Introduction Team 9 Consulting will be working with Coca-Cola to develop an analysis of their marketing strategies. We’ll discuss various facets of the industry and the company and provide a recommendation for their marketing department. The specific product line that we will be focusing on in our marketing plan is on the Coca-Cola brand drink itself, or Classic Coke. Coca-Cola does have many varieties of Coke, such as Coca-Cola Life, Diet Coke, and Coke Zero that will be touched on throughout this report as well. Market Profile Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) is the world's largest beverage company with over 500 brands and 3,900 beverage choices (Coca-Cola, 2017). They aim to continue their growth and “refresh the world” by starting within and making the company a better, more sustainable one. Their main competitors in the beverage industry are Pepsi and Dr Pepper Snapple Inc. (Reference.com, 2017) Coca-Cola has strong values that guide their business philosophy: Coke supports ideas such as family, togetherness, happiness, and community. This is strongly reflected in their company vision statements. Mission Statement (Coca-Cola, 2017): Our Roadmap starts with our mission, which is enduring. It declares our purpose as a company and serves as the standard against which we weigh our actions and decisions. · To refresh the world... · To inspire moments of optimism and happiness... · To create value and make a difference. Coca-Cola mainly manufactures and sells Carbonated Soft Drinks (CSDs). As of December 2016 Coca-Cola led the CSD sector with a market share of 40.7% which resulted in approximate sales of $18,630.8 million (Mintel, 2017). The CSD market is a multi-billion dollar industry seeing approximately $36 billion dollars in revenues each year (Stivaros, 2016). The industry has been in decline in recent years, with CSD sales forecasted to continue falling. The graphic below (Mintel, 2017) illustrates this decline. Growth Strategy Coca-Cola has two main growth strategies: strategic initiatives and product development. Strategic initiatives: James Quincey, President and COO of Coca Cola, has spoken recently about Coca-Cola’s growth strategy (Bailey, 2016), which is based on the following five initiatives to restore momentum and transform the business: focus on productivity, streamline organization, make disciplined investments, adapt a segmented approach to driving revenue, and focus on its core business model. Coca-Cola’s business approach of segmenting its operations, such as outsourcing all of their bottling to partners (Coca-Cola, 2017), helps them keep costs low and increase their overall profits. Product Development: During a conference call during their 3rd Quarter in 2016 (Bailey, 2016) their Chief Operating Officer noted the following strategies: · Expanding their sugar free range of sodas · Working on reformulating existing products to contain less sugar · Packing their soda in smaller containers · Expanding their range.

1. Introduction
Team 9 Consulting will be working with Coca-Cola to develop
an analysis of their marketing strategies. We’ll discuss various
facets of the industry and the company and provide a
recommendation for their marketing department.
The specific product line that we will be focusing on in our
marketing plan is on the Coca-Cola brand drink itself, or
Classic Coke. Coca-Cola does have many varieties of Coke,
such as Coca-Cola Life, Diet Coke, and Coke Zero that will be
touched on throughout this report as well.
Market Profile
Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) is the world's largest beverage company
with over 500 brands and 3,900 beverage choices (Coca-Cola,
2017). They aim to continue their growth and “refresh the
world” by starting within and making the company a better,
more sustainable one. Their main competitors in the beverage
industry are Pepsi and Dr Pepper Snapple Inc. (Reference.com,
2017)
Coca-Cola has strong values that guide their business
philosophy: Coke supports ideas such as family, togetherness,
happiness, and community. This is strongly reflected in their
company vision statements.
Mission Statement (Coca-Cola, 2017):
Our Roadmap starts with our mission, which is enduring. It
declares our purpose as a company and serves as the standard
against which we weigh our actions and decisions.
· To refresh the world...
· To inspire moments of optimism and happiness...

