It’s the Past, It’s the Future, No it’s…Both?

You know you miss the 90’s if you still wear scrunchies and stirrup pants, faithfully use a Discman, use MySpace, carry around a Tomagotchi, and truly can’t separate from your Beanie Babies collection. But, can the 90’s be significant to digital marketing today? While we may not need AOL, floppy discs or an overhead projector to make marketing come to life, a good old blast from the past could be the key to killer social media campaigns in the future!

Blast from the past

Have you ever looked back and thought, dang, I wish that I could relive the 90’s? No? Well, The Coca-Cola Company did this month and they really hit the ground running.

Coke took the idea of “what’s old, is new again” to all new heights this month as they brought the past back to life with their super sugary and highly caffeinated soft drink, SURGE, being exclusively sold on Amazon. It all started with three masterminds who seriously missed the soft drink. Evan Carr, Sean Sheridan and Matt Winans pooled ideas, funding and social media tactics that would eventually convince The Coca-Cola Company to bring the drink back to life.

Carr, Sheridan and Winans created online fan groups including “The SURGE Movement,” which gained more than 128,000 Facebook fans in a few short years. The SURGE Movement raised nearly $4,000 in 2013 to buy a billboard (which they designed) about a half-mile from Coke’s Atlanta headquarters. The copy read: "Dear Coke, we couldn't buy SURGE, so we bought this billboard instead" and directed people to visit the movement's Facebook page.

Their push from social media and traditional marketing tactics, pushed Coke to give SURGE an encore. SURGE will be offered in its original formula in 12-packs of 16-oz. cans featuring the same retro design from yesteryear, in part of an innovative distribution deal between Coca-Cola and Amazon. A limited supply of SURGE will be sold exclusively through the online retailer at www.amazon.com/surge,marking the first time Coke has distributed a product solely through e-commerce (Moye, 2014).

The past is the future

SURGE’s come back will be Coke’s first launch to rely solely on social and digital media. The brand will forego all traditional forms of advertising, including TV and out of home, allowing excitement to build online.

What’s the point, you ask? The point is, that a blast from the past could be the key to killer social media campaigns in the future. It proves that excitement and fan engagement can make your campaigns super successful.

Coke is proving that social media is crucial for brands and businesses. Social media is an easy way to learn about your audience and their desires. You can target audiences more effectively, find new customers and expand your audience, receive instant feedback, share content, explore ideas or generate leads. Social media can and will help you to generate meaningful relationships with your customers and with little or no money.

So, find a product, service or even music that would spark nostalgia in your fans and create a campaign around that. Let’s face it, nostalgia sells! You can explore topics that will really engage your fans and followers and get them talking. Allow the fans and users to tell you what they love about your brand or what they wish you would do again. The sky is the limit. But just know, like Coke is finding out, it is your fans that sustain your brand and social media is the gateway!

Sources
Allen, K. (2014, September 18). Coke's Surge success a blast from the past. Retrieved from PR Daily: http://prdaily.com/marketing/Articles/17266.aspx

Feloni, R. (2014, September 16). How 3 Diehard Fans Convinced Coc-Cola To Bring Back Surge Soda. Retrieved from Business Insider: http://www.businessinsider.com/why-coca-cola-brought-surge-back-2014-9?op=1

Moye, J. (2014, September 15). SURGE Returns: Back by Popular Demand, Brand Now Available Exclusively on Amazon.com. Retrieved from Coca-Cola Journey: http://www.coca-colacompany.com/stories/surge-returns-back-by-popular-demand-brand-now-available-exclusively-on-amazoncom