Coca-Cola builds brand value on an emotional level, so can local brands do that too?
Coca-Cola has elevated their branding into another level over the past few years. No longer can you can see the brand use heavy advertising on TV (with the exception of some seasonal promotions), instead you can find on-going smaller campaigns on YouTube and sharing on facebook posts. Their creative concept of “Happiness” which is branching out through different ideas, for instance “Happiness Truck”, “Happiness Magic Machine” and recently “Hello Happiness”. Most importantly they move peoples’ hearts and that can make it a viral success.
Why is the brand doing this?
You can imagine, as a leading beverage brand, marketing is required not only to build awareness, top of mind brand choice and to encourage increased buying. However when it faces today’s target market who are young adults consumers characterized as having less brand loyalty while being more health conscious, it is challenging to continue to make heavy investment in traditional advertising, and more importantly, this is most likely not the optimal way to engage with today’s target customers.
With digital, social and experience marketing, “Happiness” is all about everyday small surprises that lead to smiles or signify that the brand is fun to play with. It is being created for Coca-Cola through activities such as “Hello Happiness” and “Happiness Truck” that deliver the happiness not from staged and scripted advertising storylines, but the natural happiness response of people in their ideas and activities. The influential power of the idea and people’s responses can be seen to have touched people and created strong empathy from the audience.
Can local brands own the same higher level brand values too?
Yes, if we can think deeper about a brand beyond its products or services, and focus on key emotional drivers of value for customers. It is not a matter of small or big brand, local or international markets but rather it is about how much a brand can build an emotional differentiator in a market.
For example, take a brand that markets shampoo and bath cream which would normally simply promote the benefits of using the products and at most feature the ingredients or attractive scents of the product, but ultimately it is about helping to make the user look good and be viewed as attractive. In this context, the brand Dove has taken a different approach, aiming to demonstrate intrusive benefits in a more controversial way. Dove’s creative concept of “Real Beauty” is about every woman having her own individual beauty and self-esteem. They challenge the status quo of beauty and encourage women to see their own natural beauty. Since the launch in 2004, it keeps the evolving into different campaigns along the “Real Beauty” concept, and their provocative and touching stories that moved millions of customers[d1] .
Contact us at www.cheerbox.com.hk if you want to discuss this topic further.