2. · To create value and make a difference.
Coca-Cola mainly manufactures and sells Carbonated Soft
Drinks (CSDs). As of December 2016 Coca-Cola led the CSD
sector with a market share of 40.7% which resulted in
approximate sales of $18,630.8 million (Mintel, 2017).
The CSD market is a multi-billion dollar industry seeing
approximately $36 billion dollars in revenues each year
(Stivaros, 2016). The industry has been in decline in recent
years, with CSD sales forecasted to continue falling. The
graphic below (Mintel, 2017) illustrates this decline.
Growth Strategy
Coca-Cola has two main growth strategies: strategic initiatives
and product development.
Strategic initiatives:
James Quincey, President and COO of Coca Cola, has spoken
recently about Coca-Cola’s growth strategy (Bailey, 2016),
which is based on the following five initiatives to restore
momentum and transform the business: focus on productivity,
streamline organization, make disciplined investments, adapt a
segmented approach to driving revenue, and focus on its core
business model.
Coca-Cola’s business approach of segmenting its operations,
such as outsourcing all of their bottling to partners (Coca-Cola,
2017), helps them keep costs low and increase their overall
profits.
Product Development:
During a conference call during their 3rd Quarter in 2016

3. (Bailey, 2016) their Chief Operating Officer noted the following
strategies:
· Expanding their sugar free range of sodas
· Working on reformulating existing products to contain less
sugar
· Packing their soda in smaller containers
· Expanding their range of still beverages
Press releases listed on their corporate website (Coca-Cola,
2017) support a Product Development strategy with headlines
such as “‘Share a Coke’ Returns with More Names, More
Flavors” and “Gold Peak to Launch Ready-to-Drink Tea Lattes
and Cold Brew Coffees in 2017.”
BCG Matrix
The BCG Matrix is a tool that helps analyze a company’s
product portfolio. Coca-Cola’s BCG matrix is pretty straight
forward. You can see from the graphic below how we classified
their product line based on the perception of the product and
market trends.
Cash Cow
Stars
Dog
Question Marks
Cash Generation
Cash Usage
Cash Cow: a cash cow is a product that has a high market share
and low market growth. Coca-Cola has a cash cow with their
Classic Coke. It’s the foundation that the company was built on
and is a strong product. It sells well even with little to no room
for market growth considering the high amount of competition

4. in the CSD market.
Stars: a star product is an item that has high market share and
high market growth. With the rise in demand for healthier
beverages Coca-Cola has expanded their Coke line to include
sodas with lower calories and lower sugar content, such as Coke
Life.
Question Marks: a question mark is a product that has a low
market share and high market growth. Flavored sodas as a
segment of the CSD market is small, however according to a
recent analysis (Bonnett, 2017), data shows that flavored soft
drink sales have grown in the last year. This indicates that there
is opportunity for market growth within the flavored soda
segment of the CSD market.
Dog: a product is a dog if there is both a lower market share and
low market growth. Vitamin Water was one of the first
“healthy” beverage options to hit the market in 1996, then
owned by Glaceau, and was purchased by Coca-Cola in 2007
(Sorkin & Martin, 2007). Unfortunately it’s come out over the
years that Vitamin Water is not as healthy as it was purported to
be and actually has a very high sugar content (Cherney, 2015)
which has caused a decline in sales as consumers generally
seem to have a negative perception of the product. Vitamin
water has seen its market share fall from 9.6% in 2012 to 6.8%
in 2013 with this trend continuing in the present market (trefis,
2014)
Ansoff’s Matrix
A frequency analysis of Coca-Cola’s recent press releases gives
us an idea of what their growth strategy is by determining the
direction the company is heading based on their actions. Below
is a chart showing the number of press releases in each of these
four categories:

5. · Market development: which involves taking existing products
and selling them in new markets
· Product development: developing new products and
introducing them to existing markets
· Market penetration: selling a larger quantity of existing
products in existing markets, usually with tactics like sales or
promotions
· Diversification: developing new products and introducing
them to new markets
Coca-Cola’s frequency analysis shows that their marketing
strategy leans towards product development with a small
amount of diversification.
PESTEL Analysis
Shown below is an analysis we’ve completed of the external
marketing environment surrounding Coke.
Political:
· President Trump is said to be seeking a cut to the corporate
tax rate down to 15% (Davis & Rappeport, 2017) which could
be favorable for Coca-Cola.
· President Trump and his team are also discussing a proposal to
add a 10% tariff on imports (King & Diamond, 2016) which
could impact Coca-Cola when they import their raw ingredients.
Economical:
· Coca-Cola manufactures and sells their products all over the
globe, they need to be aware of changing economic factors in

