while a 15-second video teaser went live this morning.

What's more, Coke marketers envision this content-based strategy to be long term. "The goal is for this to be a multi-year campaign," Schunker said.

In the coming weeks, Coke will utilize paid and owned media via Facebook and Twitter to encourage teens to create their own software-based experiences for the brand. Out of the submissions, 25 will be selected to be included in "The AHH Effect" run. Eventually, there will be 61 such experiences with a dedicated AHH.com destination—each new addition will add an "H" to the URL. So yes, the 12th experience will have a URL entailing a dozen Hs.

Schunker explained, "We will be refreshing these 61 experiences and optimizing them throughout the year as well as in the future in a way that we hope will continuously tap into a teen's desire for discovery, constant stimulation, novelty as well as recognition."

Twice a week, the brand will analyze the content while switching out mediocre performers for more-promising items. The content will be modeled from a mobile-first perspective and attempt to appeal to modern teens' famously short attention spans. To hear Schunker describe it, Coke is setting up a content lab focusing on teens and mobile.

"This is meant to be a constantly iterating campaign," he said. "We fully expect to end up in a completely different place compared to where we started."

Lastly, the campaign does have one small offline element. Beginning in May, Coke's 16- and 20-ounce products will feature "AHH" moments to drive fans to the AHH.com URLs.

Evian Brings Back Babies with New Campaign

via http://creativity-online.com

Campaign includes app that will create a 'baby version' of yourself.

Evian is bringing back the dancing tots. "Baby & Me," a new film from the brand, created by BETC Paris, starts with an adult catching his reflection in a bus window and seeing a baby version of himself looking back at him. When he finds a full-length mirror, he starts dancing, and so does the baby. Other passersby find the same thing happening to them, leading to a full-blown dance routine, set to "Here Comes the Hotstepper," which was remixed for the brand by artist Yuksek. Directorial duo "We Are From LA" shot the film.

The global brand campaign will include an outdoor/poster element that will feature portraits of adults and their baby versions facing each other, displayed in train stations and Metro platforms. An app, "Baby & Me," created by the agency in collaboration with production company B-Reel, will be available starting mid-May, and will use facial recognition technology to transform uploaded pictures of adults into "baby versions."

Babies, have of course, been the cornerstone of Evian creative since 1998, when the brand launched "Waterbabies." 2008's "Roller Babies," remains, according to Guinness, the most viewed ad video ever.

Pepsi Next Videos Get 'Sexy' In English and Spanish

via adweek.com

 

Pepsi Next is launching an English-Spanish online video campaign today featuring Telemundo and Univision star William Levy—who is playing six spoofy "bring sexy back" characters that represent a continuation of the brand's focus on parody. Levy will cheesily play an action figure, a rock star, a doctor, a romantic, a Captain Kirk-inspired sci-fi guy and a show-biz wannabe.

The videos are available on YouTube in both languages, while supported by display ads, social media promos and in-store marketing. Copy will push consumers to a "Wheel of Levy" site, where they can play a game by selecting one of the previously mentioned characters. PepsiCo, the Purchase, N.Y.-based beverages-and-snacks giant, will give away a single two-liter Pepsi Next bottle to 400,000 participants.

The effort, which runs through May 20, harkens back to the brand's Funny or Die videos from this time last year. Though Levy—who has appeared in a Jennifer Lopez music video in addition to Spanish-language soap operas and reality TV—may have worked cheaper than former Saturday Night Live player and The Hangover actor Rob Riggle did for the 2012 production.

Meanwhile, Pepsi Next also ran TV spots last year that were designed to be funny. The mid-calorie beverage is marketed towards drinkers of regular sodas. Perhaps consumers are willing to trade sugar for laughs.

Caffeine Free Coke Zero on its way

via http://www.bizjournals.com

Coke Zero will soon have zero caffeine to match its zero calories.

The Atlanta-based beverage giant announced Wednesday Caffeine Free Coke Zero will hit store shelves in mid-July, packaged in 12-packs of 12-ounce cans and 2-liter bottles.

“Caffeine-free products are growing in popularity, making up nearly 30 percent of all sparkling beverage sales in the U.S.,” said Stuart Kronauge, head of sparkling for Coca-Cola North America Group, in a statement. “By introducing Caffeine Free Coke Zero, we’re giving fans exactly what they want, making the brand accessible for enjoyment all day long.”

Coke Zero is the 12th brand in The Coca-Cola Co.’s (NYSE: KO) portfolio to reach $1 billion in global revenue.

