Consumer Behaviour-Vanilla Coke Failure India

Launch of Vanilla Coke

•Vanilla Coke launched in April 2004
–First flavor extension in India by Coke
–Heavy media exposure for their 60-sec TVC
•Use of a brand new celebrity – Vivek Oberoi
–Retro-Bollywood theme
–Tag line “Ice Creamy Thanda”
–Created a slang ‘Wakaw’ for “cool and different”
•Promotional activities in colleges and malls
–Launch of remix album with 1970s songs and music
–One of the first attempts at viral marketing using SMS

•Target Group: Urban teens and young adults
–Age group of 12-29 years in high and middle-income group
–Focus on ‘Laggards’
•Vanilla Coke launched only in metro cities first
–Covered only 17% of the population in the first phase
•Launched in 500 ml PET bottles
–Followed by 300 ml glass bottles
•Sales expected to rise by 20-30% post launch

Fate of Vanilla Coke

•Retailers reported slow sales of the product
–Rapidly dropping sales in metros
•Sales dropped from retailer average of 48 bottles/day to 24 in 3 months
–In eight months, it was down to 4-5 bottles/day
•Product pulled out of the market in 10 months
–One of the most expensive advertising failure in Indian marketing history

Internal Reasons for Failure

•Clutter-breaking TVC, but contradicts itself
–Targeting youth with a retro theme
–Lack of connect with slice-of-life Coke commercials
•Curiosity generated, but low support from the product
–Instant comparisons with original Coke
–‘Kids’ product because of the flavor
–Taste similar to existing products like ice-cream floats
•Lack of distributor push
–Margins on VC lower at 25 ps. than Coke at 40 ps.

External Reasons for Failure

•Cola market slowing down
–Impact of pesticide and groundwater controversies
–Growth of the health drink and bottled water segment
•Competition from Pepsi and its other brands
•Low acceptance as a mixing agent with alcoholic beverages

For details on latest trends in Indian consumer markets visit http://analyticsnewswire99.blogspot.com/2007/08/indian-consumer-market.html