Branding and Advertising

Part A: Customer Satisfaction and Product Guarantee Plan
I took an commercial from the Advertising Age, a magazine that grants news, data and evaluation on marketing. The magazine indicates Taste the Feeling advertisement developed by means of Coca-Cola Company. It shows two female lying conveniently on their backs as they drink Coca-Cola drink. It also suggests a boy and his girlfriend playing coke drink as they smile at each other.
The advert is one brand commercial that sends both useful and emotional message. It creates brand recall on the buyers by assuming that the target audience is familiar already with the brand. The advert creates brand recall on the consumers by assuming that the audience is familiar already with the brand. The ad creates brand recall on the consumers. It brings the perception that drinking Coca-Cola brings pleasure and refreshment (Schultz, 2016). It also shows that Coca-Cola Company is committed to choice by offering consumers the Coca-Cola brands that suit their diet and lifestyle with or without caffeine or calories. Still, the ad indicates that consuming Coca-Cola drinks leads to lean body, reduces obesity and tooth decay. Is there a brand promise? Do you believe the promise?The brand promises pleasure and happiness on consumption of the Coca-Cola, not harming anyone’s health. The people used in the advertisement are shown as smiling indicating that they are happy. The advertisement also indicates that Coca-Cola consumption is necessary for real excitement. I do not entirely believe the ads because Coca-Cola Company produces three drinks that are Coke Zero, Coke Life and Diet Coke. The Coke Zero is sugarless, however, the Coke Diet and Coke Life have sugar, and thus, when consumed continuously, they may lead to obesity and tooth decay. The message that the consumers of Coke products lead to lean body, happiness, and refreshments is, therefore, short-lived. Who do you think the advertisement is targeting?The ad mainly targets the youths or young customers. The ad promotes fun and modern lifestyle that most young people like today. It is based on the fact that young clients are usually looking for excitement and like to throwaway boredom. It mainly uses individuals in their teens, and particularly those girls and boys who are partying and having fun. The ad shows the youth having pleasure and refreshment as they drink Coke. Moreover, it shows the youths drinking Coke, playfully twirling them, as well as striking poses. Why would a customer buy this product?The advertisement particularly focuses on youths who like partying and entertaining moments. It creates the notions that party without Coke is impossible. The ad creates the perception that consuming Coke leads to happiness. Customers would also buy the product because it does not cause tooth decay or obesity. Therefore, the ad would motivate the young customers to increase their use of coke products based on the emotional and functional appeal brought by the advertisement.Where would the customer use the product?The Coke brand and drinks can be used in several places as shown in this advertisement. It can be utilized when youths are spending time with friends. It can also be used with family during various entertainment events. The ad also indicates that Coke can be used by young people after work, particularly when they are resting and those that are thirsty after long day of sunshine. How does the advertisement appeal to the customer’s image of him- or herself?The situations in the ad are taken from the regular life and represent the lifestyles of youth customers who work hard mainly to engage in constant entertainment and exciting moments. The advertisement, thus, tries to link with the emotions and attempting to connect with the passion found among the youths (Schultz, 2016). The ad claims joy comes from consuming Coca-Cola products and brands. It demonstrates that consumption of Coca-Cola brand brings pleasure and refreshment. The people used in the ad are smiling, happy and laughing, a symbol of contentment. It also demonstrates that consumers of Coke have a lean body and healthy teeth, signifying that drinking Coca-Cola brand has no effect on the body. Would you buy the product or suggest it to your friends and family?I would buy and even propose it to my family and friends because Coke usually refreshes. The advertisement covers everybody and offers all people a choice. It gives everyone an opportunity to either choose between Diet Coke, Coke Zero and Coke Life. While the ad is one brand advertisement that covers all Coca-Cola drinks, I would especially like to suggest to my friend to consume Coke Zero because of its limited sugar contents. The less sugar content of this product implies less impact on health. Explain how the advertising copy appeals to the reader. Where is the call to action to buy?The advertisement brings an impression that drinking Coca-Cola is exciting. The notion it creates is that no other drink is better than Coca-Cola in quenching thirst, as well as having the best taste. Besides, the youngsters, used in the ad, look happy and refreshed; and this call the customers to increase their consumption of Coke brand (Nudd, 2016).Do the visual or graphic images correspond to the copy? Why did it capture your attention?The graphic image correspond to the copy because it shows youths having refreshing moments as they use the Coca-Cola brand. They youths are depicted smiling and laughing a sign of contentment. The ad captured my attention because it shows positive emotions of young people holding the bottle with Coke, yet it is a well-known fact that such drinks cause increased obesity. Part B2: The Salesperson’s AttitudeDid the salesperson make a sales pitch? If so, what were some of the key highlights of it?The salesperson made a sale pitch. She used three posters to present her sales message. The first poster showed a man working on a hot sunny day, sweating and almost fainting. In the second poster, the same man was drinking Coca-Cola. The last poster showed the man refreshed and working hard.Describe the general attitude of the salesperson. The saleswoman showed talkative and aggressive attitude. Immediately I arrived at the store she greeted me and welcomed me with a smile to her shop. Thereafter we had series of engagement through conversations.Reflect on your reaction as the consumerThe first impression I developed upon looking at the posters was negative. I mistakenly viewed the sale pitch from right to left, and this brought an idea that drinking Coke leads to suffering. However, after clarification from the salesperson, I felt