COLLEGE OF BUSINESS, HOSPITALITY AND

TOURISM

DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT

MKT606: DIGITAL MARKETING

SEMESTER 2 RESEARCH PROJECT

Avishek Anish Chand Lecturer: Mrs. Keshmi Sharma

A00210446
Namaka Campus
 DECLARATION

I hereby declare the assignment submitted is my own original work and all external sources that has aided in
the writing of the research project has been referenced and acknowledged and has so been done by the
university plagiarism guidelines and understand the consequences of the degree.

Avishek Anish Chand __________________

S202100466
 ACKNOWLEDGMENT

I would like to first thank and praise God Almighty for providing the strength and blessings to be able to
complete this assignment. I would also like to give thank my parents for their financial support and my
lecture Mrs. Keshmi Sharma for the support and understanding throughout the semester and in particular to
this assignment for well explaining the required details needed to submit a quality research project. Her
vision and sincerity were genuinely inspiring and it was a privilege to have her as our lecturer for this
semester.
 Table of Contents

Contents
DECLARATION.................................................................................................................................................................2
ACKNOWLEDGMENT.......................................................................................................................................................3
INTRODUCTION...............................................................................................................................................................5
AIMS & OBJECTIVES........................................................................................................................................................6
LITERATURE REVIEW.......................................................................................................................................................7
METHODOLOGY..............................................................................................................................................................8
DISCUSSION & ANALYSIS.........................................................................................................................................9
SITUATION ANALYSIS...........................................................................................................................................9
INTERNAL ENVIRONMENT...............................................................................................................................9
EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT............................................................................................................................14
SWOT ANALYSIS...................................................................................................................................................20
MARKETING OBJECTIVES...................................................................................................................................21
MARKETING STRATEGY.....................................................................................................................................22
TARGET MARKET.............................................................................................................................................22
PRODUCT STRATEGY.......................................................................................................................................23
PRICING STRATEGY.........................................................................................................................................24
PROMOTION.......................................................................................................................................................25
DISTRIBUTION...................................................................................................................................................26
RECCOMENDATIONS...............................................................................................................................................27
INTRODUCTION
 AIMS & OBJECTIVES

The aims of the research project are to understand the barriers to entry in terms of digital marketing for
Coca-Cola new product Coca-Cola with Coffee.
The objectives of the research are to discover the internal and external environmental factors that could aid
in the product entry to the Fijian market and globally such as:
External environment
Internal environment Market the organization is expanding into
The competitive environment along with
Organization background
The technological environment
New product to launched into the market
And the distribution channels that could be
used

The SWOT analysis of Coca-Cola along with the marketing strategy that will be implemented to
launch this product successfully.
LITERATURE REVIEW
 METHODOLOGY

How Coca-Cola can launch Coca-Cola with Coffee a new product globally and into the Fijian market successfully?

This was the research question that was derived for this assignment and since the product hasn’t been launched into
the Fijian market, only secondary data were used to verify the challenges and
 DISCUSSION & ANALYSIS
SITUATION ANALYSIS
INTERNAL ENVIRONMENT

