The Coca-Cola Company

BCOM 314: Final Communication Plan

Team 40:
Kayla Bright
Michael Cunningham
Madeline McLean
Tim OSullivan
Marissa Oudt
Leslie Owen

Kim Marchesseault
October 17, 2017

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Table of Contents

Executive Summary 3
Introduction 4
Narratives 4
Internal
External
Background and Analysis 5
Sugar Stigma
Stakeholders
Recommendations 6
Health-Conscious Consumers
Brand Loyal Consumers
Investors
Response 8
Return on Investment

Snapchat

Twitter

Facebook/Instagram

Timeline

Conclusion 10

References 11

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Executive Summary

Introduction
The following page will provide a brief overview of our overall communication plan. We will
discuss our company narrative, the opportunity for growth surrounding the sugar stigma, and our
recommendation on how to to exploit this opportunity.

Narratives
The Coca-Cola Company has seen conflicting internal and external narratives revolving around
the sugar in their classic product lines. The company strives to grow with consumer preferences,
and they have done this by adopting healthier alternatives to complement classic Coke products.
The external views of the media and consumers both share a negative perspective of the
company due to the amount of sugar in our beverages. It would be beneficial to change our
company perception because we want to be known for our variety of healthy options as well as
our flagship beverages.

Background Analysis
Living in a health-conscious society, it is crucial that we take advantage of this opportunity for
growth and embrace the sugar stigma. The average daily intake of soda has decreased
substantially over the past two decades. This trend is encouraging schools and stores to cut back
on sugary beverages. The opportunity to overcome the sugar stigma impacts health-conscious
consumers, brand loyal consumers, and investors the most. These stakeholders will be impacted
in different ways, but our overall goal is to increase our consumer base and ultimately generate
additional revenue through various advertisements.

Recommendation
We recommend that The Coca-Cola Company utilize multiple channels to target our three
identified stakeholders. We will market our low sugar beverages to health-conscious consumers,
through online and mobile advertisements, to build an association between Coke and healthy
products. We need to maintain our successful relationship with brand loyal consumers through
television advertisements and sponsorships that display classic Coke products with subsidiary
brands. These initiatives will increase customer base and generate additional revenue, which we
will directly communicate with our investors in financial reports.

Response
Our strategy to improve as a company involves improving our marketing campaign and changing
the labels on our subsidiary companys products. Because of the fact that Coca-Cola does 80% of
its advertisements through television, we aim to increase the budget by $1 billion to expand our
presence online. This will happen through purchasing $250 million of advertising on Snapchat,
Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. We also plan to change the labels of our subsidiary brands so
that they have the Coca-Cola name on them to show that the company offers a wide array of
health options to consumers.

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Introduction
In response to our newfound opportunity regarding the stigma surrounding sugary beverages, we
have prepared a communications plan to reach key target market segments to generate additional
revenue. In this document we will provide a brief summary of our narrative, opportunity for
growth surrounding the sugar stigma, our recommendation on how to to exploit this opportunity,
and finally a timeline to implement the recommended strategy.

Narratives
Internal
The Coca-Cola Companys mission statement guides every action and decision. Our mission
statement includes goals to refresh the world, inspire moments of optimism and happiness, to
create value, and make a difference. As written on our website, we strive to bring to the world a
portfolio of quality beverage brands that anticipate and satisfy people's desires and needs. We
have grown with our consumers tastes, and acquired many brands that offer healthy alternatives
to soda. Although many external sources see Coca-Cola as just a provider of sugary beverages,
our company has much more to offer.
We have not placed the Coca-Cola logo on many of our subsidiary products to avoid deterring
health-conscious consumers with a negative connotation associated with Coca-Cola. We believe
that anyone can find their new favorite beverage in our diverse brand portfolio. Despite our
attempts to reach a healthier demographic, The Coca-Cola Company has not been able to
overcome the negative reputation of our product mix. We need to align our internal narrative of
providing a wide array of products, with the external views that contradict this.

External
Our research regarding the sugar stigma proves that many consumers are concerned about the
sugar content in our beverages. This increased awareness of the adverse effects of sugar means
that consumers are demanding healthier products. Our current 12-ounce can of original Coca-
Cola contains 39 grams of sugar. According to the American Heart Association, the daily intake
of added sugars should not exceed than 30 grams. Since we do not directly associate our healthy
beverages with Coca-Cola, consumers do not acknowledge them as part of our product mix, and
therefore we are negatively seen as the largest producer of sugary beverages.

