February 22, 2004
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I don't remember which comedian I heard this from, but it was such a profound concept that I had to bring it here to you.
Why do Coke® and Pepsi™ still bother to advertise? The annual
budget for advertising for just one of these products is enough to feed
a third world country for a decade with enough left over for a few
fifth world countries as well.Do these people really feel that their ads will get folks to switch
tastes? How many people have even walked out of an establishment
because the wrong carbonated beverage was being served? Perhaps
the strongest I've heard was a patron changing their soft drink order
but that was someone with a pretty strong dislike of 'the wrong'
cola. And it wasn't for any ad.
Comments (18)
absolutely right. I suspect it's the fear that bottles of carbonated beverages with black and white labels marked simply "cola" might take over. dear god, that is so scary!
I'm allergic to caffeine ... but I have heard of people here in Australia not going to a certain fast food establishment because it sold pepsi instead of coke ...
They have to advertise to maintain their brand positions. Each new generation of teenagers, which is their other aim, has to identify with this as 'the' cola. Other brands, smaller now, could take over. New drinks, not colas, could be seen as the coolest drink. There are many names of brands in the past that became generic, such as fridge from Fridgedaire, but without the constant in-your-face advertising, they sunk. Just another brand now. So asking for a coke is asking for a Coca cola now, but without the constant in-your-face advertising, a coke one day might not spring Coca Cola instantly to mind, but Dayz or something, that is cooler.
I wasn't always a sailor
oh dear, I am stoned and it shows, delete comment if you want
Damn good point! I really can't see any reason at all for such fierce advertising. . . . maybe they are afraid or dr pepper or something *shurgs*
They advertise to gain new consumers. If you look closely at the advertising, it isn't aimed at the competition's consumer, it's aimed at new consumers. That's also why each company comes out with new flavors on what seems like a daily-basis, to find niche consumers who will become loyal.
I pretty much agree with the comedian.
It is unbelievable when you consider the advertising budgets for these companies. I think they do it, believe it or not, for name recognition. Almost like the arms race between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. If you let the one get away with it, you stand the risk of getting buried. They each want to make sure that they are equally or better recognized than the other. That's what I think, anyway.
I only like Pepsi.
I've heard this too, and I also couldn't tell ya who it was. Doh!! I wonder if it was Lewis Black.. I have 3 of his CD's now, and I know it's not Dave Attell.
Business is business.
No amount of advertising in the world would make me drink any brand of Cola drink....
Agreement on the brand recognition. Apalled at the idea of all the money spent to achieve the brand recognition. The question remains: Would a company still do well financially without advertising?
the whole advertisement industry is a weird place where perverse amounts of money are spent... and I also wonder how people can justify spending millions on election campaigns
I don't understand the prioities of these things vs. teacher's salaries and the safety needs of some people.
I don't eat at TacoBell because they serve only Pepsi, but my measly once a week meal isn;t enough to base an advertising budget on.
Another factor, and this really applies to beer commercials, is to drive the consumtion of the product (beer, soda) and thereby increasing the bottom line whether market share changes or not.
I suppose the advertising is for mintenance of their market share, rather than enhencement (just to stay top-of-mind and in-your-face of the populace), but you're right, it does sound ludicrous! Funny thing is, I prefer regular Coke to regular Pepsi, but Diet Pepsi to Diet Coke!
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