‘Share a Coke’ Campaign a Smash Hit in Australia

The Coca Cola Company (NYSE:KO) plans to extend the ‘Share a Coke’ campaign after it proved to be more successful than expected. ‘Share a Coke’ was launched in Australia in September in which the 150 most common names in Australia were printed on the Coke bottles and cans. The move highlights how marketing campaigns which are at a more personal level are being met with astounding success. Coca-Cola competes with companies like Pepsi (NYSE:PEP) and Dr. Pepper Snapple Group (NYSE:DPS).

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The first part of the campaign involved printing 150 different names boldly on the coke bottles and cans in traditional Coke format. The most common names in Australia were chosen- Jack, William, Jess, Isabella, among the others, were chosen. The second part of the campaign involved setting up outlets in 18 different shopping centers where you could get your name printed on the cans. People had to wait hours before they could get their names printed on the cans. ^[1]

The company also launched an App on Facebook which lets users customize the Coke cans with the names of their choice and share the drink virtually. The response has been tremendous. In fact, 62,000 virtual cokes were created out of which 56,000 were shared.

The company reported a 92% increase in the number of posts on its Facebook page with 29,000 posts about the campaign itself. ^[2]

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1. It’s All About Me!, Fast Company, November 23, 2011 [↩]
2. COKE EXPLAINS WHY ‘SHARE A COKE’ HAS BEEN SO SUCCESSFUL, Food Magazine, November 25, 2011 [↩]