In 1985 the Coca-Cola Company would undergo a sea change to their flagship brand thereby altering a formula that was a century-old success story. That change would be a reaction to the consistent eroding of market share to rival Pepsi and the inevitable expiration of exclusivity contracts in the restaurant and vending industries. It was well known that contracts of an exclusive nature can give a false sense of financial security as they tend to artificially prop up market share in the short-term. If the company was going to lose out to their rival, what would happen with those contracts as they expired over time? There was no question that marketing and sales executives at the company had cause for concern. If the recipe for Coke changed,
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It was hard to imagine that this marketing giant could have not anticipated the types of issues that befell them so quickly. There were even accounts of people hoarding the old Coke with some reselling it on the black market. During this time the company board of directors had apparently also been keeping tabs with the erupting firestorms and the financial repercussions that would shortly ensue. As a result of the turmoil caused by the simultaneous launching of New Coke and jettisoning of the old Coke, the board of directors voted to bring back the original formulation repackaged as Coca Cola Classic. Reintroducing Coke occurred less than three months after introducing New Coke. The company decided to market both products side-by-side for a time. Eventually, New Coke disappeared altogether with little or no fanfare. Known for its astute global marketing, the Coca-Cola Company had used some very flawed marketing research. Subsequent introspection of the process revealed critical variables summarily disregarded. It turned out that during their taste tests and marketing research, nobody ever discussed eliminating the original Coke product as a consumer choice altogether. That seemingly small detail cost the company millions in costs, lost revenues, and an embarrassing legacy still prominent in conversation thirty years later. One very big positive that came out all of this is that the Coca-Cola Company survived and became stronger – most would have perished in the
It was hard to imagine that this marketing giant could have not anticipated the types of issues that befell them so quickly. There were even accounts of people hoarding the old Coke with some reselling it on the black market. During this time the company board of directors had apparently also been keeping tabs with the erupting firestorms and the financial repercussions that would shortly ensue. As a result of the turmoil caused by the simultaneous launching of New Coke and jettisoning of the old Coke, the board of directors voted to bring back the original formulation repackaged as Coca Cola Classic. Reintroducing Coke occurred less than three months after introducing New Coke. The company decided to market both products side-by-side for a time. Eventually, New Coke disappeared altogether with little or no fanfare. Known for its astute global marketing, the Coca-Cola Company had used some very flawed marketing research. Subsequent introspection of the process revealed critical variables summarily disregarded. It turned out that during their taste tests and marketing research, nobody ever discussed eliminating the original Coke product as a consumer choice altogether. That seemingly small detail cost the company millions in costs, lost revenues, and an embarrassing legacy still prominent in conversation thirty years later. One very big positive that came out all of this is that the Coca-Cola Company survived and became stronger – most would have perished in the