Coca-Cola is not only sharing happiness, which became the key theme of its advertising efforts, but also provides younger generation with an access to the Internet. The brand teamed up with Ogilvy to develop a project dubbed Happiness Refill to offer the youth of Rio de Janeiro an extra refill for online surfing on their mobile phone (since over 80% of the target audience use a prepaid phone and can’t afford a big data plan, this solution is what the young consumers are sure to appreciate). Starting March 22, to get the mobile device ‘refilled’ with 20 megabytes from Coke, one just have to find an open-air concept store on Copacabana beach with the special red Coca-Cola dispenser, and then hold the mobile phone up to it—that’s all.
Photo: Coca-Cola Happiness Refill, www.creativity-online.com
“We’re mixing mobile, the emerging middle class, and a positive brand experience in one application. The beauty of this project is not the technology itself, but how to use it to transform the experience,” commented Daniel Tartaro, digital integration director at Ogilvy to Ad Age. In addition extra bytes of data credits (‘20 liters of happiness’ as the brand calls it), Coca-Cola provides the mobile owners with a Coke browser, which has three essential buttons—Coke FM radio, social networks (Facebook and Twitter are on the list) plus the weather forecast (in this area, weather makes the day).
Consumers can refill their cellphones numerous times (if you are heavy internet user, this amount of Mbytes will ‘melt’ in one week, and a moderate user will be enjoying it for two weeks)—but for the first month, the service will be available only to 50 young Rio residents, selected by their wireless provider Oi to be engaged in the new deepener testing. Coca-Cola hopes to tap more wireless providers for the initiative and expand beyond the Android platform. Coca-Cola also thinks it could take the initiative across the country (and other emerging markets), if the test period will be successful.
«Our briefing [to Ogilvy] was that I need you guys to think about something that connects Coke, mobile and the middle class consumer. Everyone has a mobile phone, but they lack money to buy data credits. It’s an opportunity for Coke to deliver happiness in a relevant way,» commented Adriana Knackfuss, senior consumer-connections manager at Coca-Cola. “It’s a pilot for us to test consumer reaction, and understand what role Coke should play in the mobile space. We’ll be filming everything. We’re interested in capturing consumers’ spontaneous reaction. Part of the beauty of this project is it’s happening at point-of-sale. It’s a reason for consumers to come back.”
The Happiness Refill comes as a new addition to Coke’s happiness range, which also includes the Happiness Machine and the Happiness Truck, targeted at younger generation and rewarding the youth with gifts for their loyalty.