Coca-cola Biggest Blunder | Coke / vs / Pepsi | What is the Pepsi Challenge? | New Coke Case Study
It all started when PEPSI featured ‘THE PEPSI CHALLENGE’, as a marketing moment, a campaign that the soda giant rolled out in 1975, where it asked people to Blind Taste Test two cups, one filled with Coke and the other with Pepsi.
And Majority of consumers preferred Pepsi over Coke.
The Coca-Cola Company introduced reformulated Coke, referred to as “NEW COKE” and discontinued “CLASSIC COKE”.
People actually liked New Coke, even though they were choosing it over Classic Coke during the ‘Blind Taste Test’ but the New Coke Failed.
When Company Executives were cheering Cans of New Coke, On the New York Stock Exchange, Shares of Coca-cola was dropping, while those of its rival was rising.
Pepsi gave its employee the day off and declared victory in the full-page newspaper advertisement.
Within weeks of the announcement, People started protesting to bring back the Classic Coke. Consumers emptied the New Coke Bottles into sewer drains. Some even filed suit against the company demanding Old drinks.
Coca-Cola severely misjudges its consumer’s loyalty to the brand.
Coca-cola eventually pulled New coke off the market and
returned Classic Coke, under the label “Our Boss is the consumer”.
Within a few months, Coca-cola returned to its Top-selling beverage, ahead of Pepsi.
The Blunder was so terrible that some thought that it must have been an intentional marketing trick.
INDIAN BRANDS WAR — AMUL / VS / HUL
