Marketing

Disasters
Marketing is
the art of
bringing to
customers
information
about useful
products and
services. But
unfortunately, even the most clever and
expensive marketing campaign cannot make
customers want something they have no
need for. Here are a few marketing disasters-
products that seemed like a good idea at the
time, but ended up damaging the reputation
and finances of some of the worlds largest
companies.
New Coke
Back in the early !"#s, the $oca $ola $ompany had a problem. %hey were losing
market share to their rival, &epsi $ola. 'hile older drinkers were still loyal to $oke,
their kids were more and more drinking &epsi. $oke decided that something had to
be done. But what(
%he answer was simple) change the recipe of $oke to make it taste more like &epsi.
*f course, that was a great idea+ ,t least that is what $oca $ola thought at the time.
-o after much research, a new recipe was formulated, and on ,pril ./, !"0, $oke
announced that, for the first time in !! years, they were changing their recipe.
12ew $oke3, as it was called, was promoted with a huge advertising campaign. But it
was not the advertising that created the most publicity for $oke, it was the consumer
response. 2o one wanted 2ew $oke. Many people thought it was un-,merican to
change the recipe, and protests poured into the $oca $ola $ompany. &eople began
talking about 2ew $oke as the biggest marketing mistake in history.
%he thousands of letters and phone calls surprised the company. %hey had no idea
how loyal their customers were. But this loyalty was a problem) 2ew $oke had cost
the company millions, but now it was killing the companys reputation, and angering
millions of customers. 'hat to do(
*nce again, the answer was simple) give the customers what they want. -o after 4!
stormy days, the $oca $ola $ompany announced they were putting 1old $oke3 back
on the market, under the name $oca $ola $lassic. $oke drinkers were once again
happy, and the company learned a very expensive lesson in marketing.
Clear Pepsi?
$oca $ola wasnt the only soft drink maker that tried to give the public something
they didnt want, &epsi $ola made the same mistake.
5n !!. market researched showed that consumers trusted products more that were
transparent. %hese products, such as shampoo and soap, were thought to be more
pure, and therefore had better sales than their opa6ue rivals.
%he marketing geniuses at &epsi reasoned that if the public wanted clear shampoo,
they would also want clear soft drinks. %hus was born $rystal $lear &epsi.
$rystal $lear &epsi was marketed as a healthy alternative to regular soft drinks. 5t
was caffiene free and was supposed to have a uni6ue flavor. 7nfortunately, $rystal
$lear &epsi tasted very much like normal &epsi.
,fter an expensive advertising campaign, $rystal $lear &epsi sold well- for a few
months. *nce consumers tired of the novelty of a clear cola, they 6uickly lost
interest, and &epsi 6uietly retired their clear alternative within a few years of its
launch.
But &epsi$o was not the only victim of the clear era, as other companies, including
$oke 8wont they ever learn(9 produced their own clear beverages. &erhaps the most
bi:arre was $lear Beer, a transparent beer marketed ; very briefly- by the Miller
Brewing $ompany. $learly, no one was impressed.
The Ford Edsel
Before there was 2ew $oke there was the <ord =dsel.
%he =dsel, the biggest flop in car history, was the victim of its own advertising. 5n
!04<ord announced that a new kind of car was coming, and the public would be
ama:ed. %he advertising became more and more intense as the launch date for the
=dsel got closer. <inally, on -eptember >, !04 the =dsel was introduced to the
public. %he public hated it.
%he =dsel never caught the imagination of the ,merican driver. -ales were never
good, and in its last year of produciton, !?#, only .,0## were sold. But what went
wrong(
%echnically, the =dsel was a good car. 5t was well made and did not suffer from
defects. &eople said it was ugly, which may be true, but the biggest problem was that
after all the advertising hype <ord produced for the car, nothing short of a spaceship
could satisfy the public. @es, the =dsel was a good car, but that was all it was, a car,
nothing special.
Trouble abroad
Many succesful companies have tried to enter foreign markets, only to have
problems with their marketing. Here are some notable failures)
$oke had a problem 8again(9 when they translated their name into $hinese. %he
translation, Ke-kou-ke-la, came out as depending on the dialect 1bite the wax
tadpole3 or 1female horse stuffed with wax3 %hey finally found ko-kou-ko-le, which
means 1happiness in the mouth.3
&epsi had problems in %aiwan with their slogan 1$ome alive with the &epsi
generation3. 5t was translated as 1&epsi will bring your ancestors back from the
dead3. @uck.
<inally, a %-shirt produced in ,merica for the Mexican market should have read 15 saw
the &ope3. 5nstead it read 15 saw the potato3. Marketing is not easy.
Here are some photos if you need them)
=ven ,ndy 'arhol hated 2ew $oke
$lear pepsi
%he <ord =dsel. 2ot really so bad.