CASE STUDY ON SALES AND MANAGEMENT STRATEGY

The case is about Atlanta-based

beverage giant Coca-Cola
Company's (Coca-Cola Company)
global integrated advertising
campaign "Open Happiness". The
campaign was launched in the first
half of 2009 in markets around the
world with the aim of increasing
sales of sparkling beverages of the
Coca-Cola Company. At a time
when the weakened economy was
sapping soft drink sales, the "Open
Happiness" campaign invited
people around the world to refresh
themselves with a Coke and
continue to enjoy the simple
pleasures of life.
The case discuses the various
campaigns launched by the CocaCola Company over the years and
the role played by these
campaigns in enhancing the brand
image of Coca-Cola.
The case also focuses on the "Coke Side of Life" launched in 2006 to revive
sales of Coca-Cola. The "Coke Side of Life" campaign invited people to
choose Coke and live positively. The objective of the campaign was to make
Coke more relevant to customers by creating a multi-cultural platform in
markets across the world. With the global economic recession and with
consumers drifting towards non-carbonated drinks, the company was facing
many difficulties. In order to boost its sales, the company decided to create a
new
campaign
and
roll
it
out
globally.
The case discusses in detail the objectives and various elements of the
"Open Happiness" campaign which included new point of sale, promotions,
outdoor and print advertising, digital and music components. The case
details the launch of the campaign in various countries and how it was
adapted in accordance with the tastes and preferences of the people in those
countries. The case also discusses the initial reactions to the "Open
Happiness" campaign. Some analysts felt that the campaign might be
successful in achieving its objective as it was able to extend the reach of
Coca-Cola to wider markets while others were apprehensive that it would not
succeed.. The case concludes with thoughts on how the global campaign
could be made more effective so that it strikes the right chord with its
consumers in different countries.

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Issues:
Study the branding strategies adopted by of Coca-Cola Company over the
years and how the campaign has evolved over the years.
Understand the role played by its advertising campaigns in 'Coca-Cola'
consistently maintaining its No.1 position among global brands.
Understand issues and challenges in creating and rolling out a global
advertising
campaign.
Analyze the "Coke Side of Life" and "Open Happiness" campaigns.
Discuss and debate whether the "Open Happiness" campaign would be
able
to
achieve
its
objectives.
Explore ways in which the company could make its "Open Happiness"
campaign more effective.
Contents:
Introduction
Background Note
"Coke Side of Life"
"Open Happiness" - Enjoying Life's Simple Pleasures
Music and Online Elements
The Global Platform
Initial Reactions
Looking Ahead

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Introduction
On January 21, 2009, Atlanta-based beverage giant The Coca-Cola Company
(Coca-Cola Company) launched a global integrated advertising campaign
called "Open Happiness" for its iconic drink Coke. The campaign was planned
to be an extension of Coca-Cola's earlier campaign "Coke Side of Life,"
introduced in 2006. The idea behind the "Open Happiness" campaign was
"Enjoying life's simple pleasures". Commenting on the campaign, Joe Tripodi
(Tripodi), chief marketing and commercial leadership officer, Coca-Cola
Company, said, "It's really a statement about the little simple joys. Our brand
isn't here to solve world peace or fix the economy. We represent a small
moment or small pleasure in a sometimes very stressful or difficult day for
people."2
Coca Cola Company gradually grew to be a leading market player in the
Chinese carbonated drinks market. In the early 2000s, it decided to diversify
its product line in China. After market research, it came up with a unique
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drink called the "Minute Maid Pulpy", which was launched in 2005.
Theeconomically priced drinkappealed to Chinese tastes. The success of the
drink prompted CCC to distribute it in several other Asian, Latin American,
and
even
East
European
countries.
In 2008, in keeping with its product diversification and growth strategy, CCC
decided to acquire a rival companyHuiyuan Juice Group Ltd. (Huiyuan).
However, the deal was rejected by the Chinese government,on the grounds
that the acquisition would curtail market competition. This prompted CCC to
grow by introducing new products and continuing with its localization
strategy. Accordingly in 2009, it entered the fast growing dairy drink market
in China, through its new drink, "Pulpy Super Milky". Over a period of time,
the new drink became a huge success, leading to the growth of the Chinese
dairy
drink
market.
By 2010, the "Minute Maid Pulpy" brand attained global retail sales of over
US$ 1 billion and became CCC's first 'Billion Dollar Brand' that had been
developed and launched in an emerging market. As of 2013, CCC was a
strong player in the Chinese beverage market, with a robust presence in
various beverage segments. It made heavy investments in infrastructure,
new products, and packagingto further enhance its market share. CCC
expected China to emerge as its largest market in the near future, with more
billion dollar brands emerging from that country. At the same time, the
company faced increasing competition across its product lines.However, this
also contributed to the growth in beverage consumption in China.