ORGANIZATION BACKGROUND

Birth of Coca-Cola
To ease the death of a dying pharmacist by the name of John Syth Pemberton, the doctors gave him doses of
morphine. With time and regular treatment, he became well but was addicted to painkillers and this was a
concern for the pharmacist who couldn’t concentrate on work and feared he would lose himself to the
addiction (Friedman., 1992). With the experience he had of medicine, he began replicate that of an old
traditional French wine which had mixes of drugs to lower his addiction levels over time. This wine was
popular among those who suffered from addiction in France and when the American Civil war began and
the use of all alcohol in his home town of Georgia was banned so he then started using coca plants with kola
beans along with other ingredients to try repeat and perfect upon his last experiment (Friedman., 1992). The
result was syrup like. He cooked the colored syrup like product in a three- legged brass kettle in his own
backyard. After he though he had perfected the product, he tried getting it tested by having the opinions of
customer who came to the pharmacy (Friedman., 1992). A positive review of the product led him to sell and
distribute the product for five cents a glass to which the drink caused a storm throughout the town and was
announced as ‘‘delicious and refreshing’’ a premise that prolongs to this day whenever and wherever Coca-
Cola is sipped (Friedman., 1992).
Frank M. Robinson who was both John Syth’s book keeper and partner suggested the name as Coca-Cola
with two c’s as it would go towards good promotion of the product. The drink was a soda fountain
refreshment back in the day and its first advertisement was published in the Atlanta Journal while the sign
reading Coca-Cola was hanged on store fronts. Around nine glasses of the product were sold be day by the
year of 1886. Dr. Pemberton slowly sold off shares of his business to continue to grow the business before hi
passed away in 1888. Majority of the company’s shares was bought by an entrepreneur by the name of Asa
G, Candler who used advertisement and promotion to distribute the product all over the country within the
short period of four years. The Coca-Cola company was formed as a corporation by Mr. Candler and former
partners in 1893 and the Coca-Cola trademark was registered on the 31st of January 1893. The first
manufacturing factory was established outside of Atlanta the year after. In 1919, for $25 millions dollars the
company was sold to investors which saw Robert W. Woodruff take the leadership role of company
president under which the company dominated the soda industry for the next sixty years being named as the
most successful brand in the world. In 1923, the Coca-Cola company bought the minute maid corporation
which added a healthy drink into its category and launched its first non-Coca-Cola marketed product Fanta.
As of Today, Coca-Cola has introduced new products and now has close to 400 brands licenses under
different categories such as water, teas, coffee, sports and energy drinks, diet and light drinks. By the year
of 2006 the Coca-Cola brand spread throughout eight segments; North America, Latin America, Europe, the
Pacific, Africa, East South Asia, the middle East, North Asia and Eurasia (The Coca-Cola Company, 2006).

(The Coca-Cola
Company, 2006)
The idea to have own manufacturing units in those regions were a strategic move as it would help lower
product distribution costs and it would help the brand conform to the different environments adapting to
cultures and traditions. With its reach of global dominance Coca-Cola now operates in over 200 countries
and more than 84,000 suppliers as part of its push for global market share (Patil, 2018). The US region only
accounts for 40% of business while the rest 70% comes from overseas (Patil, 2018). The pathway to success
hasn’t been easy going as the company has received backlash over its use of products that were deemed as a
threat to public health and a brand which encourages an unhealthy lifestyle. Some products have also been
banned in some countries and law suits have also been filed against the company with the accusation of
using child labor (Ju Yun Chua, 2018). The company has also faced serious competition over the last years
as brands such as Pepsi, along with new brands Gatorade and bottle water and energy drinks have increased
marketing with consumers moving away from the soda industry to a healthy alternative (Ju Yun Chua,
2018). With competition and serious allegations as such the company has faced challenges in relaunching
new and existing brands under the company such as Sprite, Fanta, Minute Maid, Powerade etc. The
company has not lost sight as of yet and still dominates the market as it currently holds around 60% of the
beverage market and plans to continue this trend by reinventing the company through new sustainable
packaging and acquisition of corporations to venture into the healthy market sector (Xiang, 2022).

PRODUCT

Diminishing market
It has been a challenging period for soft drinks companies as the worldwide consumption of soda has been at
an all time low in 32 years. Over the last 15 years both soft drinks giants Coca-Cola and Pepsi has seen their
annual sales decrease (Maamoun, 2019). Experts in the health industry has for years labeled soft drinks as
unhealthy and companies have tried to undercut these by introducing diet formulas which had little to no
sugar but these has gone to waste since the diet market has gradually decreased as customers with the
increase of technology are being educated on the risks and threats to their health and are keeping all sugar
sweetened drinks at a distance (Xiang, 2022). With customer awareness, Coca-Cola has had to deal with
labels with warnings customers on the health affects the products may cause such as obesity, diabetes and
tooth decay (Ju Yun Chua, 2018). Taxes on sodas has also been on the rise as cities are charging extra for
sugary drinks in US cities which has led to the industry diminishing over time (Ju Yun Chua, 2018).

Acquisition of Costa
Since the company’s formation in the 1800’s to know which overviews a portfolio of over 400 products and
brands and billions of dollars of revenue and customers worldwide the company had never ventured into the
hot drink market until August 31, 2018 when they acquired Costa Coffee overnight (Maamoun, 2019). The
British company was bought for over $5.1 billion dollars for which Coca-Cola overpaid for since they were
desperate to venture into a new market given that coffee consumption was rising while soda consumption
followed a downward track. This was shown by a decrease in profits in 2018 with only $1.2 billion
compared to $9 billion in 2013, a 7.8 billion decrease in just 5 years (Maamoun, 2019). A need for
expansion into a healthy and profitable market such as that of hot beverage seemed a promising strategic
move. With expectations of the tea and coffee market to reach around $135 billion by the year 2024, a
growth of 8.4%, the company didn’t hesitate and quickly launched its Costa products with aim to become
the market leaders (Maamoun, 2019).

