Word FaQ
In April of 1985, the Coca-Cola Company made a mistake. Not a little mistake, mind you, but a big one. Company officials have been honest about the blunder all along, but even to this day the entire fiasco remains a source of embarrassment for the soft drink giant.
The early 1980s found Coca-Cola very close to falling behind in the soda war to Pepsi. Pepsi was, in fact, ahead in supermarket sales. Coke’s wider availability in fast food restaurants and vending machines was the only thing keeping it ahead in overall sales. Coke’s own new product at the time, Diet Coke, was also cutting into the market of regular Coke considerably. Something had to be done, and quickly, in order for the Real Thing to keep its edge.
Enter New Coke. Coca-Cola played around with the flavor of their own product for about a year, adding a pinch of this and a dash of that, taking away a little bit here and a little bit there. In the end, they felt they had a winner. In fact, during taste tests held before the product’s release, the vast majority of people preferred the taste of the new formula over Coke and Pepsi. Way to go, guys!
…Or not.
Once Coke finally released its new formula soft drink, along with the tag line The Best Just Got Better, they decided to actually cancel production of the old, tried and true formula for Coke. And oh, how the public screamed blasphemy. It seemed the no one could accept the fact that the old Coke was gone, not after one hundred years of being a part of American lives. No way, no how. And sales of New Coke went nowhere.
On July 11th of that very same year, Coke bowed to the pressure put on by its loyal fans, and began producing the old formula again, under the name Classic Coke. President and Chief Operating Officer of Coca-Cola Donald Keough was quoted as saying: “The passion for original Coca-Cola—and that is the word for it, passion—was something that caught us by surprise… It is a wonderful American mystery, a lovely American enigma, and you cannot measure it any more than you can measure love, pride, or patriotism.”
The company’s rebound from this disaster was borderline miraculous. But then again, you never know what you have until it’s gone. No longer taken for granted, Coca-Cola eventually became reaffirmed in America’s affections. Donald Keough was later quoted as saying: “Some critics will say Coca-Cola made a marketing mistake. Some cynics will say that we planned the whole thing. The truth is we are not that dumb, and we are not that smart.”
The early 1980s found Coca-Cola very close to falling behind in the soda war to Pepsi. Pepsi was, in fact, ahead in supermarket sales. Coke’s wider availability in fast food restaurants and vending machines was the only thing keeping it ahead in overall sales. Coke’s own new product at the time, Diet Coke, was also cutting into the market of regular Coke considerably. Something had to be done, and quickly, in order for the Real Thing to keep its edge.
Enter New Coke. Coca-Cola played around with the flavor of their own product for about a year, adding a pinch of this and a dash of that, taking away a little bit here and a little bit there. In the end, they felt they had a winner. In fact, during taste tests held before the product’s release, the vast majority of people preferred the taste of the new formula over Coke and Pepsi. Way to go, guys!
…Or not.
Once Coke finally released its new formula soft drink, along with the tag line The Best Just Got Better, they decided to actually cancel production of the old, tried and true formula for Coke. And oh, how the public screamed blasphemy. It seemed the no one could accept the fact that the old Coke was gone, not after one hundred years of being a part of American lives. No way, no how. And sales of New Coke went nowhere.
On July 11th of that very same year, Coke bowed to the pressure put on by its loyal fans, and began producing the old formula again, under the name Classic Coke. President and Chief Operating Officer of Coca-Cola Donald Keough was quoted as saying: “The passion for original Coca-Cola—and that is the word for it, passion—was something that caught us by surprise… It is a wonderful American mystery, a lovely American enigma, and you cannot measure it any more than you can measure love, pride, or patriotism.”
The company’s rebound from this disaster was borderline miraculous. But then again, you never know what you have until it’s gone. No longer taken for granted, Coca-Cola eventually became reaffirmed in America’s affections. Donald Keough was later quoted as saying: “Some critics will say Coca-Cola made a marketing mistake. Some cynics will say that we planned the whole thing. The truth is we are not that dumb, and we are not that smart.”
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