CALIMLIM, Jally Anne N.
Marketing 14; 11:30 – 1:30 TTS
GLOCALIZATION:
The Chronicle of Coca-Cola
A Global Business
Entering the last quarter of the 20th century, the deep emotional bond between Coca-Cola and its consumers grew even more powerful and more global. In 1971, young people from around the world gathered on a hilltop in Italy to sing "I'd Like to Buy the World a Coke," a counterpoint to turbulent times. This was also a glimpse into the Company's future: an expanding global presence and an even closer attachment to the world's most cherished trademark.
The power and prestige of Coca-Cola were exemplified in 1988, when three independent worldwide surveys conducted by Landor & Associates confirmed Coca-Cola as the best-known, most-admired trademark in the world.
Perhaps a more human assessment of consumers' loyalty to Coca-Cola had come in 1985. The Company startled the American public by announcing a new taste for Coke, the first change in the secret formula since Coca-Cola was created in 1886. The new taste was overwhelmingly preferred in taste tests, but all the testing and research could not measure the emotional attachment Americans had for the original formula. That original taste had become more than just a soft drink, and consumers' deep feelings, memories and loyalties to it came alive. The Company listened to its consumers and quickly responded by returning the original formula to the market as Coca-Cola classic®.
The Company's global strategy during the 1980s continued to bring consumers on every continent refreshing products for every occasion and every lifestyle. In 1982, soft-drink history was made with the introduction of Diet Coke®, the first extension of the trademarks Coca-Cola and Coke, and the most successful new soft drink since Coca-Cola itself. Within two years, Diet Coke had become the top low-calorie soft drink in the world.