Coca-Cola with Coffee

January 25th saw the debut of Coca-Cola which saw the creation of a new category ‘‘Refreshment Coffee’’.
The product is a blend of coke infused with Brazilian coffee descried as a sip which starts off as coke but
ends as coffee. The product was first trialed and tested in the Japanese market, later America was added to
the list that had the product with the united stated of America being the 50th country to launch the product
(The Coca-Cola Company , 2022). The CEO of the company stated that this was the best strategic move as
these created a new category and made life easier for consumer as majority of its consumers enjoyed coffee,
and now could choose coke with coffee for a refreshing taste (The Coca-Cola Company , 2022). The line to
date has five different flavors that being Coca- Cola with coffee Mocha, Vanilla, Dark Blend, Caramel and
Vanilla Zero sugar (The Coca-Cola Company , 2022).

(The Coca-Cola Company , 2022)

The product is sold in a slim can with only one available size, 12 fl oz which contained 69 mg of coffee in
each serving. All products as per the Coca-Cola website have the same ingredients of ‘‘CARBONATED
WATER, HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, CARAMEL COLOR, COFFEE POWDER, NATURAL
FLAVORS, PHOSPHORIC ACID, SODIUM BENZOATE (TO PROTECT TASTE), CAFFEINE,
POTASSIUM SORBATE, SUCRALOSE, ACESULFAME POTASSIUM’’ with the exception of the
vanilla zero sugar containing no sugar (The Coca-Cola Company , 2022).

The idea of having a coffee range was to get more customers drawn to the company as a whole and reach a
wider range of consumers. The coffee industry definitely saw a rise with the major consumer being that of a
working class that needed caffeine for a boost during working hours. With the possibility to rival companies
such as Starbucks which has branched out globally over the last few years would be a challenge as they have
an advantage of starting early. The Coca-Cola with coffee products is unique in terms of formulations as the
company tries to cater to its individual market worldwide to increase sales and brand recognition. The
Pacific would be an ideal region to launch its new product and see if it as successful as elsewhere.

DISTRIBUTION CHANNELS

Coca-Cola is the biggest manufacturing organization in the world with distribution of products and services
to over 200 countries with a product portfolio size of 400 products. The pathway between that of production
to customers is know as distribution and where international distribution is concerned, having a well-
structured distribution strategy is important to market products (A.P.S, 1998). When venturing into a new
market which one isn’t accustomed to, having a distribution strategy that is well sought out and ready made
can be ideal. Since Coca-Cola acquired Costa Coffee in 2018, they also access to their strong global
portfolio of distribution networks that were already in place. With the acquisition of Costa Coffee, the
company can easily distribute their own Coca-Cola with coffee formulation to stores worldwide as with it
came;
Access to three continents with over 4,000 stores and over 8,000 coffee machines in convenience
store, supermarkets, cinemas, and workplaces provided Coca-Cola with strong foundations to enter
into a competitive marketplace (Maamoun, 2019)
In China alone Costa Coffee has 159 stores with ready made plans for expansion to 1,200 stores
nationwide. This would be beneficial to and easy to enter into the Chinese market which is estimated
to be the largest Coca-Cola market due to its population and middle-class family size.
With the acquisition Coca-Cola’s network of distribution has increased tenfold into different international
market and with the company’s 130-year history could easily capitalize the opportunity. When launching
into a new market Coca-Cola relies on local distributors. For example, Coca-Cola in Fiji has been a local
enterprise where local workers are employed and is strategically correct to let local distributors handle
transportation of the products since it is a small market compared to others. Since then, the market size has
grown and Coca-Cola has done more in-house distribution with the installment of manufacturing units and
teams.

Figure 2. Shows the distribution channel used by Coca-Cola

(Titus, 2012)

There are two types of distribution methods used by Coca-Cola:

Direct distribution: this is where Coca-Cola relies on the local distributors or bolting company to
manage sales, delivery of the product along with merchandising and management of account (Titus,
2012).
Indirect distribution: is where the organization themselves manages the sale of the products, to the
delivery of the products themselves in order to gain more control and maximize profits (Titus, 2012).

