Tests were carried out in a controlled hospital environment, rather like an MRI scan, and the brain registered as much recognition and pleasure from seeing these logos as it did photographs of close family members.
A quick trip back through the history of brands such as Coca-Cola, Heinz, Cadbury and McVitie’s shows just how long they’ve been around (all well over a hundred years), and so they’re embedded in the psyche of even the oldest among us.
It seems it’s the number of times we see these logos in our daily lives, however, which reminds us that when we come to buy, this is the obvious and ‘friendly’ choice.
Alex stood at a bus stop and could see Coca-Cola logos in four places just from where he stood. Now, that’s marketing. And it was evident even from the earliest footage that distribution is key.
A Coca-Cola representative explained: “If we are going to double this business in 10 years, we will only be as successful as the communities in which we operate. We want to convert that 1.6 billion servings a day we currently serve to 3.2 billion servings. We are all anchored in recruiting that next generation of teens.”
Now that’s quite an ambition, but how are they going to do it? The answer is via targeting their young consumers through employing them on a local basis, reaching right to the heart of youth angst about jobs and continuing their policy of being ‘a friend when you need them most’.
It was a fascinating programme, perhaps more so for anyone involved in the industry. For instance, it looked at McDonalds in India, where the menu is quite different but apparently has the same ‘easy to recognise’ appeal. This involves very careful analysis of styles of home cooking in northern India and provides the ‘comfort factor’ when you’re far from home.
We may all be living in a global society today, but warmth, recognition and friendship in whatever format continue to be the winners.
Claire Phoenix is managing editor of Beverage Innovation magazine. Subscribe here.
© FoodBev Media Ltd 2024