WHY COCA COLA STILL CONTINUES TO ADVERTISE

Advertising is any paid form of non-personal presentation and promotion of ideas, goods, and services through the mass media and with an identifiable sponsor.

What an ideal advertising seeks to achieve is not to increase sales instantaneously but to create awareness. This is because consumers do not immediately make purchasing decisions upon coming into contact with an advert. The average consumer is exposed to perhaps three thousand commercial messages a day from all sources. From the time he gets up in the morning the consumer is bombarded with sales messages on the television, radio, bill boards, and many more. Everywhere the consumer turns, there are advertisements, “Buy this!”

A consumer, thus only makes a purchase after going through many processes and if the product or service satisfies his physical or psychological needs. Therefore the primary objective of advertising is to first of all create awareness.

Product Life Cycle

When a product is introduced into the market is goes through several stages. The first stage is the introductory stage, where the product is formally launched into the market for business.

The second stage is the acceptance stage where the product is adopted by consumes. Sales level as well as profit margin can be very high at this level.

The third state is the maturity stage. This is where the product becomes a widely recognized brand with people becoming so familiar with the product. At this stage which is considered as crucial if the product is not revived through advertisements, interest levels in consumers could dwindle, and shift to other products on the market. At this stage one could see advertisements on new brands of the same product just to re-emphasis the continued existence of the product. Examples; New Ariel Gold washing power, New Omo washing power wish triple effect, and New Milo with Antigen E   

   

The last stage is the decline stage where the product fades away completely from the market, perhaps due to lack of advertisement.

Why a company like Coca Cola should continue to advertise?

The iconic brand Coca Cola was introduced on May 8, 1886 by a pharmacist name Dr. John Pemberton. He carried a jug of Coca Cola syrup to Jacobs’ Pharmacy in downtown Atlanta, where it was mixed with carbonated water and sold for five cents a glass.

Over the years Coca Cola has evolved to be enlisted among the most-admired and best-known trademarks in the world. Studies have proved that Coca Cola is the second-most widely understood terms in the world, after “okay.” From one product Coca Cola now has more than 500 brands, and has grown from selling 9 drinks a day in 1886 to 1.8 billion a day. The company has expanded from one city in one country availability to more than 200 countries around the world.

Of a fact Coca Cola achieved all these enviable pedigree on the wings of strong, vibrant, and years of consistent advertising. This is epitomized in the company’s track record of huge budgetary allocations for advertising campaigns since 1887 till date. For instance, aside many other sponsorships Coca Cola has associated and continues to associate itself with, it is of the only brands with the worldwide presence and ability to sponsor the two biggest sporting events in the world, for more than 80 years; The Olympic Games and the FIFA World Cup. Coca Cola has also been sponsoring all other FIFA tournaments since 1976.

Sponsorship of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games for instance connected with more than 500 million consumers in China. For want of space only but few can be typed on Coca Cola’s amazing history of advertising campaigns over the years.    

Coca Cola continues unabated to advertise because it want to emphasis over and over again the continued existence of it iconic product, and also to create awareness for its new brands that have been introduced into the market.

Again Coca Cola should continue to advertise in order to maintain that bond it has established over the years with its millions of consumers out there in over 200 countries. This helps to maintain a very strong consumer loyalty.

Also Coca Cola should continue unabated to advertise in order to continue to attract new markets. Coca Cola has become a beverage not for only one group or class of persons but for all persons, regardless; age, status, race, religion, and tribe.

Coca Cola should continue to advertise in order to keep up with competition. Currently the brand is the second-most understood terms in the world. In the world of FIFA World Cup games and Olympic Games, Coca Cola is the most popular brands with no doubts. Not to say the least; Christmas and Santa Clause have always been associated with the brand Coca Cola. It cannot afford the luxury to stop or pulse advertising.

The company Coca Cola should persist advertising in order to keep updating its numerous consumers with price changes. This is because consumers mostly feel secured and satisfied when they become aware that what they are buying is at a standardized price.

www.thecoca-colacompany.com

Brain, T., (2006). The Psychology of Selling.