Over 250 bottling partners in the world, Coca-Cola has the best and most intensive distribution system in the
world and is able to effortlessly create value for its clients and customers. Coca-Cola focus on marketing and
creating the product demand while its bottling partners see that the demand in met with. The company
sources its primary ingredients from farms around the world that meet the standards and these ingredients
include; sugar cane, coffee, high fructose corn syrup, lemons, mangos, oranges, ta, beet sugar, palm oil, soy,
pulp and apples (Titus, 2012). The company manufacture these ingredients in accordance to its secret
formulation and then provides it to the bottling companies to produce the beverages. Since it is Coca-Cola
that sources the ingredients therefore, they are accountable for providing the bottling partners with the raw
materials, also it is a trade secret. Coca-Cola provides the partnering companies with all necessary items to
prepare the products from ingredients, packaging, machinery and goods. The bottling partners also have to
adhere to guiding principles when preparing the products and these are performed as part of a contractual
agreement to produce the best products; similar agreements are done by MacDonald’s to their franchising
partners (Banutu-Gomez, 2012). Training is also provided to partners in areas they require if need be. Coca-
Cola delivers the coke syrup and plants to the bottling factories which from there it is bottled and canned,
which then falls on the bottling partners to transport the products to distribution centers and small retail
stores (Banutu-Gomez, 2012). Coca-Cola doesn’t control all of its bottling partners (Euro Pacific) and most
are in contract with Coca-Cola under which they are able to use labels and bottles etc. Moreover, cinemas,
restaurants, grocery stores, convenience stores, parks etc. are some of the company’s customer tell.
 EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT

MARKET

Coca-Cola is already a dominating the consumer market with its wide range of products and brands and with
the inclusion of Coca-Cola with coffee the strategy would be the same to attract existing customer to the
new innovative product. Coca-Cola is the biggest non technology related company in the world and the
biggest in relation to food and beverage ahead of franchise giants McDonald’s.
Figure 3. Shows the biggest brands in the year 2015

(Xiang, 2022)

With this being the case, it would be advantageous and would make the transition to international consumer
market effortless. In terms of product distribution and launching, majority of Coca-Cola product sales
derives from the Europe market while US being the biggest revenue generator. Coca-Cola group their
geographic markets from all regions into three groups: Established, Developing and Emerging markets. The
best strategy for market penetration would be to launch the Coca-Cola with coffee product to the already
established markets to boost sales and product awareness. As of 2022, Coca-Cola countries such as; Greece,
Italy, Cyprus, Republic of Ireland, Switzerland, Austria and Northern Ireland were categorized as an
established market cause of the high levels of consumer consumption and sophistication with a population
size of 94 million and are 24% of the total sales.

Figure 4. Shows the revenue generated from the established market

(The Coca-Cola Company , 2022)

With the acquisition of corporations such as Costa Coffee and access to their distribution channels and
coffee market, it would be ideal for the company to access the consumer market. The company will also
focus on the business market who are some of the biggest buyers of the products such as cinemas, parks,
supermarkets etc. With extensive advertisements and promotional events, the business market would also
flourish which would allow the company to gradually increase the product price as demand speeds up. The
consumer market is the biggest market out there with customers being fragile to marketing and
advertisements tend to spend money just because their favorite celebrity likes or endorses the product. Once
the consumer and business market are dominated, there are other different markets that the company could
cater for if the need arises such as government markets.

COMPETITIVE ENVIRONMENT

General Competition
The pressure from competitors has never before been as fierce as before thanks to new technology and
marketing strategies. Although Coca-Cola still has the biggest market share in the soda industry, new brands
have quickly scaled up with Coca-Cola market share and profits been diluted. Coca-Cola, Pepsi and
Cadbury Schweppes are the three biggest soft drinks corporations in the global market today. Coca-Cola
and Pepsi have a rivalry that is evident and known through generations and somewhat share a common
history.

