Coca Cola Case Study The C

coca Cola Case Study the C

The Coca-Cola Company changed the formula to their namesake drink in 1985. Coca-Cola’s official website mentions that they were receiving about 1,400 calls a day on their consumer hotline. The Society for the Preservation of the Real Thing and Old Cola Drinkers of America were formed in protest of the new formula. Hardcore fans of the original Coca-Cola were outraged. Coca-Cola utilized the six components of the business communication cycle to do damage control, but they should have never drastically changed their beloved soda in the first place.

According to our textbook, the six components of business communications are purpose, audience, message, source, feedback, and response. The purpose for the communication was that Coca-Cola’s customers needed to learn that they were making their beloved classic version of Coca-Cola available again. Everyone who drank Coca-Cola was a part of the targeted audience. The message was that due to popular demand, The Coca-Cola Company was bringing their original formula version of Coca-Cola back. Don Keough delivered the message.

According to Fortune, Don Keough was employed as both the President and Chief Operating Officer at the Coca-Cola Company. He was an appropriate choice as an executive of the company. Coca-Cola’s official website mentions the overwhelmingly positive feedback from customers. Their hotline received 31,600 calls in the two days following Don Keough’s famous speech. Coca-Cola responded to their calls and continued manufacturing both versions of their soda.

Our textbook states that New Coke was discontinued in 2002. I would have never changed the taste of Coca-Cola in the first place. Their namesake soda was already extremely popular. They did not receive calls from hordes of customers complaining to them about the taste staying the same. The textbook mentions how The Coca-Cola Company was threatened by Pepsi’s increasing success. They changed their formula in response to this. Even though New Coke performed better in taste tests, many customers were angry about not being able to obtain the soda they had always loved.

Communicating with customers before, during, and after a product change is important. If The Coca-Cola Company had communicated with customers more before making the change, they might have avoided the whole New Coke fiasco. If I held a significant amount of influence over The Coca-Cola Company throughout the 1980s, I would have had them communicating with customers about changing the taste of their favorite drink.

The Coca-Cola Company orchestrated their own problem by making an unnecessary change to their classic soda. They brought the original Coca-Cola back and used the business communication cycle to resolve the problem.

Paper For Above instruction

The Coca-Cola case of 1985 remains one of the most infamous product changes in marketing history, illustrating the critical importance of understanding target audiences, maintaining brand loyalty, and executing effective communication strategies. This case exemplifies the use of the business communication cycle—purpose, audience, message, source, feedback, and response—in managing corporate crises and restoring consumer trust.

The primary purpose of Coca-Cola’s communication during the “New Coke” debacle was to inform consumers that the original formula was returning, aiming to alleviate consumer outrage and restore faith in the brand. The audience was broad, encompassing loyal coke drinkers, curious consumers, retailers, and regulators. The message conveyed that Coca-Cola was responding to consumer demand, emphasizing that their action was customer-centric rather than a mere corporate whim. The source of this communication was Coca-Cola’s senior management, notably Don Keough, whose leadership played a pivotal role in public messaging after the product change.

Feedback from consumers was overwhelmingly negative, with thousands of calls flooding the hotline and protests mounting across various channels. Coca-Cola responded by shifting strategies—reintroducing the original formula while continuing to promote the new product—demonstrating adaptability within the communication cycle. This response was crucial in repairing consumer relationships and eventually led to the marketing decision to phase out New Coke entirely by 2002, replacing it with Coca-Cola Classic, highlighting the importance of response in the communication process.

One of the lessons from this case is that a strategic error originated with the change itself, driven by competitive pressures from Pepsi rather than consumer preference. Coca-Cola’s assumption that taste test superiority would translate into market success proved false when the brand’s loyal customer base felt alienated. Effective communication could have mitigated the backlash—an area where Coca-Cola’s failure to engage customers prior to launching New Coke caused long-term damage to public perception.

Strategically, companies should prioritize customer engagement and transparent communication, particularly when there is a risk of alienation. Good communication serves as an approach to manage expectations, understand customer sentiments, and adapt accordingly. If I had influence within Coca-Cola in the 1980s, I would have advised a more incremental approach—perhaps testing new formulations with limited audiences before full-scale rollout or clearly communicating product changes well in advance—thus aligning with best practices of the business communication cycle.

The case demonstrates how the misalignment between corporate strategy and customer expectation can backfire disastrously. Coca-Cola’s failure to heed consumer sentiments exemplifies the significance of the feedback component in the communication cycle. Their subsequent crisis management showcased the importance of a prompt, transparent, and empathetic response, which ultimately helped regain consumer confidence. The entire episode underscores that good business communication is essential for brand resilience and long-term success, especially in competitive markets.

In conclusion, Coca-Cola’s 1985 formula change underscores the significance of understanding one’s audience and effectively using business communication components to navigate change. This incident remains a benchmark for marketers, emphasizing that product changes should be undertaken with careful planning, transparent communication, and genuine engagement with consumers.

References

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