Our goal is to sell products that more customers will love and to do that we will have to address
the sugar stigma. We not only want to be the preferred company for soda, but we also want to be
the preferred company for water, tea, and other healthy alternatives. We want to change the way
our consumers see us. It is our goal to market our healthier products prominently under our name
so that consumers will begin to see us in a different light.

The media has also been concerned with our products and the current stigma regarding sugar.
The Coca-Cola Company has received negative press due to the declining views of the soda
industry. In 2015, negative word of mouth spread about the company after funding Global
Energy Balance Network. The Global Energy Balance Network promotes the idea that weight-
conscious Americans focus too much on diet and pay no attention to exercise. The media took
offense that The Coca-Cola company supported this idea and attempted to cast the obesity
epidemic as just an exercise problem. Just recently, the company came up with a competition in
attempt to resolve the sugar issue which gained positive press. The competition allows anyone

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who's interested to submit their idea for a naturally sourced, safe, low- or no-calorie compound
that creates the taste sensation of sugar when used in beverages.

Sugar Stigma
The main challenge the Coca-Cola Company faces is the stigma surrounding sugary beverages.
A study completed by the New York Times shows that soda consumption over the past 20 years
has declined 25%, suggesting a trend towards healthier products. As our consumers move
towards healthier options, it is important that we also shift our focus and take advantage of this
opportunity for growth.

In an effort to decrease our populations sugary beverage intake, taxes on soda have been
proposed in several states. Although many of these taxes have not passed, the buzz created has
been enough to steer people away from their favorite can of soda. This ties directly into the
obesity epidemic and our nations struggle with health. According to Harvard T.H. Chan School
of Public Health, two out of three adults and one out of three children in the United States are
overweight or obese due, in part, to the mass consumption of sugary beverages. With this in
mind, our society is doing everything in its power to cut back on unhealthy options.

Schools and stores are also following this health trend. The number of sugary beverages found in
school vending machines has been significantly decreased which has lead to the introduction of
healthier options to children from a young age. You will also find less sugary beverages in stores
due to financial incentives offered by the state. The members of Generation Z are the potential
consumers and it is imperative to show we have their health and well-being in mind.

Stakeholders
Health-Conscious Consumers
Our Health-Conscious consumers, Millennials and Generation Z, are our most impactful group
of stakeholders. To reach these health-conscious individuals, The Coca-Cola Company needs to
emphasize products that align with the lifestyles of these consumers. Millennials make up around
23% of the current population. This population is becoming more prevalent in the consumer
spending category of the economy. Therein lies our opportunity for growth. This group is a new
consumer base that are not interested in many of our traditional products, since they do not fit
into their wellness-oriented lifestyle. By increasing the number of healthy alternatives associated
with our brand, we can broaden our consumer base and ultimately increase our customer base as
a whole.

Brand Loyal Consumers

Our brand loyal consumers are the individuals who love our everyday products. These
consumers are the next most impacted group by our opportunity for growth. These consumers
are important to our brand as a whole as they provide the baseline for our company and are the
main reason Coca-Cola is one the most recognizable brands. One way to connect our brand loyal
consumers and our health-conscious consumers is by offering our everyday products in smaller
sizes and more individual packaging. This creates a product that can be consumed as a treat for
our brand loyal consumers who also live wellness-oriented lifestyles. These individual packaging
products create a portion controlled product that can help consumers limit temptations to over
indulge in products that may not be healthy options.

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Investors
Our investors became our third stakeholder as they are affected by how the first two stakeholders
respond to our opportunity for growth. As we increase customer base by providing options for
our health-conscious consumers, we expand our brand as a whole and increase revenue generated
by many of our subsidiaries. Along with this, as we create smaller packaging, we can increase
our margins on products by keeping the price constant but cutting costs of goods sold with less
soda in each package and less materials to make these smaller packaging. Overall investors are
affected by if the consumers respond to this message positively and ultimately generate more
revenue and increasing profits.

Recommendations
We can exploit this opportunity for growth by marketing healthier alternatives and maintaining
the positioning of old favorites, in an attempt to increase our consumer base and generate
additional revenue. We suggest that The Coca-Cola Company utilize multiple channels to target
three key stakeholders in order to bring recognition to their expanded brand portfolio.
Communications should flow through channels tailored to specific stakeholders, including
health-conscious consumers, brand loyal consumers, and The Coca-Cola Company investors.

