Pepsi's Frank Cooper: "It All Boils Down to a Massive Change in What We Call Media" - Steve Rosenbaum - MediaBizBloggers

There's a change in the air - and some brands are noticing it more quickly than others. In the 'battle of the brands', there may be none more legendary than the Coke vs. Pepsi soda wars. For as long as we can remember - Coke was 'it' with powerful mass media messages, big name stars and catchy jingles that kept the brand refreshed, and the customer entertained. But the increased voice that customers have with new technologies seems to have been lost on Coke, while Pepsi has been leading the charge - shifting from storytelling to audience engagement. Today - Pepsi is on a remarkable winning streak, as Coke finally admitted with a wholesale restructuring of its advertising and communications operations last week. Said Coke's Wendy Clark to AdAge: "It was a revelation to discover that of the 150 million views the brand has amassed on YouTube, only 25 million to 30 million of those views could be attributed to content Coca-Cola had put into the marketplace."

That is both huge and kind of obvious at the same time. Just 20% of all of the video views on YouTube regarding Coke brands came from Coke published content. As Bob Garfield- author of 'The Chaos Scenario' has been saying for some time, audiences are now firmly in control of the microphone - and they're taking the brand conversation away from brand owners and doing with it what they please.

Coke's Clark calls the new landscape "liquid and linked", which is code for out of control. Coke's emphasis is on paid media as the market is shifting to consumer-created, peer-curated, and UGC media. Coke rarely admits that it isn't in charge, which is why, Clark's comment: "perhaps we weren't structured for ultimate success within that landscape" is clue about just how different the landscape truly is.

At the same time, Pepsi seems totally at home in the new world of social media and interactive content. At last year's SxSW Interactive Conference, Pepsi was a significant presence, while Coke was no where to be seen.

Pepsi Finds Social Media Refreshing.

Pepsi's "Pepsi Refresh" is offering perhaps the best example yet of how the brand is embracing listening - and turning the power of their marketing message over to their users. Bonin Bough, the Director of Digital and Social Media at PepsiCo explains: "if you listen to what people have to say and give voice to their perspectives, you can inspire people and empower their ideas."

This may not seem like the words of a Soda and Snack food company, but Pepsi is putting its brand and its money where its mouth is pledging more than 20 million dollars to a crowd-sourced grant program, with public voting determining who gets the grants. Each month, Pepsi will award grants up to $1.3 million to the winning ideas across six categories, including: Health, Arts & Culture, Food & Shelter, The Planet, Neighborhoods and Education. It's a listening campaign that is meant to send a message to a new generation of connected consumers.

Frank Cooper, Pepsi's Chief Consumer Engagement Officer explains Pepsi's social media initiatives this way: "We want to become a catalyst in the culture rather than act like a big brand announcing something." Cooper does admit that this "goes against all the systems put in place that were designed for mass marketing."

But Pepsi didn't just focus on consumer content. The Pepsi Refresh Project "looked to add value to a community or a real-life social network" says Cooper. "We knew that our consumers wanted to play a central role in developing and promoting ideas that they believed would move the world forward."

Bonin explains: "We collaborated with organizations that are dedicated to making a positive difference in the world to design and implement the Pepsi Refresh Project. Each month, we accept 1,000 submissions, and all of the ideas that comply with our Official Guidelines are then posted online for public vote. We're doing our part to bring transparency to the process by featuring a monthly leader-board showing which ideas are getting the most votes."

He says it's about aligning the brand with positive social change. "Our theory of social change is that new ideas are born from optimism, a curious mind and a creative spirit. We can make a difference by equipping people with the means to bring their ideas to life. And, we believe social media and digital engagement can fuel, extend and inform these efforts. "

For the first time, Pepsi is connecting with audiences, as Coke struggles to rethink its engagement with consumers. Pepsi drinkers feel like they're part of the brand, engaged, listened to, and members of the community. Coke, on the other hand, dominates the media with one-way messages that seem strangely out of step with the massive changes taking place in consumer conversations. Pepsi's Cooper says it all boils down to a massive change in what we call 'media', and how brands can participate in the new world of consumer driven social media.

Says Cooper "The Pepsi Refresh Project has expanded our consumers' perception of what the Pepsi brand can be: Pepsi remains a fun brand that leads culture. However, it also has social responsibility, a sense of purpose, built into its behavior."

That sounds refreshing to me.

Steve Rosenbaum is founder and CEO of Magnify.net, and the Author of the forthcoming McGrawHill Business book "Curation Nation" (March / 2011). Steve can be contacted at steve@magnify.net Follow Steve Rosenbaum on Twitter: www.twitter.com/magnify

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