Sprite Gets Weird for ‘Obey You’ Campaign

via mediabistro.com




It’s hard to remember a Sprite TV spot that didn’t feature pro/amateur athletes playing street ball and squirting liters of lemon-lime soda into their mouths after a big dunk. In fact, “Obey Your Thirst” ran as Sprite’s tagline for over a decade, and only in 2007 did the brand cut it down to “Obey” because Shepard Fairey speaks to a younger generation or something.

But, when parent company Coca-Cola tapped Johannes Leonardo to lead Sprite’s global creative duties last May, it became clear that a change was imminent. With “Obey You,” Johannes Leonardo is taking Sprite out of Rucker Park and putting it on a much stranger course. It’s become somewhat clear that the younger generation no longer idolizes professional basketball stars like they once did. That is, unless that star is Blake Griffin, and that star is being weird.


“Obey You” seems to be employing the strategy of “weird sells to 18-49.” Are the antagonistic voices in your head going to sell more Sprite than street-ballers? Or is the younger generation getting weary of the weird?

Mountain Dew and Tyler the Creator Team Up in Online Video

Taylor Swift featured in new Diet Coke spot

New Dr Pepper /1 Spot: Pitbull

'Full-fat' Sprite to be ditched for low-calorie alternative with 'natural' sweeteners

via The Independent

The 'obey your thirst' tagline on its television commercials became one of the most recognisable advertising slogans of the Nineties. But now it seems Sprite has had to move with the times and tell its drinkers to 'obey their belt' in a new drive to target obesity.

The lemon and lime flavoured fizzy drink as we know it is to be scrapped in favour of a lower-calorie version that uses a 'natural' sweetener, its parent company Coca-Cola announced today.

The replacement drink will contain 30 per cent fewer calories and will see its 35g of sugar per can replaced with Stevia, a sweeter alternative extracted from the leaves of a Paraguayan plant.

The move comes as part of Coca Cola's anti-obesity drive following a call by the Government to address the issue. The company will also air its first anti-obesity TV ad in the UK tonight.

In a statement today, Coca-Cola said: "We are introducing Sprite with Stevia in the UK. This will contain 30 per cent fewer calories and, instead of being added as a mid-calorie addition to the Sprite range, it will completely replace the current Sprite.

"Stevia, a sweetener from natural origins, is sweeter than sugar but without the calories. 

"It is an extract from the leaf of the stevia plant which is native to Paraguay. Stevia has been used for centuries as a source of intense, natural sweetness."

Stevia is already used in the French version of Sprite, but the Coca-Cola is yet to decide whether to bring the sweetener to the US drink.

Despite a growing distrust of artificial sweeteners, some are skeptical about the natural alternative, concerned that it leaves a strong aftertaste similar to liquorice and that this will overpower the soft drink's signature flavour. Stevia is also more expensive than many commonly-used artificial sweeteners such as aspartame, saccharine and sucralose.

Coca-Cola says its latest marketing drive will outline a variety of moves it is making to address obesity this year, such as providing more diet options.

Almost half of Coca-Cola's sales are made up of diet drinks, with Diet Coke and Coke Zero leading the way with 45 per cent of sales.

Since 2007, the company says it has reduced the calorie content of Fanta Orange by 30 per cent, Oasis by 35 per cent and Lilt by 56 per cent. It also plans to reduce calories in all of its sparkling soft drinks by five per cent by 2014.

New Coke Zero Spot Encourages Us to "Enjoy Everything"

via creativity-online.com

Droga5, New York, which last month unveiled its first work for Coke Zero featuring a March Madness brackets theme, returns with a hilarious new spot directed by Smuggler's Randy Krallman. This time, things take a gaming turn, when an MMORPgamer feels a slight twinge of guilt when he realizes he's forgotten to do a huge favor for his girlfriend, and then, not so much. Basically, he's living out Coke Zero's call to action to "Enjoy Everything,"--but maybe he should call on these dudes working for Activision.

The spot continues the brand's push during the NCAA and will be featured across CBS and TBS platforms through April.

Fast Chat: Diet Pepsi's Amy Spiridakis on Bringing Style to Soda Cans

via http://www.adweek.com
Soda giant busy re-shaping bottles and cans, partnering with Target

PepsiCo was unusually busy on the packaging front last week, unveiling a new shapefor Pepsi bottles and announcing limited-edition Diet Pepsi 7.5-ounce cans designed by HGTV star Vern Yip. While the Diet Pepsi mini-cans are available in eight packs for the next couple of months, more importantly, they are defined by a stylish, blue-and-grey print look that features an animated depiction of a peacock.

"This Vern Yip-designed can is perfect to inspire our consumers and give them a bubbly time-out," explained Amy Spiridakis, director of marketing for Diet Pepsi. "As we are in the spring timeframe, where people are really thinking about entertaining and going to gatherings, it seems like the perfect package."