convinced to buy Coke. Besides, I was impressed by the polite and respectful treatment I got from the shop. Greeting and conversation with the saleswoman impressed upon me to purchase the brand. How did the salesperson get your attention?The saleswoman got my attention by use of warm greeting, conversational attitude and use of sale pitch. How did you respond to the initial greeting by the salesperson, and why?I responded by smiling and explaining my joy to be in the shop at that time. The reception is especially impressive because I had never seen such warm greeting in my previous visit to other stores.Articulate how the information applies to the field of customer behavior, sales, and advertising.The use of posters is one of the promotional techniques used to bring the attention of the client in the presence of a product or service in the market. The warm greeting is a strategy to develop customer friendly environment to make them buy the provided product or services. All these approaches help to improve sales.Part B3: The Product Pitch and PromiseWhat product or service did you ask about?When I reached the store, I asked for Coke Zero. What promises did the salesperson make about the product or service?The saleswoman promised that Coke Zero had an excellent taste and was capable of creating excitement. Besides, she mentioned that it had no sugar and hence could not cause tooth decay or obese related complications. What was the product guarantee?The product guaranteed refreshment, fun, enjoyment as well as risk-free health. What is the company’s stance on product returns?Coca-Cola Company allows its customers to return any unsatisfactory products after purchase. However, the option only applies to those that are new or unused. What is the length of time the company will accept a returned product?Coca-Cola Company allows its customers to make a product return within 30 days of the purchase date. After application, it takes seven to ten days for the refund request to be processed. What is the exchange for the returned product (i.e., refund, store credit, etc.)?The company refund cash for the goods returned in good conditions. However, it does not return the shipping cost.Do you agree with the product guarantee and return policy? Why or why not?I agree with the product guarantee and policy. The guarantee of low calories is accurate taking into account that the production process does not use sugar as an implement. The drink also has excellent taste. Besides, the company provides adequate time for a customer to decide whether they can make a return. Allowance of thirty days is enough time for one to make a decision on whether to take back the purchased product to the company. Are you willing to risk buying the product based on the product guarantee and return policy? Why or why not?I would risk buying the product because the return policy provides adequate time to forfeit the purchase decision and also the products offers sufficient refreshment.Articulate how the information applies to the field of customer behavior, sales, and advertising.The product guarantee is a sale and marketing strategy that enhances consumers’ views on the provided services. The fund policy also increases the customers’ trust on the product available in the market as it indicates the enthusiastic attitude of the company to refund any consumer who feels dissatisfied. Part C: Key Assignment DraftCustomer Service Policies:We are dedicated to producing the highest quality and best-tasting beverages.We endeavor to act ethically and responsibly as we carry out our business.We are determined to support smaller customers to make their business more profitable.We aim at providing our clients with the safest beverages through the sustainable food safety program.We will complete our interactions with clients in a courteous and professional manner.We are determined to listen to our client's complaints and after that take necessary steps to assist them. We seek to understand the impact of Coke Zero on our customers with the aim of addressing areas of concern and adding value to our beverages.We are dedicated to working with our clients to improve their purchase experiences and accelerate innovation with the objective of providing excellent drinks. We are determined to work with our customerswith the aim of broadening their drinks choices, nutritional needs and ensure responsible marketing.Section I: Company and Brand InformationCoca-Cola Company is American multinational beverage company that deals with the manufacture and sells of nonalcoholic drinks and syrups. It currently operates in over 200 countries with it main headquarters located in North America (The Coca-Cola Company, 2012). One of the Coca-Cola brands is Coke Zero. Coke Zero is a low-calorie non-alcoholic drink that has unique taste compared to other Coca-Cola drinks. It was made primarily for men who associated drinks to women. Section II: Product Pitch ScriptAlmost 70% of all cases of obesity in the world come from the consumption of beverages with high calories and approximately $210 billion is spent annually to treat obesity. If you save $0.5 today would you use to avoid obesity? I work for Coca-Cola Company, and we provide the leading low calories non-alcoholic drink known as Coke Zero. Coke Zero offers unique taste, refreshes and has the amazing thirst-killing ability. Buy Coke Zero today and save your money and health.Section III: Cross-Selling and Promotional OpportunitiesThe complementary products that can be found for Coke Zero, considering the consuming audience, are donuts and pizza. Both of these products can be consumed together with Coke Zero (or other Coca-Cola branded drinks) in resting places, at home or during college lunch. Therefore, it is possible that when local demand on donuts and pizza rises, the same happens with Coke consumption. The following is a promotional campaign of these two products, joined with Coke Zero. +=Buy One Pizza+Coke >>> Get Two Donuts For Free!Figure 1. Promotional campaign for Coke Zero, pizza and donuts.ReferencesNudd, T. (2016). Here Are 25 Sweet, Simple Ads from Coca-Cola’s Big New ‘Taste the Feeling’ Campaign. Retrieved on June 7, 2017 from http://www.adweek.com/creativity/here-are-25-sweet-simple-ads-coca-colas-big-new-taste-feeling-campaign-169075Schultz, E. (2016). Coke Replaces “Open Happiness” With ‘Taste the Feeling’ in Major Strategic Shift. Retrieved on June 7, 2017 from http://adage.com/article/cmo-strategy/coke-debuts-taste-feeling-campaign-strategic-shift/302184The Coca-Cola Company (2012). Brands. Retrieved on June 7, 2017 from http://www.coca-colacompany.com/brands/the-coca-cola-company