Coca-Cola vs Pepsi
Both the companies Coca-Cola and Pepsi were established in Georgia and North Carolina in the 1800’s
respectively. Ever since the companies have been at war to market their products and this competition has
somewhat led to their success as both companies have expanded globally in the hope to win. ‘‘Cola Wars’’
was a term devised in the late 1980’s to label both companies’ rivalry in marketing strategies,
advertisements and their enormous sales that were developed to have a competitive advantage over the other
(Puravankara, 2007). From all of the greatest rivalries in the world from, FedEx and UPS, Ford and Ferrari,
MasterCard and Visa, Boeing and Air Bus, the most commonly known and biggest in terms of market share
and size are Coca-Cola and Pepsi (Puravankara, 2007). Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Sprite and Fanta which are
the four of the biggest soda brands are owned by Coca-Cola Company has had lower sales in previous year
compared to Pepsi in North America with Pepsi making $22 billion in sales each year compared to Coca-
Cola’s $6 billion (Maamoun, 2019). Coca-Cola total revenues when broken down; 40% derives form the
American market while 60$ are from the international market (Banutu-Gomez, 2012). The international
market is where majority of the competition is based upon, since Pepsi is trying to compete, when Coca-
Cola confirmed the purchase of Costa Coffee in 2018, Pepsi immediately announced the purchase of an
Israeli carbonation company called SodaStream which is ought to be healthier alternative compared to soda
beverages as it has no sugar and can be customized to individual customers (Maamoun, 2019). Coca-Cola
branched into the coffee market while Pepsi into the healthy alternative market space with each trying to
downplay the others success. With the acquisition of more and more companies by both corporations, this
rivalry isn’t going to die easily.

Coffee Competition
Since the acquisition of Costa Coffee and launching of Coca-Cola with coffee and expansion into the coffee
market, the company would be in direct competition with coffee giants Starbucks. In 1971, Starbucks stated
with one store and has now become a modern coffeehouse store being renowned with quality products and
giving a ‘‘work from home’’ vibe to its customers (Maamoun, 2019). The company by the end of 2018 had
expanded globally to 75 countries with 25,000 outlets (Maamoun, 2019). Starbucks with its strategy and
marketing has dominated the coffee industry over the last few years with countless small coffee chains and
stores being run out of business. Starbucks is the largest coffee chain in the world ahead of other
corporations such as Dunkin Donuts (11,3000 stores), Tim Hortons (4,600 stores), Costa Coffee (3.900
stores), Ediya Coffee (1,500 stores) and Doutor Coffee (1200 stores) (Maamoun, 2019). Another major
competition for Coca-Cola would be that of McDonald’s which has been providing quality coffee to its
customers with sales continuing to rise. McDonald’s already is the biggest fast-food chain in the world with
its outlets in every country and region, it would be difficult to topple giants such as these with already loyal
customers (Maamoun, 2019). Pepsi is another competitor which has entered into the coffee market with its
new product called Pepsi Café, a product which has blends of coffee and nearly double caffeine than normal
Pepsi cola. The coffee market is a developing market and big corporations are trying their best to enter and
dominate. Coca-Cola although may have entered the market quite late and others may have a competitive
advantage, the company still is the 5th most valuable brand in the world with over $66billion in brand equity
and services around two billion drinks to customers in over 200 countries worldwide, and with the
acquisition of coffee chains such as Costa Coffee, a new power in the coffee market may be brewing in the
making (Maamoun, 2019).

TECHNOLOGICAL ENVIRONMENT
Coca-Cola and its IT department has a strong relationship more so than other companies as they are
spending millions of dollars per year on digital marketing alone and will continue to do so (Steinike, 2013).
The market today is different from what it was ten years and technological changes and improvements has
drastically changed the market as to whoever owns and utilizes the newest technology has a competitive
advantage over its competitors. The food and beverage industry are changing quickly and there have been a
major shift towards brands that are seen as a healthier alternative. There lies a sense of responsibility and
eagerness as Coca-Cola is the biggest brand in this market and failure to capitalize on the opportunity would
deter consumers and eventually profits. Cola-Cola has used machine learning and new technology in its
product delivery and placement with an experience that feel personalized to all customers.

Product Development
Use of machine learning int product development has led to the launching of a new product called Cherry
Spite. Cherry Spite was a product that could enhance a drinks flavor and was heavily marketed towards
restaurants chains and supermarkets that could be used to enhance a consumer’s favorite drink. The flavor
was produced via the result of data gathered from machine learning which was used to identify the most
used and trending flavors. In the manner, the company was able to create a new product using machine
learning based on individual customer preferences.

Product Placement
The use of AI and machine learning has aided in the placement
of products worldwide. With customer interaction with vending
machines, the use of machine learning in demands, buying
behavior, data on customers and foot traffic, the vending
machines are able to strategically promote products that would
sell more in particular areas with often discounts and specials.
For example, a vending machine would promote more water
products if placed near a gym and fitness environment and promote coke zero near a retirement home.

