Kibbe on Marketing: The New Old New Coke

It was supposed to be the “Paws that Refreshes,” (my words as far as I know, not theirs) but instead it turned out to be another blunder that will go down in the annals of PR history.

In an admirable program to raise awareness for the plight of polar bears and their shrinking habitat (the ginormous white ursine beasts are also Coca-Cola’s holiday icons), Coca-Cola issued a limited-run Coke can, all frosty white with silver bears. The “Arctic Home” can campaign was supposed to run from October through February, and was expected to raise some $3 million for polar bear conservation. Sounds wonderful.

One small problem – Coca-Cola's top-selling beverage, Diet Coke, also has a can all frosty white and silver. Apparently consumers couldn’t tell the difference and grabbed the wrong flavor. Some cola drinkers even went so far as to say the Arctic Home Coke tasted different. I think that probably had more to do with psychology than gastronomy, but you never know.

Coca-Cola's marketing/design team really had a misstep here and completely failed to recognize their own product. I even have to admit the fault really isn’t so much that consumers can’t read the label, although some blame lands there, too. For years, companies have issued special packaging for the holidays, including Coke. I happen to enjoy the snowflakes myself. Therefore, it’s quite understandable some Diet Coke drinkers might have grabbed the white/silver can of full-sugar Arctic Coke and Regular Coke fans reached for traditional packaging, bypassing the bears altogether thinking they were holiday designs for Diet Coke.

One of the first and most basic steps in branding is to take a look at everything you have so far and study existing designs. New designs have to be evocative of existing ones or risk the alienation of customers and the loss of brand awareness. Oops!

Consumers really have to dig to find information about the new, new can, which is – lo and behold! – a red background with silvery bears like it should have been all along. Calling it "Phase II," Coca-Cola said, “People have told us they love the limited-edition white ‘Arctic Home’ Coca-Cola cans, and we know they love our iconic red cans, especially during the holidays.  So we're introducing the next limited-edition ‘Arctic Home’ can, which will still feature the same polar bears, but with our iconic red Coca-Cola background. “

The sad thing is, Coca-Cola was (and still is, I should add) doing a great thing. Coca-Cola is a multi billion-dollar company that can probably absorb the snafu. It’s a shame the funds they would have raised for polar bear conservation probably will not be able to shrug off the mistake as easily.

Read Coca-Cola’s statement on its “Arctic Home” campaign:
http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com/dynamic/press_center/2011/12/coca-cola-continues-arctic-home-campaign-with-introduction-of-limited-edition-red-cans.html


Cindy Kibbe, an editor for a New England business publication for nearly a decade, can be reached at cindykibbe@comcast.net.