6. various countries to see how it could impact local sales. Events
such as a depression, a war, or trade sanctions could impact a
local market.
Social/Cultural:
· Consumers are demanding less CSDs, an IBISWorld report
(Stivaros, 2016) anticipates that sales will continue to decline
over the next five years due to growing health concerns among
consumers.
Technological:
· Coca-Cola has a strong bottling operation and has worked hard
to obtain partnerships with independent bottlers who can help
the Coca Cola “drive long-term growth in critical markets and
affect major structural or investment challenges” (Coca Cola,
2017).
Environmental:
· Coca-Cola needs to be aware of the impact their facilities have
on the environment. Issues like clean water being available,
pollution from bottling plants, or even making sure they’re
using food safe materials to package their products.
· Environmental factors dealing with the production of cocoa
leaves, sugar, or other raw ingredients used in the production of
soda is a potential concern as well.
Legal:
· Coca Cola needs to focus on legal aspects regarding their
production and sale of beverages; which can vary from country
to country.
· Coca Cola takes the secret recipe for their product very
seriously and has pursued litigation against misappropriation of

7. this trade secret (Mitchell, 2011).
SWOT Analysis
Coca-Cola is a successful corporation with many strengths,
from their product line to their brand recognition. There are a
few areas they could work on improving, with one of the biggest
factors being a need for products that appeal to consumers
wanting healthier beverages.
Strengths
· Coca Cola has the largest foreign market in the world, with
locations in over 200 countries. (Coca-Cola, 2017)
· Leader in innovation in numerous fields, making Coke a fierce
competitor
· Diversity of products; nearly 3,900 beverage choices including
waters, juices, energy drinks, etc. (Coca-Cola, 2017)
· One of the most recognized global brands in the world, due to
strong and efficient marketing strategies; “In 2015, The Coca
Cola Company was the largest advertiser in the beverage
industry in the world” (Ovidijus, 2017).
Weaknesses:
· Declining Revenue due to decrease in US soda consumption;
US soda consumption is at its lowest point in the past 30 Years.
(Kim, 2016)
· Revenue decline of $48.017 Billion in 2012 to $41.863 Billion
in 2016 (Financials.morningstar.com)
· Soda declines have been driven by an explosion of beverage
alternatives -- everything from energy drinks to cold brew
coffee -- and some consumers’ desire to cut sugar or artificial
sweeteners from their diets. (Kim, 2016)
· Absence of health-conscious drink options. (ThinkProgress,
2015)

8. · Lack of Market share in Asia-Pacific markets, which is a huge
untapped market. (sourcepremium, 2015)
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
Revenues
48,017
46,854
45,998
44,294
41,863
(http://financials.morningstar.com)
Opportunities
· The opportunity to expand into health centered products,
which may result in an increase of sales/profits and rejuvenate
the beverage market.
· “According to a survey conducted by an industry source in
2014, about 70% of the consumers in the US (as compared to
about 60% in 2012) acknowledged that healthfulness was a
major determining factor when buying food and beverages.”
(sourcepremium, 2015).
· Potential to enter the Asia-Pacific Markets and expand the
brand into new, untapped markets.
Threats
· Strong competition from main competitor, PepsiCo. PepsiCo is
a Food distributor as well as a beverage company, so there
brand may be more diverse and widespread.

9. Comparison of Coca-Cola & Pepsi’s Revenues (in millions)
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
Pepsi
$65,492
$66,415
$66,683
$63,056
$62,799
Coca-Cola
$48,017
$46,854
$45,998
$44,294
$41,863
(http://financials.morningstar.com)
· Strong competition from other competitors, that saturate the
market and can negatively affect customer awareness for Coca
Cola.
SWOT ANALYSIS TABLE
Strengths
Weaknesses
· Largest foreign market.
· Innovation in products.
· Strong, efficiency marketing strategies.
· Best recognized global brand.
· Lack of presence in Pacific markets.
· Decrease in revenues.
· Absence in health beverage.

