Every so often, a marketing campaign comes along that rewrites the entire rulebook. One that instantly springs to mind is Coca-Cola’s “Share a Coke” campaign. Although it first launched in Australia in 2011, to this day, they still push this strategy out once a year.
The Campaign That Put Customers on the Label
We can all agree that Coca-Cola has one of the most recognisable logos in the world. Almost everybody, regardless of location and culture, knows their logo.
For a limited run, they then replace their logo with people’s first names. Consumers know what it is, and now they can buy it with their name on it – personalisation at its finest.
That instinct, taking what people already like and making it more enjoyable, is something that works in all industries. The gaming sector follows it closely, and Even Bigger Bananas 2 on Betfair is a clear example. Blueprint understood that users liked the original, so they gave it an upgrade, turning a single game into a series.
The results from Coca-Cola’s campaign were great. In Australia alone, consumption increased by around 7%. It then quickly became a worldwide campaign, free UGC promotion, and a key revenue driver for the company.
Why Personalisation Works So Well
For many non-marketers, they may just look at this “Share a Coke” campaign and think it’s a bit of a gimmick.
However, for marketers, it’s a principle that they have long understood. They know that people respond to things that feel made for them.
See, our personal name is something we all point out. Add this to one of the most drunk beverages in the world, and it almost feels rude not to buy it.
Due to the success of this Coca-Cola campaign, other brands have also followed suit. Nutella ran its “Make Me Yours” campaign, and Spotify did something similar with its Wrapped.
All very different types of products: a beverage, a spread, and a music streaming platform. Regardless, they all benefited from one thing: offering something personalised and individualised to their consumers.
There’s no better feeling than knowing that something was provided just for you, no matter what it is.
The Real Takeaway for Brands
“Share a Coke” proved that scale and personalisation could work together, as it’s something they do each year, worldwide.
For years, brands struggled to come up with ways to personalise goods for huge target audiences. Coke, however, found a way to fit it into their workflow, give back to their customers, and increase their revenue.
With 71% of consumers now expecting personalised interactions, such campaigns will only get more popular. We’ve already seen them developed by other brands, like Nutella and Spotify, and they’ve worked well for those consumer types, too.
The lesson brands can take away from this is to look at how they can make their products personalised at scale.
Coca-Cola did it with something as simple as printing a name, Nutella did the same, and Spotify made custom overviews of a user’s playlists.
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