STAKEHOLDER PRIORITY CONCERNS COMMUNICATION STRATEGY AND

MESSAGE

Health-Conscious 1st Concerned about sugar Emphasize that our brand portfolio extends
Consumers content of products. beyond a traditional soda company.

Communicate that our new products will

contain less sugar and artificial dyes.

Mobile advertisements through Twitter,

Facebook and Instagram.

2nd Concerned about us Assure our new products will be of the

Brand Loyal changing old products. same value and quality of current products.
Consumers
Communicate that were expanded our
product portfolio rather than changing our
current products.

Advertisements through sponsorships of

nationally televised events and programs.

Investors 3rd Alarmed by large Communicate the success of direct

increase in advertising competitors with comparable healthy
budget. initiatives.

Concerned if this Direct internal communication messages.

initiative will be worth
the money.
Figure 1: Stakeholder Analysis Chart

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Health-Conscious Consumers
Health-conscious consumers have the greatest impact on this opportunity, therefore they should
be the priority of this communication plan. This market segment is comprised primarily of
generation Z, who prioritize experience and health. Therefore, they are aware of the sugar stigma
and wont purchase Coke products that go against their healthy lifestyle. Therefore, we need to
change their perception of The Coca-Cola Company to more than just a soda company.

The demographics of this market segment indicate that these individuals spend more time per
day viewing content on mobile devices than televisions. Hence, they would be best reached via
digital communication, specifically internet and mobile advertisements. The ads would run on
Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram since those social media websites and mobile applications are
three of the most popular within this demographic, according to Nielsen Ratings and
MarketingCharts.com. This would allow for the greatest reach of our message through both
engagements and impressions.

These advertisements need to show our audience that our brand portfolio extends beyond
traditional soft drinks. The Coca-Cola Company offers a number of products that these health-
conscious consumers will love, including various tea, lemonade, and bottled water products.
These products contain less sugar and artificial dyes, which are the main selling points that need
to be emphasized to entice individuals to seek out and buy these products. By adding the Coca-
Cola name to these advertisements, and the physical packaging on these subsidiary products, we
will strengthen the association between Coca-Cola and healthier alternatives. This unified
product portfolio may cause health-conscious consumers to identify with the Coke brand and
transition into brand loyal consumers.

Brand Loyal Consumers

Brand loyal consumers are the next most important stakeholder that need to be addressed in this
initiative. The fact that we are still competitive during an industry downturn means that we have
a strong brand loyal segment.

We aim to maintain our relationship with these consumers through continuing major
sponsorships and launching additional television advertisements. We have been engaging these
individuals through sponsorships of nationally televised events and programs, such as the
Olympic Games, the FIFA World Cup, the NCAA Tournament, and American Idol. These
programs maintain our visual presence in the average American household. The television
advertisements that run during these events have a massive reach. 111.3 million Americans tuned
in to Super Bowl LI this past February, which means that our efforts were viewed by millions of
consumers. Therefore, both of these actions are successfully engaging our brand loyal
consumers. However, since we want to change the perception of The Coca-Cola Company to
more than just a soda company, we need to alter the content of those advertisements.

We fully intend to preserve our reach on classic Coke products. We dont want to shift the
attention away from soft drinks, but we want to bring the healthier alternatives into the public
eye. To do this, The Coca-Cola Company should launch advertisements that feature our entire
brand portfolio. These ads will feature classic Coca-Cola, Fanta, and Sprite alongside Dasani,
Minute Maid, and Vitamin Water which will deliver the message that we still provide all of your

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favorites, but we also have other refreshing products to fall in love with. This will allow brand
loyal consumers to see all our subsidiaries as an extension of the company they already love.

Investors
The Coca-Cola Company investors are the third most important group of stakeholders. These
individuals will be best reached through direct internal communication. They will benefit from
the financial logic behind the move to promote healthy alternatives. We will give them the
message of how the communication strategies to reach health-conscious and brand loyal
consumers will benefit us as a whole through financial reports outlining additional revenue
generated by advertising campaigns.

We will communicate the success of direct competitors by explaining increased profitability

through an extended product mix to include healthy products. According to The Economist, 45%
of PepsiCo revenue comes from guilt free products, whereas we only have 30% of revenue
coming from similar product lines. Marketing these healthy product lines to a wider market will
allow us to be comparable to our direct industry competitors, through increased revenue.

Response
We recommend that Coca-Cola continuously reach out to brand loyal consumers while also
working to bring in a higher percentage of the health-conscious market. Our plan includes
maintaining our presence on TV while increasing our advertisements online. We plan to maintain
our level of advertising on TV in order to maintain our current relationship with our brand loyal
consumers. To reach out to younger, generally more health-conscious consumers, we aim to
increase our current advertising budget by $1 billion.