Spiridakis chatted with Adweek this week about packaging strategies, as well as her brand's female-focused "Love Every Sip" 2013 campaign. She also dished on an upcoming program Diet Pepsi is running with Target next month.

Adweek: Since other names were surely thrown around, why did you choose Vern Yip for this initiative?

Amy Spiridakis: First and foremost, he's a beloved personality by our consumers. With his expansive history on TV, he's a designer who really thinks about the consumer, her love of her home and her love of design in general. So he does a great job of focusing on design, but in a way that highlights our product—instead of overshadowing it.

How integral is packaging in the way a brand is perceived?

Packaging is an incredibly important touch point. It really is the consumer's experience with the product—holding the package is critical. I think the Vern Yip design is yet another example of how Pepsi wants to elevate the role of packaging with its products. For Diet Pepsi, this package really connects with the "Love Every Sip" message....It's a fun design, with the color palette that Vern selected.

Does packaging actually affect soda sales?

Definitely. What sits on the shelf draws the consumer's eye. As they look at what brands they have to choose from, [packaging] is definitely a lever that will drive their considerations.

Is there a trend in the beverage industry in terms of giving creative control over to media stars like Pepsi did with Beyoncé Knowles and Diet Pepsi with Vern Yip?

Pepsi has a history of partnering with entertainers in different verticals, whether designers like Vern or musicians like Beyoncé. We really look for those personalities that bring style to consumers and who are very approachable.

Why the peacock for this limited-edition run?

It does a great job of representing confidence, vibrancy, positivity, energy and strength, which are all attributes of our Diet Pepsi consumer. We think it really fits in well with her lifestyle.

Outside of female, can you describe the rest of the demographic for this can design and the larger "Love Every Sip" effort?

It's targeted at females who love home design. It's not so pinpointed around a demo but more a mindset that focuses on enjoying being around others. The home is their anchor point. In May, Target will actually run an exclusive program where consumers who buy Diet Pepsi will get a set of six coasters that have the Vern Yip design printed on them.

Watch the Spot: Pepsi's New Beyonce Ad

via www.adage.com

Pepsi today launches its second global campaign and first TV spot featuring Beyonce in her role as global brand ambassador.

Executives close to the development and production of the spot say Beyonce was very hands on -- offering ideas for the creative concept, as well as weighing in on wardrobe decisions and her lines.

"We've worked with a lot of athletes and celebrities, usually the client and agency develop something, then it's presented to the artist or athlete for approval. And then you all go make it and they sign off and approve the final content," said Chris Mendola, chairman-founder of 180 LA, the agency that worked on the spot. "This was nothing like that at all."

"Certainly from Beyonce's standpoint, her image -- it's impeccable," Mr. Mendola added. "This isn't a negative, but there was just a high level of perfection, a really, really detailed level of perfection to craft this particular film to the standards of Beyonce and Pepsi and 180."

When the singer was announced as the soda's global brand ambassador in December, the deal was touted as a "true creative and wide-ranging global collaboration. "At the time, Pepsi said it would pioneer a new way for brands to work with musical talent, "moving from sponsor to partner."

"We sat down in a room and shared a lot of different ideas about how we might bring these two concepts of Beyonce and Pepsi together," said Brad Jakeman, president-global beverages group. "We jointly landed on this concept we call 'Mirrors.'"

In the spot, which also includes Beyonce's new single "Grown Woman," the star meets her past personas, from her Destiny's Child days to Sasha Fierce, in a mirrored studio. She works on dance moves with each persona before completing the dance as her current self and acknowledging that her past helped her to become who she is now --neatly complementing Pepsi's brand mantra "Live For Now." The spot ends with Beyonce saying the line, "Embrace your past, but live for now."

The spot will air in 70 countries and Pepsi predicts it will be seen by 1 billion people. The spot launched on Beyonce.com today and will premiere on TV in the U.S. during Monday's episode of "The Voice." Jake Nava, who worked on the "Crazy in Love" video, directed the commercial.

Mr. Jakeman admitted this new model took some adjustment. "With many new models, it takes a little while, especially in the early stages for everyone to understand and feel confident with their area of creative expertise. At the beginning there was some uncertainty," Mr. Jakeman said. "But when we got into the rhythm of the creative collaboration, and [180 LA] saw the creative work was getting exponentially better as a result, everyone went with the flow."

Simon Lowden, CMO at Pepsi Beverages North America, said "Mirrors" will get heavy placement in the U.S. in the coming months and air through the summer, when the "Mrs. Carter Show World Tour" kicks off. There will be point-of-sale and packaging related to the Beyonce partnership, as well as meet-and-greet events and ticket giveaways tied to the tour.

