The Begining
When Coca Cola first entered the Indian market in the 1950s, it did not have much reach. Most of their advertisements were print ads.
Their target audience was clearly depicted in the ad. Young men and women who at that time dressed like that. They had a series of advertisements showing a couple or friends together to showcase youth.
But things went south for Coca Cola soon and it
.
The Comeback with Cricket
Just a year before Coca Cola decided to re-enter the Indian market, it knew that the comeback needs to be impactful. So Coca Cola chose the game that Indians love - Cricket.
Coca Cola strategically sponsored the Sharjah Cricket Cup which was known as the Coca Cola Cup. This iconic tournament was won by India which made it all the more easy for Coke to re-start its operations in India.
Just before that India had lost in the Pepsi Cup, so winning the Coca Cola Cup was a masterstroke!
Jo Chahe Ho Jaaye...Coca Cola Enjoy
This was the first TVC of Coca Cola starring Hritik Roshan and Aishwarya Rai. The ad re-enforced Coke's target by showcasing the most famous young actors of that time. The ad again talks about friendship and shows a boy and a girl, just like their print ads.
Coke later dropped Hritik and signed Aamir Khan for the ads, but did not change the concept of their ads.
Although these ads appealed to the youth, they did not create as much of an impact for Coke.
Thanda Matlab Coca Cola
The "Thanda Matlab Coca Cola" campaign is the brainchild of
who in the most creative and simplistic way made a long-lasting impact. He killed two birds in one stone. He re-enforced the fact that whenever you think of refreshments, you will think of Coca Cola and not other drinks like lemonade and lassi which were more popular in the Indian market. And secondly, he mastered
.
The campaign featured Aamir Khan in multiple roles. He played a macho Haryanvi man, a Bengali, Nepali to be more relatable to specific market segments. And all of this of course with a jingle!
Here's one of my absolute favorite ads.
This strategy is to date followed by many brands where they want to associate a feeling, product or experience with their brand. For example, Hotel: Trivago or Hungry?: Grab a Snickers. But the thought of Prasoon Joshi here is commendable.
Pesticides Controversy
The
took a serious toll on Coke's sales. So to tackle that through advertising was a task. But Prasoon Joshi had just the idea. Take a look at how he talked about the issue within the campaign.
Sabka Thanda Ek
Prasoon Joshi went one step ahead for this one. Having established the fact that Thanda = Coca Cola, Joshi now added an Emotional Value to it. Sabka Thanda Ek campaign said that Coca Cola is for everyone and is loved by everyone. Take a look at the TVC featuring Aamir Khan.
This campaign for the first time included heavy investment in media. Coca Cola targeted its online customers during this time.
Piyo Sar Utha Ke
Although this is not the most talked-about campaign, Coca Cola spent a huge amount on this. The ad featured people of different cultures, age groups, and profession lifting their heads up to drink Coca Cola. The TVC was voiced by Aamir Khan and music was given by Shankar-Ehsan-Loy.
Coke's new strategy was to position itself as an all-season drink. And it also portrayed how the Coca Cola family has grown all these years.
Jashn Mana Le
This is a special campaign in 2007-08 where Coke got Hritik Roshan back. The purpose of this ad is to associate Coke with a party and a celebration. Now Coke is slowly shifting its positioning to experience and occasions.
As we can see in this video, the party stops as soon as the drinks finish. Highlighting Coke = Celebration.
Coke Ke Saath Dost Free
Coke unlike its rival
, has hardly featured cricketers. But under its Coke Ke Saath Dost Free campaign, it signed Gambhir and was trying to match its global campaign of Open Happiness. Under the spreading happiness mission, Coke was active in colleges in the form of contests or gifting goodies, etc. Take a look at its TVC.
The big idea behind this campaign was to encourage people to make friends outside the online world and be present in the real world. Since there was a sudden technology boom around that time, Coke pointed out how important real friends and people are to cherish little moments in life.
Khelte Raho Khush Raho
Just like how it restarted in the Indian market, Coke again tried t strengthen the bonds between Indians and itself through Cricket and Sachin. Just like Coke had signed Aamir when he was associated with Pepsi, in the same way, Coke signed Sachin, even though he was popular for his Pepsi Ads.
Khule Toh Baat Chale
This is very smart as well as a risky campaign by Coke. The product is revealed only at the end. We can see how the new-gen actors Imran Khan and Kalki, as well as the other commuters, can taste and feel the coke without even seeing it.
Umeed Vali Dhoop
This campaign is a part of Coke's global campaign of "Open Happiness". This campaign transformed the brand's personality from just a product to an experience.
Coca-Cola Small World Machines - Bringing India & Pakistan Together
This is one of the most beautiful campaigns by Coke. The campaign is under the umbrella of Open Happiness which features citizens of both India and Pakistan who always wonder how the other side is and the tensions between the 2 nations.
The campaign showcases how problems have o raised due to the communication gap between the neighbors and how a simple gesture can make you empathetic.
Taste The Feeling
Going along with its global campaign and revisiting the idea of tasting the feeling, Coke has proved that it's now in the minds of the Indian consumers.
The ad features the then-newbie Siddarth Malhotra just drinking Coca Cola. And that's it! There is no need to say or do anything as we can already feel the taste. And that's what the girl at the counter showcases. She is the audience just like us. Simple, minimalistic and genius.
Coke'd in the elevator
The campaign was in 2 parts: Teaser and Reveal. The teaser was posted only on social media platforms whereas, the reveal was also a TVC. Apart from Deepika, Diljit Dosanjh also did the same ad which was telecasted in the North. Let's take a look at the TVC.
This was just a reminder ads re-enforcing, Coca Cola = Fun.
Share a Coke
" Mere Naam Ki Coca Cola " was another successful campaign by Coke which did not only include
but also social media marketing with the help of influencers. The new feature that Coke has was a personalized name label around the Coke bottle.
The campaign aims at celebrating relationships. This added an emotional touch to the product.
Coke has done it again! It signed one of Pepsi's famous Brand Ambassadors, Ranbir Kapoor, who is the newest face of Coca Cola India. The campaign said that when you can't say it with words, Say It With Coke.
This mini ad series ran around the time of the World Cup season and featured Paresh Rawal also.
Turn Up Your Day with Coke
The latest ad campaign focuses on positioning the fact that you can have a Coca Cola anytime, even at 3 p.m. This message is again combined with the Taste the Feeling idea which is now in our subconscious.
Coca Cola's transition was gradual but impactful. Now let's just see where the brand takes it from here.