10. Opportunities
Threats
· Focus on healthy products.
· Entry into new markets
· Facing with many strong competitors, such as PepsiCo Inc.,
Monster Beverage Corp., etc.
· Changes in customer preferences.
Competitive Landscape
Coca-Cola’s top competitor is PepsiCo Inc., with total revenue
of $62.799 Billion in 2016. PepsiCo is Coca-Cola’s top
competitor because is PepsiCo is a multinational food and snack
company as well as a beverage company, which gives it the
opportunity to have more products in more locations, which
gives it a very competitive strength, sentiment, passion, and
reach compared to Coke (socialmention.com). The Dr.
Pepper/Snapple Group is also a main competitor with 21.9% of
the market share (Stivaros, 2016).
The CSD industry is highly competitive and has high barriers to
entry (Stivaros, 2016) which means that it will be very
challenging, if not impossible, for new competitors to come into
the market. Coca-Cola’s main concern is keeping Pepsi from
“stealing” any of their market share.
MARKET CHARACTERISTICS
Coca-Cola’s industry is nonalcoholic beverages and their
portfolio is primarily soft drinks with Classic Coca-Cola being
the “most popular and biggest-selling soft drink in history”
(Coca-Cola, 2017). We’ve chosen to focus our marketing
strategy towards Classic Coca-Cola being as that is their main
product. We’re also focusing more on the U.S. market versus

11. the global soft drink industry.
The soft drink industry as a whole is a multi-billion dollar
industry seeing approximately $42.8 billion dollars in revenues
each year. Annual growth from 2011-16 saw a decline of 0.9%
and annual growth is projected to continue to decline by 1.3%
from 2016-21 (IBISWorld, 2016).
Coca-Cola currently has a market share, within the global soft
drink & bottled water manufacturing market, of 11.2% with
their main competitor, PepsiCo, with a market share of
13.9%(IBISWorld, 2016). Just within the U.S. Coca-Cola has a
32.4% market share within the soda production market
(IBISWorld, 2016).
Per capita soft drink consumption, according to this IBISWorld
report, has declined steadily since 2006 and this trend is
expected to continue - in large part due to the higher demand
for healthy products (see graphic below).
This decline in the soft drink industry as a whole has had an
impact on Coca-Cola’s as well. From their 2016 10k filing they
say, “All of these challenges and risks - obesity; water quality
and quantity; evolving consumer preferences; increased
competition and capabilities in the marketplace; product safety
and quality; and food security - have the potential to have a
material adverse effect on the nonalcoholic beverage segment of
the commercial beverage industry and on our company…”
(Coca-Cola, 2017).
Their financials agree: net operating revenues have declined in
recent years. Coca-Cola saw a 4% decline from 2014-15 and
another 5% decline from 2015-16. Their gross profit margin has
only seen a small decrease of .04% overall since 2014 but in
terms of a multi-billion dollar corporation this totals

12. approximately a billion dollar decline in profits. However,
despite being a main player in a declining industry Coca-Cola
still manages to to have consistent profit margins that are often
above 20%, which compared to the industry average of 12%
(IBISWorld, 2016), is a good sign that Coca-Cola is doing
something right.
TARGET MARKET
Coca-Cola has a wide array of products aimed at multiple
consumer markets. With a trend towards more healthy products
Coca-Cola has introduced off-shoots of their main product,
Coca-Cola Classic, such as Coke Zero, Coca-Cola Life, and Diet
Coke.
Image: brandchannel.com
Below are some examples of their advertising throughout the
years and there’s one common theme: Coke is for everyone.
Coca-Cola does acknowledge a commitment to responsible
marketing and states that they do not advertise to children
(Coca-Cola, 2016) in order to help parents with their desire to
provide nutritious beverage choices to their children.
Images all owned by Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola maintains that with their “one brand” approach to
marketing (Coca-Cola, 2017) they are “reinforcing that Coca-
Cola is for everybody,” however I would argue that marketing
seems focused on millennials, likely for two reasons;
millennials make up a large portion of social media use, such as
Instagram, and they are a “newer” group of consumers that
Coke wants to become lifelong customers.

