THE WORLD

34
Carbonating the World
• In South Africa, a cartoon Pepsi bottle and pizza sit at a romantic candle-lit table
with hearts in their eyes, and on Pizza Hut’s Facebook page, a “Life Event” is
listed for when Pepsi and Pizza Hut became “friends.” 269,270
Celebrity Endorsements
Celebrity endorsements are a key element of promotion. In the United States,
for example, PepsiCo has aggressively employed celebrity endorsements,
signing artists like Michael Jackson and Beyoncé to endorsement deals, while
Coca-Cola has brokered deals with rapper 50 Cent and basketball star LeBron
James. In global marketing campaigns, companies work with locally relevant
celebrities. 271 Olympic medalists and music stars are frequently included
in marketing efforts. 272,273 For example, during the 2012 London Olympic
Games, Coca-Cola included Chinese Olympic medalists like Xiang Liu and
Yang Sun as spokespersons, while PepsiCo involved several famous football
(soccer) players to make a dream team during the 2014 FIFA World Cup in
Brazil.
Popular Indian film personality, Vishal,
goes to work for Thums Up.
Source: Coca-Cola India image gallery.
Thums Up commercials in India sometimes showcase Bollywood stars. One
ad features Bollywood star Akshay Kumar in a dashing, James Bond-type car
chase in pursuit of a bottle of Thums Up. Says Vikas Gupta, Vice-President of
Marketing for Coca-Cola India, “The ‘Thums Up Taste The Thunder’ series
portrays every person’s hidden yearning—to dare and win over the
impossible; to set unbelievable targets and to have the power to accomplish
them.” 274 Daredevil commercials have proven highly controversial: Mumbai
police called for a ban on them, because children might try to pull off the
stunts. The India Advertising Council stepped in and pulled 14 ads because
they included stunt activities, in some cases featuring celebrities from
cricket.
Online Gaming, Prizes, and Discounts
Prizes in a Kenyan contest sponsored by
Pepsi include dinner dates with music stars.
Source: http://www.promonigeria.co/2014/11/pepsi-topten-vote-and-win-contest.html.
As access to mobile devices becomes more prevalent, it is no surprise that
kids are increasingly playing online games. Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and many
other companies are using the meteoric rise of online video games and
other digital and social media applications to engage children. The child
entertainment market is global: the “global child” downloads about 11
apps every six months according to industry strategists. 275 In addition to
games, online promotions reward consumers with such gifts or prizes as
toys, computers, and musical and sports equipment in return for brand
loyalty. 276
• In Nicaragua, a Pepsi ad entices consumers to triple their telephone airtime
through Pepsi product purchases.
• In Korea, Coca-Cola PLAY is a real and virtual playground for young people to
connect with one another by using mobile devices that incorporate voice
recognition, location, and motion-detecting technologies for games and activities.