As we all know by now, one of the main reasons organisations use social media as a business tool is to communicate with it's consumers. One of the most important elements of this communication is that it is two way communication. Not only is there communication from the organisation, but there is communication from the consumers to the organisation.
In this post I would like to focus on communication from the company towards consumers.
Staying with the coke example, I would like to explore how a truly multinational company integrates SM into their communications.
Coke has quite different advertisements to cater for the different markets in which they operate.
Australia:
UK and some other countries:
With ads that vary so considerably, but one Facebook page (for example) that caters for all markets, how do coke ensure that their messages going out on FB is in line with the rest of the campaigns and does not confuse consumers?
Do they attempt to integrate their SM activities with the rest of their communications, or do they simply put out a one word reminder every now and then (such as happiness) to keep the brand in the evoked set of consumers? Do you think their SM objectives are therefore part of their communications objectives, or does it have it's own set of objectives?
I would love to hear your thoughts, and in particular if you have similar examples and how this may have influenced you as a consumer or your consumer base if you talk from an organisation's perspective.
Ross
Great post Ross. Coke seems to have quiet a decentralized marketing strategy in terms of traditional marketing, as shown in your example of the two different ads catered for different markets. Till now I only have seen one FB page for Coke giving a Global image. However, I think Facebook to Coke may be used as an emphasis of telling the consumers that it is a Global brand.
ReplyDeleteI think Coke uses Facebook just to give people an opportunity to "Like", allowing users to show that "I Drink Coke...not Pepsi". With its Facebook page, it actually can be "I Guess" a constant reminder for all users that Coke should be in the evoked set, where these Like's pages actually pops up at the side bars when you look @ your friends FB page. From there an individual may think that "I like Coke too...Press a Like", so I think it is a form of eWOM to help spread its loyalty around.
Nice post Coca-Cola Ross. Coke not only integrates it's marketing, it stick's to a winning formula. Watching the Australian "Open Happiness" vid I was thinking they used to have similar ads back in the eighties. Nowadays with YouTube that's pretty easy to check and sure enough I found this classic! Enjoy :) Coke adds life
ReplyDeleteGood Post Ross. I think Coca-Cola's SM objectives are part of their communications objectives (and marketing objectives). Also, those communications objectives are aligned with the global strategy and mission on the company. Coca-Cola use the word "happiness" to do that. However, it adapts its communication to the different markets. As a consumer this is very important because Coke reaches the most deep values of a country (or culture). This allows Coke to maintain a close relationship with their fans all around the world.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comments guys. I would think that Coke has well developed integrated campaigns for the various countries they operate in. Off course they won't have a single world wide campaign, but their campaigns are well integrated by country. Is it then fair to say that their SM strategy is there to just support the overall brand and brand awareness?
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