13. Coca-Cola’s Instagram is full of vibrant and fun images that
seem to be the most popular (and well shared) amongst their
social media platforms. The highest number of social media
users are people ages 18-29, followed by 30-49 year olds (Pew
Research Center, 2017). The fact that Coca-Cola heavily
advertises on platforms such as Instagram and Twitter leads me
to believe that Coca-Cola is focused on creating hype
surrounding their product with two main goals in mind:
increased brand awareness and gaining younger customers who,
ideally, will become lifelong Coca-Cola drinkers. If you’re
thirsty, they want you to remember Coke, and creating vibrant
advertising that’s literally at your fingertips (via your tablet or
smartphone) is a great strategy.
Image: Pew Research Center, 2017
Considering Coca-Cola is for everyone there is no real set
“target market”, Coca-Cola markets to anyone who is a decision
maker when it comes to purchasing soft drinks. This customer
might be a college student who likes a little afternoon pick me
up in the form of a cold caffeinated beverage. It might also the
be the 35 or older mom who does the grocery shopping for her
household.
According to a mintel report (Bonnett, 2017) “consumption of
the full range of Carbonated Soft Drinks (CSDs) is highest
among iGeneration and Millennials, who are also more likely to
be increasing their CSD usage rather than reducing it. Parents
and Hispanics – especially Hispanic Millennials – also post
heavy CSD usage…”
Customer profile: The College Student

14. Image source: The Poly Post
Name: Steven Villa
Demographics:
· Early to mid 20s
· Single; no children
· College student
· Earns < $25k working part-time
· Urban location
Psychographics:
· Spends a lot of time on social media
· Likes going out with friends
· Is a procrastinator and spends a lot of late night studying
Buying Habits:
· Is on a budget so usually chooses less expensive products
· He is pressed for time and likes quick convenient purchases
COMPETITIVE POSITIONING
Coca-Cola has a “competitive edge over its competitors in terms
of operations, cost control, brand portfolio, channel marketing,
and collaborative customer relationship” (Bhasin, 2017). Listed
below are some highlights from the article regarding Coca-
Cola’s strategy.
Operations: outsourcing has allowed Coca-Cola the ability to
jointly acquire companies with their franchisee FEMSA (which
is “the largest bottling franchisee of Coca-Cola products in the
world.) Having a larger portfolio of products has helped Coca-
Cola capture “important growth opportunities.”

15. Cost Control: outsourcing has allowed Coca-Cola cut
operational costs and therefore increase their profitability.
Brand Portfolio: Coca-Cola offers a wide variety of products
across the globe, allowing them to market products to a variety
of consumers based on what their needs are. We’re focusing
primarily on Coca-Cola Classic but it’s important to note that
Coca-Cola does offer more beverages outside of soft drinks and
they are exploring growth opportunities in these markets.
Customer Relationship: an extensive portfolio of products helps
Coca-Cola tailor its marketing depending on the specific
product or market they are selling. Their entire portfolio
consists of soft drinks, juices, waters, energy drinks, and more.
Convenience
Easy
Limited
Brand
Youthful
Mt. Dew
Coke
Dr. Pepper
Pepsi
Old
When consumers think about their beverage choices some key
phrases come to mind. Coke might be seen as more “traditional”
or “old” even though they have a strong top of mind awareness
with consumers. Pepsi is thought of as more of a “hip” brand,
it’s “youthful” and fun. Mt. Dew is aimed towards a “younger”
more “exciting” demographic but doesn’t have the same reach

16. that Pepsi and Coca-Cola have. Dr. Pepper has a more “limited”
reach as well, it’s popular in many areas but appears to have
some geographic limits as well as a brand that seen as more
“traditional” or “old.”
Product Life Cycle
The product life cycle is a graph depicting the various stages a
product can go through. In the introduction phase a company is
mainly trying to build awareness that their product exists and
gain a market for the product. In the growth stage a company is
attempting to differentiate their product and create a desire in
consumers to choose their product over another. The maturity
stage involves established products, sales growth has likely
slowed and competitors are appearing; the company's main
objectives are to maximize profits while defending the market
share on their product. Finally, the decline stage, sales have
dropped and companies need to either update the product or
discontinue (QuickMBA, 2010).
Coca-Cola has a wide array of products but their main staple is
Classic Coke. This product is in the maturity stage but we
believe Coca-Cola should keep an eye on the market - with the
new trend leaning towards a consumer preference for healthier
beverages, and with CSD sales declining, Coca-Cola may need
to work to keep the product relevant, in coming years. They are
attempting to meet this need for healthier sodas with products
like Coca-Cola Life but these products do not have the
established market that Classic Coke does.
Product Stage
Introduction
Growth
Maturity
Decline

