Coca-Cola's anti-obesity advert comes to the UK

Tonight on Channel 4 Coca-Cola is launching it's 'Coming Together' campaign advert in the UK. The advert aims to highlight Coke's lower calorie options and the importance of a healthy lifestyle. The TV advert will be accompanied by a marketing campaign in newspapers and magazines.

The advert is very similar to the anti-obesity video that Coke have already launched in the USA with the same soundtrack and imagery, except there is no dialogue in the UK version.

In the USA, the ad received mixed reactions, with some people claiming it was brilliant that Coke were finally admitting that they have played some part in the current obesity crisis and see it as the start of an apology. However, much of the responses have been negative:

"The ad is an astonishing act of chutzpah, explainable only as an act of desperation to do something about the company’s declining sales in the U.S.," says nutritionist and food industry expert Marion Nestle on her blog, Food Politics.

To whit, Coca-Cola says that the ad is part of their “ongoing commitment to deliver more beverage choices … clearly communicate the calorie content of its products.”
In other words -- an ad in the truest sense, meant to publicise certain products.


In the video Coca-Cola make the statement that  "All calories count, no matter where they come from, including Coca-Cola." This quote has caused controversy as studies have shown that the calories from drinking high calorie drinks like Coke actually have a greater effect on weight gain and obesity compared to other calories.

This controversy explains why Coco-Cola have decided to scrap the dialogue in the UK version of their advert. Through the use of imagery and music they are making a point about the issue of an unhealthy lifestyle and diet without actually making any claims - making it more difficult to criticise their message.

I think it's a step forward for all communications when a company begins to be honest about their products and bad health effects they may have. Coke's ad will hopefully pave the way for more transparent marketing and PR campaigns in the future. But unfortunately, this advert does not fill me up with a fuzzy warm feeling about the brand.

Read more about the new advert on Marketing Week.

Tesco Backed 'Artisan' Coffee Chain

When it comes to coffee shops North London's Crouch End has it's fair share, but new arrival 'Harris and Hoole' has sparked controversy. The branch which also has stores in Amersham, Uxbridge, Ruislip and Southgate is up to 49% owned by the high-street giant Tesco.

The coffee industry is lucrative, last year Costa Coffee made £36.1million pre-tax profits. It is a well known fact that Tesco make £1 out of every £8 spent on the high-street and the organisation already have brand extensions including banking, clothing. dvd rentals, electronics and mobile phones. Tesco's ever-increasing power in the marketplace is what is making people unhappy about the coffee shop.

In reality, Harris and Hoole is family-owned by Australian siblings Nick, Laura and Andrew Tolley. The family own the majority of shares in the business and have total control over the way it is run. Tesco invested in the venture and have no say in the business strategy. Unfortunately, the association with Tesco has not done Harris and Hoole's reputation any favours and has resulted in extensive negative media coverage. The next few months will show if this is enough to put people off the chain or if it will thrive as well as the other high-street coffee chains.

EBay unveils new logo

EBay's logo and site have undergone a makeover to reflect it's new style of business model. The site has realised the proportion of customers who are now browsing using smart phones and tablets and have changed the site to suit their needs. EBay's website says:

"We’re delivering a cleaner, contemporary look and feel; a more intuitive, convenient way to browse, decide and buy – both globally and locally; and a new personal way to curate your own shopping experience and discover items perfect for you."

The new logo has already attracted criticism. Many saying they don't like it and one blogger claiming that it hurts your eyes. I personally don't like it, but nobody likes change - I'm sure as with everything else that changes on the internet we will all shut up about it in a matter of weeks. 

10 Downing Street: 636,508 talking about this

I recently came across a page on Facebook for '10 Downing Street.' I'm not sure if this page is official but it certainly has a social media presence with over 23,000 likes and 636,508 people talking about it when this blog was published.

We all know Britain has a culture for actively slagging off politicians, when you mix this with the anonymity of Facebook you get an interesting result. Scanning through the comments and discussions on this page, it is clear that there is not a positive word to be said about the UK government (surprised? I didn't think so).

Whether this page is official or not, it's certainly not doing any good for the government's reputation. Given the popularity of this page, it might be an idea for the government to take a more active role in social media. The government could encourage positive debate and opinions from young people who are taking an interest in politics. If 10 Downing Street employed somebody to manage the page and give a response to some of the negative comments people would feel like they were being listened to and the page would not be left to become a forum of hatred against the Conservatives.

Just type 10 Downing Street into your Facebook search bar if you want to see some of the comments.

The London Riots: should brands carry the blame?

A recent independent report into the riots last summer has claimed that 'aggressive and excessive' advertising by brands is one of the underlying reasons for disorder. The report included a survey that found 85% of people asked felt that advertising puts pressure on young people to own the latest brands. Young people define themselves through brands and that half of the offences during the riots were through greed claimed the report.

I agree that younger generations are becoming more and more materialistic and a lot of the unrest was caused simply by opportunist looting. However, to claim that brands have played a part in the cause of the riots is ridiculous.

The report recommends that brands do more to help a repeat of the riots in the future by incorporating community support schemes into their CSR policies. Regardless of the riots I think this is something that brands should take the initiative to do anyway. The problem is, many of the brands that are so highly valued within youth culture are luxury American brands that will have no interest in associating themselves with could-be rioters. At a time where the government are encouraging spending our way out of the economic crisis - I don't believe this report will have an affect on the way brands advertise to young people but I hope it does encourage organisations to do more to benefit local communities.