Mr. Lowden said it's the first time Pepsi's international and the U.S. units have been in sync, from a talent perspective since the days of Britney Spears and The Spice Girls.

"It's the first time, in a long time, we've had a global footprint," said Mr. Lowden, who previously served in a Pepsi International role. "There's a huge amount of consumer excitement with such a [large] activation around the world."

Importantly, Mr. Lowden added, the company's bottlers are also excited about the partnership. "Winning with them before the consumer is always magic," he said.

Sprite Urging Youth to Obey Themselves in a New Series of Ads

Sprite has launched an international campaign calling younger consumers to listen to their own desires and follow their own truths. The effort dubbed “Obey You” includes a series of 20 films, where the voice behind the camera—the voice of Sprite—encourages teens and young adults to stay true to themselves in any situation of life.

The new push builds around the “Obey” message that has been used by the brand for years. The “Obey Your Thirst” tagline, introduced back in 1994, evolved into the shorter “Obey” slogan in 2007. Now, we see the next phase of the Sprite motto’s life.

The new push includes 20 light-hearted and somewhat humorous vignettes that play around various themes from the life of modern youth. Set to the electronic beat, each spot has the “voice of Sprite” that explains the situations and outlines Sprite’s role in delivering intense lemon-lime refreshment to those who need it. The locations for the ads include a locker room, an elevator, a bedroom, a street basketball pitch, a cinema, a café and many more.

The NYC-based Johannes Leonardo agency developed the campaign, which will also include outdoor elements featuring close-up and macro photography of the thirst quenching soda. The 20 Sprite-to-Sprite ads, already available on the brand’s YouTube channel, have been aired in Canada and will be soon launched in other markets. So far, the brand doesn’t say where exactly.

“Sprite has always shunned advertising clichés, choosing instead to encourage teens to obey their thirst. With this latest body of work, we continue this legacy by turning the conversation on Sprite itself. We hear the voice of Sprite encouraging Sprites around the world to be true to who they are and what they do—bringing the world the ultimate in honest-to-goodness refreshment,” says Jonathan Mildenhall, VP, global advertising strategy and content excellence, The Coca-Cola Company.

Dr Pepper TEN "Manliest Man" Spots

Hot off the presses!

Ad of the Day: Got Milk?

via adweek.com

According to two new spots in the long-running "Got milk?" campaign, you'll soar a lot longer in those "Look at me, I can fly!" dreams and loll in the embrace of a smokin' hot water nymph if you just drink milk before bed.

Short of a rubber mallet over the head, it's a tall order to help the 40 percent of Americans who suffer from sleeplessness get a good night's rest. But these new commercials for the California Milk Processor Board, from San Francisco ad agency Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, suggest that the tryptophan in milk makes it a good nighttime choice.

Since every new batch of ads tout milk for a different "occasion" or benefit—most infamously as a cure for PMS—insomnia apparently was next in line. The new spots, directed by Jeff Goodby, aim to show what happens if you skip that glass of white. Dreamus interruptus!

A couple of Spanish-language spots, here and here, from L.A.'s Grupo Gallegos get even more surreal, but with much happier endings.

The Goodby campaign includes a few somnambulistic offshoots like a sleep hotline—(855) Milk-zzz—where "the world's most boring man" will read pi until you pass out or hang up, and digital bus-shelter ads of people yawning.

It remains to be seen if the message, "What, you don't like interrupted dreams? There might just be a drink for that," works better for the marketer than, "For people who've never heard of Ambien."

Diet Pepsi and Vern Yip Invite the U.S. Consumers to “Sip in Style” This Spring

via popsop.com

Diet Pepsi has commissioned interior designer Vern Yip, one of the faces of the HGTV home design channel, to develop a limited-edition design for the brand’s mini can. The new offering will be introduced as part of the Diet Pepsi’s ongoing “Love Every Sip” campaign, launched last year and fronted by actress Sofia Vergara.

The new design features a trending peacock pattern, which is believed to be seen everywhere this spring. The new can has been developed in the brand’s traditional color palette, dominated by grey and dusk blue that was featured in this spring’s Pantone’s spring fashion and color report. The design also incorporates a peacock’s head in the bottom with the Pepsi’s traditional round logo above it.

The brand has also launched cans with a heart-shaped logo (see it below) to highlight the playful romantic theme of the current campaign. Last year, Diet Pepsi collaborated withcelebrated housewares designer Jonathan Adler, who created limited-edition red-blue-and-white straws for Target to be used for sipping Diet Pepsi. In early 2011, the brand introduced a sleeker, “skinnier” version of its can at New York’s Fall 2011 Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week.