Data Collection
Since Coca-Cola is one of the biggest brands and company in the world, the data collected from all areas of
the business is also massive ranging from distribution, sourcing, sales, production, and customer feedback.
For example, if a certain product is selling out quickly compared to other drinks, the AI will notice and then
management can survey the results and implement a new strategy for that particular area. The use of Big
Data has aided the company improve its business strategy and products from the data collected and was the
first non-IT company to use Big Data since 2012.

AI use in Advertisements
(The Coca-Cola Company , 2022)

Coca-Cola uses AI technology in advertisement more than any of their competitors combined. The company
has a huge brand with huge fan and the use of machine learning and AI has helped in reaching out to
existing and potential customers. What a user searches the web for are all collected through various sites
and then sold to companies like Coca-Cola who are able to develop strategies based on individual customers
and are well informed regarding a user’s personality, location, and search on brands (Friedman., 1992). In
2015, the company through the use of AI was able to discover that the company and its product name were
mentioned once every 3 seconds in the internet (Patil, 2018). AI are also able to detect images and ads on
social media accordingly. They are able to detail target individual customers based on what they search and
target the with relevant ads.

The company uses new technology its all areas of its business from advertisements to production, new
machinery is bought and adapted to manufacture more efficiently and increase productivity. Testing of
products to see if they are up to the standards of the company or else, they are disregarded and sold off at a
discount price are done in the last stage of production before the products are shipped out. This helps in
quality control.

SWOT ANALYSIS

STRENGTHS
 Brand Name- Coca-Cola is the biggest brand in the food and beverage industry and has product
portfolio size of around 400 products. This with the company’s brand image would make it easier for
the promotion and sale of Coca-Cola with coffee as it will be associated with the company and will
have access to all its amenities.
The product has five different flavors that would suit to all customer needs and wants.
Coca-Cola with coffee is a new product with a unique taste that has the best qualities of both coke
and coffee. It has around 69mg of caffeine in each can. Customers who before had a conflict between
choosing coffee and coke can now choose Coca-Cola with coffee. There is a huge market up for
grabs and this product has created a new market space called the hybrid coffee market. With the
product being first to market, it could easily become the market leader with right strategic decisions.
It also has the pleasure of having associated with the market leaders of the industry and could easily
market the product to all 200 countries that Coca-Cola has access to. This would help in creating
global brand image and would boost early sales and development of the brand.
Coca-Cola has a recipe that is trademarked which cannot be copied or replicated by other
organizations. Which would deter competitors in entering the market.
Coca-Cola as a company is aimed at continuous development of their products which would see that
the product is well suited to each individual market share in each country present and that it is
adapted to the locals acquired taste.
Coca-Cola with coffee would automatically gain more fans and consumers would rush to try the
product since it is associated with the Coca-Cola company and would attract customers simply based
on consumer loyalty.
Marketing of the product would be effortless since the company already has numerous marketing
partners such as McDonalds and Burger King and could develop a marketing strategy that allows
customer to purchase the product from these fast-food chains in discount or reduced prices.

WEAKNESS
The main weakness of the product would be that of the taste, all customers have individual different
preferences and some wouldn’t like the new formulation and would prefer to have their coffee and
coke products separate form one another.
Another main weakness of the product is of its association with the parent company (Coca-Cola), in
recent years the company has had a negative public image due to its management of natural
resources, environmental issues and this would deter customers form buying the product.
Even though the product is a mixture of coke and coffee, it still doesn’t have any health benefits
associated with it and can’t be compared to other healthier alternatives to which the consumer market
is shifting to.
Since the product only comes in one serving size of 12 fl oz, this could be a problem for those who
would like to purchase a larger or smaller size product. The product size and quantity doesn’t have
any diversity.
It is a beverage which due to its mixture, would be preferred to have either cold or hot since it
contains coffee and this wouldn’t be ideal for all customers who wouldn’t have access to a fridge etc.

OPPORTUNITY
 With the product being the first of its kind, and since it has created a new hybrid soda coffee market,
the potential to be the market leader in this new and developing field is one opportunity that could
yield huge profits down the line.
Since majority of Coca-Cola’s revenue and profits are derived from the international market, the
international market would be up for grabs for Coca-Cola with coffee and would hope to deliver the
same results.