Background Note
The Coca-Cola drink was invented by John Smith Pemberton (Pemberton), an
Atlanta-based pharmacist. The beverage was named Coca-Cola by Frank M.
Robinson (Robinson), Pemberton's book-keeper, as it contained extracts of
Coca leaves and Kola nuts
"Coke Side of Life"
According to Beverage Digest, industry wide sale volume of Coca-Cola
Company's carbonated soft drinks particularly Coke Classic slipped by 2% in
2005 in the US for the first time since 1985. It was reported that about 85%
of the company's US$4.8 billion revenue in 2005 was from its core drink Coke
and other carbonated beverages including Diet Coke, Coke Zero and Coke
with Lime.
"Open Happiness" - Enjoying Life's Simple Pleasures
On January 21, 2009, Coca-Cola Company came out with a new global
integrated marketing campaign called the "Open Happiness" campaign. Built
on the lines of the Coca-Cola's earlier campaign, 'Coke Side of Life', the
"Open Happiness" campaign invited people around the world to refresh
themselves with a Coke and continue to enjoy the simple pleasures of life.
Music and Online Elements

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Music played a central role in the "Open Happiness" campaign. Coca-Cola

Company teamed up with Warner Music Group's Atlantic Records to create a
new music track featuring some of the well known artists from the worlds of
rock, pop and hip hop.
The Global Platform
"Open Happiness" considered as the new global platform for all integrated
marketing for brand Coca-Cola was rolled out across the US and Western
Europe, Middle East as well as India in the first half of 2009 and would
continue across the globe.
Initial Reactions
Over the years Coca-Cola has maintained a strong brand identity in the
global market. It is one of the biggest brands in the world with a powerful
positive image in the minds of the customers. In many countries, Coca-Cola
is the market leader mainly because of its appealing advertising strategies
and a highly efficient distribution system.
Looking Ahead
Experts said that the campaign might gain momentum once it was rolled out
in all the key markets globally and might turn out to be more successful than
the "Coke Side of Life" campaign. Talking about the key differences between
the two campaigns, Drohan said, "It's moved quicker globally. Probably over
two-thirds of our volume is now covered after less than six months with over
80 countries.
For most of the 2000s, China maintained a double digit growth in its soft
drinks market. According to Euromonitor International, the Chinese juice
market was expected to grow to US$ 23.9 billion revenues, by 2015.
However, some analysts opined that due to market saturation, the growth in
the Chinese soft drink market would slow down in the future.
However, there was rising competition in the Chinese beverage market, not
only from multinational beverage companies such as PepsiCo. , but also from
several rapidly growing Chinese beverage companies. The key competitors
for the company's 'Minute Maid Pulpy' brand were Pepsi's 'Tropicana Fresh
Pulpy' and Chinese company, Hangzhou Wahaha Group's brand 'Nutria
Pulpy'. Shaun Rein (Rein), Managing Director of China Market Research Group
in Shanghai, added, "Fifteen years ago, foreign brands were really all there
were but now Chinese companies are competing head to head against
foreign brands.Foreign brands need to understand the needs of evolving
Chinese consumers more and react faster to their desires".

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