Over forty years ago, Coke released the epic television ad with “I’d Like to Teach the World To Sing (In Perfect Harmony)”. This was also known as The Coke Hilltop ad. This iconic ad was based on a wish that Bill Baker and Harvey Gabor had to buy the work a Coke. Bill Backer and Harvey Gabor were part of the creative team at McCann-Erikson that headed up the Coca-Cola account for the agency.
Obviously, forty years ago it was not feasible to simply buy the entire world a Coke. But the sentiment made for a great ad with a worldwide chorus atop a hill. But what about today in our digitally connected society? That was what Google asked as part of their Project Re:Brief.
For the project, Google gathered some of the original creative forces behind the Coke Hilltop ad, many of whom were long retired, and brainstormed with them a new concept around actually buying the world a Coke. They went back to original advertising creative briefs, strategy documents and artwork. They combined Google’s top creative and digital talent with the very advertising executives that worked on the Coke account in 1971. After several weeks of working together, they ended up completely re-imagining the original ad and created an experiential marketing showpiece that actually delivered on the original wish of buying the world a Coke.
The re-imagined experiential marketing work provided an amazing user experience for Coke customers. At the same time, it delivered on Coke’s brand hallmark of bringing the world together. With a desktop and mobile interface along with a fleet of worldwide, connected Coke vending machines, someone anywhere in the world could buy a Coke and deliver it to a machine thousands of miles away. The recipient at a machine could then respond to sender and even record a video message (as well as send a Coke to another worldwide location). Watch the video below to see this experiential marketing in practice.
How to use this information
Great experiential marketing is part of any great brand today. It can be the experience at your store or office. And, it can also be the experience of how people interact with your brand, especially in today’s digitally connected world. At Webolutions®, a strategic Denver marketing agency, we continually study current marketing trends, including trends in Experiential Marketing. We can help make extraordinary experiences for your customers that span both the physical and digital world. Call us today at 303-300-2640 to learn more about experience marketing and how it can help you build life-long customers.