Return on Investment
The Coca-Cola website claims that the company currently has 80% of their advertising on TV.
This is great for reaching out to our brand loyal consumers that are generally older. But in order
to grow, we need to reach out to a younger audience. The younger generations are more likely to
pay attention to ads on internet sites and apps.

According to the Economist, Coca-Colas main competition Pepsi earns about 45% of their
revenue from their Guilt Free products where our company only earns about 30% from our
healthier products. Because of this, we project that we can earn an extra $100 million in revenue
from our healthier products given a 10% ROI.

With the $1 billion increase in the advertising budget, we plan to market heavily on popular
social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter. We plan to allocate $250
million to each of the sites.

Snapchat
Having advertising on Snapchat involves having advertisements embedded into the stories that
people post. It cost $750,000 per day according to AdAge.com to advertise in this fashion. This
means that we would be able to post ads on the app almost every day of the year.

Twitter

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Twitter allows companies to promote themselves by being a promoted trend on their platform for
$200,000 a day according to PennaPowers.com. This would allow us to be a promoted trend on
Twitter every day in the coming year which would greatly increase our exposure to the
Millennial and Gen-Z demographics.

Facebook/Instagram
Facebook and Instagram sell its advertising in a few different formats. The format that we found
the best for Coca-Cola is paying for every 1,000 impressions until we reach our $250 million
dollar limit. An impression is when an ad appears on someone's feed. According to
PennaPowers.com, it cost $6.58 for every 1,000 impressions. This would allow us to spend
around $22,000 per day to appear in both Facebook and Instagrams feeds to reach out to
younger, more health-conscious consumers.

Labeling
Currently, all Coca-Cola subsidiaries have their own labels that do not include our name. Adding
our name and logo to physical packaging will reinforce the association between Coke and
healthy products. This will help change our overall perception from a soft drink company to a
company that provides many options to a wide range of consumers. There is a cost associated
with this initiative, but it will prove beneficial to investors.

Timeline

Figure 2: Timeline of Implementation

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In conclusion, after discussing our opportunity for growth and its effect on our three different
stakeholders, we then proceeded to give our response and recommendation to effectively deliver
our communication strategy. By reaching a new consumer base of health-conscious consumers
and expanding our brand loyal consumers, we can ultimately generate additional return on
investment for our investors. By providing a positive experience for these stakeholders we will
ultimately grow the company as a whole and strengthen the overall brand of Coca-Cola. We
would like to thank you for the opportunity to explore Coca-Cola and their communication
strategy and we look forward to discussing our response and recommendation with you.

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 References

The Coca-Cola Company. (2017). Company Details. Retrieved from Mergent Online database.

Coca-Cola's new boss tries to move beyond its core product. (2017, May 18). Retrieved October
12, 2017, from https://www.economist.com/news/business/21722231-more-governments-
see-its-sugar-laden-products-scourge-coca-colas-new-boss-tries-move

Coca-Cola Sponsorships. (2012, January 01). Retrieved October 9, 2017, from http://www.coca-
colacompany.com/stories/coca-cola-sponsorships

Coke CMO: TV Advertising Still Delivers Strongest ROI. (2017, January 09). Retrieved October
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delivers-strongest-roi

How Much Do Ads on Twitter Cost? (2015, July 15). Retrieved October 12, 2017, from
http://www.pennapowers.com/how-much-do-ads-on-twitter-cost/

Our Company. (2017). Retrieved October 9, 2017 from http://www.coca-colacompany.com/our-

company

Sanger-Katz, M. (2015, October 02). The decline of big soda. Retrieved October 11, 2017,
from The New York Times.

The State of Traditional TV: Updated With Q1 2017 Data. (2017, July 28). Retrieved October 9,
2017, from http://www.marketingcharts.com/featured-24817

Sugary drinks and obesity fact sheet. (2015, May 26). Retrieved October 11, 2017, from The
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

R. (2017, April 26). PepsiCos profits get a boost from healthier drinks and snacks. Retrieved
October 12, 2017, from http://nypost.com/2017/04/26/pepsicos-profits-get-a-
boost-from-healthier-drinks-and-snacks/

Williams, S. (2014, April 27). Coca-Cola or Pepsi: Can You Guess Which Brand Is Tops in
Consumer Loyalty. Retrieved September 24, 2017 from The Motley Fool.

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