17. Product Life Cycle: Classic Coke
Consumer Adoption Cycle
The consumer adoption cycle consists of 5 categories
(ondigitalmarketing, 2017):
· Innovators (2.5%): These consumers are the first individuals
to adopt new innovation. Typically these consumers are young,
have great financial flexibility, and have close contact with
other innovators or individuals with connections in technology
or science. These people are willing to take more risks in
adopting technology.
· Early Adopters (13.5%): Individuals who are early adopters
usually have a higher degree of “leadership opinions.” They
likely have a higher social standing, more flexibility with their
finances, and are typically younger in age and have more
education than later adopters.
· Early Majority (34%): this category consists of consumers
who adopt new innovation after a longer period of time, this
slow adoption process is typical of individuals with above
average social status but who do not have leadership positions
· Late Majority (34%): consumers in this category are slower to
adopt innovation, they may be skeptical about new products,
have little financial leeway, or be of a below average social
status
· Laggards (16%): individuals in this category are the last to
adopt new innovation. They may show little to no leadership, be
adverse to change, or focused on “tradition.” They might also
be very low income or have very low social standing.
Innovators

18. Early Adopters
Early Majority
Late Majority
Laggards
Consumer Adoption Cycle: Classic Coke
Coca-Cola’s brand, in terms of the consumer adoption cycle, is
likely made up of late majority and laggards. Coca-Cola is a
long established product with a large portion of the market
share (40.8%, as stated earlier in this paper) which means
there’s little room for innovators or early adopters. The late
majority category is going to be made up of consumers who buy
Coca-Cola because their friends or family buy Coca-Cola or
because they are already a consumer of Coke and they continue
to be consumers because laggards tend to prefer doing what
they’ve always done.
It should be noted that Coca-Cola has a wide range of products
and every product is not going to be the same in terms where
it’s consumers are in the adoption cycle: for example Coca-Cola
manufactures flavored varieties in other countries such as Green
Tea Coke, which was introduced in Japan in 20019 (Obias,
2014). These products are likely to have consumers more
towards the innovator or early adopter categories. Team 9
Marketing is primarily focused on Classic Coca-Cola however,
so we’ve chosen to discuss the consumer adoption cycle with
that in mind.
We don’t expect much change in the consumer adoption cycle
with Classic Coca-Cola however we would expect that each
product has it’s own consumer adoption cycle so they could see
changes with other beverages they produce.
Branding Strategy

19. Coca Cola uses Individual brands for each of its products; the
product will mention that it is apart of the Coca-Cola family,
but it will not display the classic Coca Cola brand image on its
products.
Corporate identity plays a huge role in establishing the product
and brand identity of Coca Cola; Although the logo is not
visible on all of its products, each product includes a spot on it
where it mentions that it is ‘a product of the Coca-Cola
Company.’ The Coca Cola company owns many valuable, well
known brands, seen below.
Although the Coca Cola Company is made up of numerous soft
drinks, like above, Coca Cola sees itself as one brand, united in
its goal to provide for the customer. In its 2016 advertising
campaign ‘One Brand,’ Chief Marketing Officer Marcos de
Quinto said “We are reinforcing that Coca-Cola is for
everybody,” de Quinto said. “Coca-Cola is one brand with
different variants, all of which share the same values and visual
iconography. People want their Coca-Cola in different ways, but
whichever one they want, they want a Coca-Cola brand with
great taste and refreshment.” (Coca-Colacompany.com, 2016)
Pricing Information
(Amazon Fresh)
Coca Cola appears to have a competitive pricing strategy with
PepsiCo, with both companies having similar prices in the 2-
liter bottle category. However, in the 12-pack category, Coca
Cola is less expensive than its two competitors, so it appears
that Coca Cola is also adapting the economy pricing, which
aims to attract customers with lower costs.