THREATS
The biggest threat to the product would be that of competition from other corporations. Pepsi after
months of the Coca-Cola with coffee launch, launched their own version of the product called Pepsi
Café. Coke and Pepsi are the two biggest beverage companies in the world and with the two products
being similar in taste and functionality, customers could be swayed. Other competitors are that of
coffee giants Starbucks who have also expanded globally and already has a bigger fan flowing
compared to Coca-Cola in relation to coffee.
The dependency of Coca-Cola on their bottling partner is worrying as the company does not own the
bottling companies and are only strategic partners and their interest could be different than that of
Coca-Cola. there’s also a worry that the bottling companies could create a negative image of the
brand by not following the guidelines in terms of production as Coca-Cola only provides the syrup
and while the bottling companies does the hard yards.
Coffee sales have spiked over the resent years leading to major coffee house chains such as
Starbucks, but this could change all within a heartbeat if the existing trend changes or shifts or there
is a new product sensation which delivers the same benefits without the bad.

MARKETING OBJECTIVES

The marketing objectives for Coca-Cola with coffee are:

To increase brand awareness and tap become the market leader in the new created hybrid coffee
market
To increase sales traffic towards the product
To gradually improve the product quality and have it adapted and suited to the local market taste
To retain existing customer and attracting potential customers through customer experience
 MARKETING STRATEGY

TARGET MARKET

Coca-Cola’s strategy for marketing consists of various components which are interrelated and integrated
towards achieving the organizations marketing objectives and goals. Coca-Cola is a brand that is widely
popular across the globe and is adored and loved by numerous customers. The marketing strategy for the
brands and products are developed after careful evaluations of core marketing mixes.
When developing the marketing strategy, it is important to perform market segmentation to best identify the
target market for the product.

DEMOGRAPHIC
in a recent study published by a Statista, an American company found that majority of the coffee drinkers
were that of older generations with ages 70 years and above and that the age between 25 to 35 were willing
to pay more for their cup of coffee than others. Since Coca-Cola isn’t ideal for the elderly due to its health
risks, the target age group would be between 25-35 who can be classified as the working class and basically
need caffeine for work purposes throughout the day without getting addicted to it.

Figure 5. Shows the consumption of coffee favorite among age groups in US.
Income is another important factor:

(Statista , 2020)

GEOGRAPHIC SEGMENTATION
Coca-Cola is a company that has distribution to 200 countries and with 50 countries already having launched
the Coca-Cola with coffee product, the aim is to market and distribute the product to all 200 countries. The
market strategy and product does differ from one country, or region to another due to different customer
taste, cultures and traditions, income and climate. The product is marketed and adapted to each individual
market to get the best possible sales results.
GENDER
It is common knowledge that man generally drink more sugary drinks compared to their female counterparts
as females are more health and body conscious. Men also drink more coffee than women as numerous
studies have confirmed these. So, the ideal gender to market would be towards males but women tend to pay
more for their cup of coffee. Both genders between the age of 25-35 are the ideal target market as there isn’t
much difference in gender market size between coffee and coke drinkers.

BEHAVIOURAL
Coca-Cola is one of the companies that utilizes behavioral market segmentation who try to capture customer
loyalty based received from social media and website traffic and tries to identity when and where customers
most purchase the product from. Workers buy their cup of coffee before commuting to work or during lunch
breaks.

PRODUCT STRATEGY

Coca-Cola general product strategy is that of development of more products into different market spaces
through own development or through acquisition of corporations who already have a product in that
particular industry. This can be seen with many corporations’ acquisitions through the years and launching
of more and more different ready to drink products.
Coca-Cola with coffee is a new product into a newly created hybrid market between soda and coffee. The
overall aim of this strategy is to promote the product in terms of product positioning and gaining as much
eyes on the product as possible.
COMPARATIVE
This is when the product is placed right next to its competitors to highlight the products superiority. An
example would be when a less known cola product is placed right next to a well know product such as Coca-
Cola which is an expensive choice compared to the latter. This shows that the product is both similar in
nature while being value driven in terms of price.
DIFFERENTIATION AND SEGMENTATION
This is when a product such as Coca-Cola with coffee is placed in the same isle or near normal coffee
products. This offers more promotion for the product as it offers a different style to coffee and also caters to
the needs of customers who need in immediately rather than brewing their own.
 PRICING STRATEGY

Pricing strategies are important as the price of the product has to be right to pursued customers to continue
purchasing the product. The geographic and behavioral segmentation along with the income of the target
market should be evaluated before setting the price. The pricing of the product should be set, as to which
gives the company maximum profit returns while keeping the demand alive. Coca-Cola uses different
pricing strategies to keep the product demand high while retaining customer loyalty.
PROMOTIONAL
Coca-Cola widely used promotional pricing strategies along the year as with various events and festivals
unique to each geographic. Promotional events and holidays such as the Coca-Cola festival and Christmas
sees the company lower its product price during this time of the years to boost and attract customers.

