Coke's New Twitter Ads Call Out Viewers by Name

via AdWeek

Fifteen or so years ago, email marketers started following in the footsteps of their direct mail predecessors by including the recipient's name at the top of the message—and often in the subject line, too. And now the practice is coming to Twitter ads.

Coca-Cola has been buying Promoted Tweets that show up in viewers' Twitter feeds and address them by their first names. The ad copy starts with: "Hey [NAME], #ShareACoke is back! Order..." You can see the full promo in the above image.

The new tactic is part of a larger, ongoing "Share a Coke" campaign that debuted earlier this spring. The company is encouraging people to buy 8-ounce bottles of the soda, personalized with their names, for $5 apiece. 

Coke wasn't available for comment. But it appears the Atlanta-based soda giant is employing Twitter's Tailored Audiences platform in an innovative way to create this targeted style of advertising.

Twitter deferred to Coca-Cola about the campaign and didn't state whether other brands were using the personalized call to action.

But it would certainly interest any marketer that is looking to increase its click-through rates on the microblogging platform.

Pepsi Challenge 2015: Nicola Formichetti Kicks off Can Design Contest

via Brand Channel

One thing Pepsi never did with its original Pepsi Challenge was alter the design of its iconic can. But it’s a whole new world now, and even the Pepsi container is no longer off limits.

In fact, in the new version of the Pepsi Challenge, the brand is giving consumers the “extraordinary opportunity to re-envision” the can with their own designs in the “Live For Now” Design Challenge, according to a PepsiCo press release.

The company has been promising a whole raft of culturally relevant, digitally oriented initiatives under the Pepsi Challenge for the rest of the year, since it launched a revival of the theme of its old taste-test campaign in March.

The can design challenge follows the Pepsi x Liter of Light “Ignite the Light” tour in which world-renowned fashion designer and creative director Nicola Formichetti—who rose to fame as the stylist who helped catapult Lady Gaga to fame—is challenging individuals to design art installations inspired by light.

In line with PepsiCo’s corporate commitment to “performance with purpose,” the campaign has a pro-social element. Using the #PepsiChallenge hashtag will also trigger a $1 donation by the company to Liter of Light, which will help bring environmentally-friendly, inexpensive and easy-to-produce lights to underdeveloped areas.

Formichetti is leading the charge to inspire all customers, not just designers and creatives, to digitally apply their own designs to a blank Pepsi can, with the only stipulation that the logo must be intact.

Pepsi will accept submissions through May 13, at which point a judging panel that includes PepsiCo’s chief design officer Mauro Porcini will help determine the winning can design.

“We wanted one of our first global challenges to connect with this bold creative class directly,” Kristin Patrick, SVP and CMO of Pepsi, stated in the release.

“We’re turning over our most cherished piece of equity and our most visible piece of real estate—the facade of the Pepsi can—to consumers around the world to reimagine,” added Patrick. “We can’t wait to see the results.”

Below, watch how Formichetti kicked off the Pepsi Challenge creative program with a “Liter of Light” art installation in Hong Kong: Click here to view

Coke digital signage brings some cool summer color to Oz

via Digital Signage Today

Coca-Cola and digital signage teamed up to bring some added color and a cool drink to the hot Australian summer.

JCDecaux and Coca-Cola recently won the award for "Best Use of a Special Build" as part of the Australian Outdoor Media Association’s Q4 Creative Collection Competition, according to an announcement from JCDecaux. The winning campaign made use of a novel digital signage screen/Coke dispenser to deliver audiences a cold drink during Australia’s hot summer months, according to the outdoor advertiser's website: 

Despite being one of the most well-known brands in the world, Coca-Cola wanted to drive the knowledge and popularity of their global brand in an increasingly hard to reach youth market. To engage this audience and get them talking, drastic changes to the original can were made — the cans shrunk to a smaller 250 ml size and became available in six new colors.

Through social media and the use of the #colouryoursummer hashtag, the changes to the brand were shared and drove momentum behind the word-of-mouth campaign. 

To promote this campaign UM, Coca-Cola and JCDecaux teamed up to create a first in Australian OOH with a Digital, Fridge Dispenser all in one panel. The multiplatform approach played into the social media hype by the use of a hashtag #colouryoursummer. 

By heading up to one of the Innovate panels located in multiple locations across Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney, the digital screen engaged by asking the audience to interact and rotate the colorful cans located on the screen — the reward was an ice cold Coke in one of the new smaller-sized cans. 

Watch the digital signage drink dispenser in action in the video below: (Click to view)

Coca-Cola begins 'doing far more with Coke Zero on mobile' with free giveaway

via The Drum

Coca-Cola has pledged to give away nearly half a million 500ml bottles of Coke Zero to mobile consumers with its #freecokezero integrated campaign.

From now until 10 May the soft drinks giant is offering on-the-go consumers a free bottle of Coke Zero via their mobile device in a bid to “drive further awareness of its great Coke taste and zero calorie offering to consumers,” said Bobby Brittain, UK marketing and activation strategy director.

“We’re excited to be doing far more with Coke Zero on mobile this year as it grows in importance as a delivery platform. It will ensure that busy on-the-go consumers are served the promotion for a refreshing Coke Zero in a convenient and accessible format, wherever they are,” Brittain added.

An accompanying 10 second TV commercial with a clear and simple message is set to run for two weeks. A promotional message will be included with the video on demand version to allow consumers to click through to the mobile voucher.

Coca-Cola is also giving away vouchers for a free 1.75lt bottle of Coke Zero with two million packs of Coca-Cola to be redeemed by 17 May 2015 and sampling teams will be handing out 150ml cans of Coke Zero across the UK during the promotional period.