20. The Dr. Pepper Snapple group has the highest prices even
though it has the smallest market share, so it appears that they
are adopting the strategy of pricing at premium, likely to show
that their product has a higher quality and therefore is worth the
extra price.
We do not recommend any changes in product, branding, or
prices to Coca Cola as they already have one of the strongest
brand images in the world and having one of the most
recognizable brand images in the world (Cohn, 2016). As far as
pricing goes, Coca Cola has the highest market share of any soft
drink company in the world, and has competitive pricing with
its main competition, so we do not recommend they change
anything in this category as well.
Distribution Channel
Coca-Cola calls themselves a “global business that operates on
a local scale” (Coca-Cola 2017), they use multi-channel system
to distribute their products using manufacturing and bottling
partners. Coca-Cola purchases raw ingredients from suppliers
which they use to manufacture syrups, beverage bases, and
concentrates to bottling operations. These bottling facilities
have close partnerships with Coca-Cola. They do everything
from manufacturing the soda, packaging it, merchandising it,
and selling it to customers and vendors. These customer and
vendors then sell the finished product to consumers (Coca-Cola,
2017).
Coca-Cola

21. Manufacturing
Bottlers
Customers & Vendors
Coca-Cola’s Distribution Channel
Owned by Coca-Cola.
Outsourced. Bottling operations work in partnership with Coca-
Cola.
Outsourced. These are restaurants or retailers.
Individual consumers like you and me.
Consumers
Suppliers
Outsourced. Work in partnership with Coca-Cola.
Channel Strategy
Coca-Cola seems to be using their distribution channel as a tool
to help make sure that their products are reaching their various
market segments. They state that they have formed groups to
look into “collecting and consolidating economic and social
data in addition to the environmental data already collected”
(Coca-Cola, 2017) which tells me they are concerned about
making sure their product is distributed where there is both
demand and profits.
Their use of partnerships with bottlers and vendors help Coca-
Cola market effectively too. Coca-Cola is able to use them to
get their products in a vast array of locations: restaurants,
vending machines, theme parks, wholesalers, and retail
locations globally. Coca-Cola gets benefits from these
partnership in that it likely keeps costs down and they can reach
a wider consumer base.

22. Channel Strategy Critique
Coca-Cola’s channel strategy fits well with their product. They
have an established brand and a distribution channel that allows
them to sell their products across the globe. They don’t need to
do a lot of advertising in the sense that consumers already know
about the product. Their marketing strategy seems to be making
sure their product is everywhere while simultaneously working
to keep Coca-Cola in the front of consumer minds.
As mentioned in the product life cycle portion, Coca-Cola is
already in the maturity stages, having been a product for the last
125 years, so the level of intensity that the channel strategy is
employing and having Coca-Cola be the world leader in terms
of market share is impressive. We do not have any
recommendations for Coca-Cola on their channel strategies.
Promotional Activities
Coca-Cola markets in a few different ways. One of the new
campaigns they’ve run is #ShareaCoke which uses Twitter as an
advertising partner to get consumers involved directly with the
brand (Coca-Cola, 2017). Users can tweet with the #ShareaCoke
tag which during its 2015 debut saw more than 170,500
“mentions” globally, setting a world record. Below is a graphic
illustrating some of the ways Coca-Cola markets their brand.
Product Placement
Source: brandchannel.com
Strategic Positioning
Source: Drexel University

23. Television Advertising
Source: Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola "Pool Boy" Commercial
Coca-Cola "Alex" Commerical
Coca-Cola "2017 Super Bowl" Commerical
Coca-Cola appears to be using an advertising strategy that
involves using ads and product placement in high traffic
forums. According to Kantar Media Coca-Cola does a lot of
advertising during programming that will draw in large amount
of viewers, such as the 2016 Olympics in Rio (Kantar Media,
2016) where Coca-Cola spent $23.3 million on advertising,
ranking #6 on a list of top 10 advertisers by dollar amount
spent.
Annually, Coca-Cola spends approximately $3.5 to $4 billion
dollars on advertising (Coca-Cola 10k, 2016). They also state in
their 10k that “in addition to conducting our own independent
advertising and marketing activities, we may provide marketing
services and/or funds to our bottlers.” Coca-Cola provided $6.6
billion towards participation in marketing programs via their
bottlers.
Critique of Promotional Strategy
We believe that Coca-Cola’s strategy of advertising to a wide
audience is in line with their target market. Coke markets to
everyone and their advertising reflects this. Coca-Cola can be
found almost everywhere due to strategic positioning of
partnerships, vendors, restaurants, and vending machines. Their
advertising reflects content that can appeals to a wide variety of
audiences (see: Coca-Cola Commercials above) and they

24. advertise heavily during programming that achieves wide
audiences, such as the Super Bowl.
Summary and Recommendations
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