MARKET PENETRATION
When a new product is launched into a new geographic market, it is difficult to attract new customer and
lowering the price of the product slightly in the early phase helps in boosting early sales but isn’t effective in
the long run. This is widely used by Coca-Cola to attract customers to the new product and once the product
has achieved a big enough fan base, the price increases.

COMPETITION BASED
Competitive pricing is basically setting your product price based solely on the price of your competitor for
similar products. Coca-Cola and Pepsi are the two biggest soft drink companies in the world with a similar
range of products so pricing is a huge factor when it equates to customer purchases. Coca-Cola wouldn’t
want to miss out on potential revenue simply based on poor pricing strategies.

BUNDLED PRODUCTS
These are when two or more products are sold together to perceive a better bargain for customers as it has
more for less dollars. Bundled soda products in a set of 12 are sold during holidays or promotional events
and sometimes products from two different markets are bundled together such as Coca-Cola with cookies
etc.
 PROMOTION

Coca-Cola is a leading brand in the world and has used severe marketing and advertisement strategies to
become the market leader in the soda beverage industry ahead of rivals Pepsi. Coca-Cola uses extreme
marketing strategies for promotion of its product and brands, anything that can fit the company logo or the
product has the company’s advertisement. The primary target market for most of Coca-Cola products are
young people who are seen as carefree and easy going. They are more influenced by who and what they see,
this affects their buying behavior. With the addition of new technology and apps over the years, digital
marketing is become more and more useful and Coca-Cola has been at the forefront of this development
since the beginning. Numerous marketing channels are used to attract and influence customers such as:
SOCIAL MEDIA
Coca-Cola objective is to attract customers, create product awareness and increase
customer engagement through the use of social media as the majority of the target
market has some form of social media. The company uses Facebook to gain
customers without any effort as it has 108 million likes on its Facebook page.
Twitter is another social media app that the company utilizes as the app has the
most engaging audience ever with the company having 3 million followers. Coca-
Cola can develop customer engagement through social media which they couldn’t
do before.

TV ADVERTISEMENTS
Since every home likely has a television set for their family, it is a well wide marketing tool to market
products and brand image since all family individuals watch tv. Tv advertisements after popular tv shows
and serials help in driving product awareness and sales.

SPONSORSHIPS
Coca-Cola uses sporting events as promotional tools to help advertise their
products as well. Over the years the company has partnered with many
sporting events such as the Olympic Games and were the biggest sponsor for
the FIFA World Cup in 2014 and 2018 which led to a 9% and 11% market
growth in Brazil and Russia respectively. During this event, the company
used strategies that helped personalize their coke products by adding their
names or a friend’s name on the bottles or cans and the movement was named
‘‘Share a Coke’’. In Fiji, the company sponsors the biggest athletic meet of
the year called the Coca-Cola Games which helps connect with the younger
audience more.

PRINT
Coca-Cola advertisements are in every newspaper and magazine in the world. This helps in reaching
audiences that like to read their news or gossips.
OUTDOOR ADVERTISEMENTS
Billboards, store signs are all used for advertisements
purposes, anything that can have the display the product
or the logo, Coca-Cola has its advertisements on it.

DISTRIBUTION

Coca-Cola has distribution of its products to over 200 countries with an average of 2 million bottles sold
each day. There are two ways that the company is able to distribute their products:
Direct distribution: this is where Coca-Cola relies on the local distributors or bolting company to
manage sales, delivery of the product along with merchandising and management of account (Titus,
2012).
Indirect distribution: is where the organization themselves manages the sale of the products, to the
delivery of the products themselves in order to gain more control and maximize profits (Titus, 2012)

Different distribution channels are used however to make sure that

all customers have the ability to access the products whenever they
desire to do so. Products are sold at Supermarkets, convenience
stores, cinemas, parks, hotels, stadiums, and even service stations
around the world. The company also uses its own distribution
channels such as vending machines which are conveniently placed to
attract customers.

(Anon., 2022)

Distribution during events and festivals also occurs through the

use of booths or tents that shout and advertise the products.

(Anon., 2022)
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