The Proposed IMC Campaign Seeks to Refresh Gen Z

The Proposed IMC Campaign Seeks to Refresh Gen Z 
Introduction
The Coca-Cola Company is a multinational corporation in the beverage industry established by John Pemberton in 1886. The company’s headquarters are in Atlanta, Georgia, and it operates in over 200 countries around the world. The company’s portfolio consists of over 500 beverage brands with an average daily consumption of approximately 1.06 billion beverages. The company’s marketing strategy is an integration of the product, pricing, place and distribution, and promotion. Through this integrated marketing approach, Coca-Cola has increased its profitability and market share while maintaining widespread consumer trust over the years. Further, the company has been able to enhance its reputation through numerous CSR initiatives, especially with a focus on sustainability. The organization’s promotional activities have also proven vital to its sustainability, showcasing its ability to evolve through the development and capitalization of effective marketing communications strategies. Therefore, every decade, Coca-Cola remains relevant in the eyes of consumers, further increasing sales and reach.
Currently, Coca-Cola is guided by a powerful vision communicating its mission and goals to the world. The organization’s vision is to “craft the brands and choice of drinks that people love, to refresh them in body and spirit. And done in ways that create a more sustainable business and better shared future that makes a difference in people’s lives, communities and our planet” (Coca-Cola, 2022). This vision is complemented by the company’s purpose, or mission on earth which it explicitly states is to: “Refresh the world. Make a difference.” These two speak about the organization’s commitment to ensuring guaranteed survival in the world.
As an organization that is in a highly competitive industry, Coca-Cola maintains a diverse marketing paradigm with the goal of maximizing its reach to the world. Among the channels used by Coca-Cola in its diverse marketing communications include advertising, direct marketing, public relations, personal selling, sales promotion, and internet or interactive marketing. In line with its purpose or mission, Coca-Cola often communicates a message of refreshment, entertainment, and fun to its target market. Over the years, the company’s campaigns have made use of slogans that have greatly influenced consumers’ perceptions of the company and its products. Examples of some of these slogans include “Taste the feeling,” “Open happiness,” “Enjoy life,” and “Life tastes good.” Each of these slogans has helped to share the company’s softer side of mainly seeking to ‘refresh.’
In line with Coca-Cola’s quest to ‘refresh the world,’ the proposed IMC campaign seeks to refresh Gen Z through a focused campaign aimed at enhancing the appeal of Coke Zero to this generation. The plan should bring about increased sales of Coke Zero while also making a difference in the lives of the targeted population.
Target Audience
Generation Z is the target audience for the proposed IMC plan. The scope of the campaign will be limited to the United States mainly because of research indicating that there is an increase in the number of Gen Z members getting diagnosed with diabetes. Since 2001, the U.S. has showcased an increase in the number of Gen Z members contracting and living with diabetes (CDC, 2021). This statistic makes this group ideal for the campaign and presents a pleasant case for Coca-Cola to try and create a movement aimed at not only increasing its profitability but also ‘make a difference.’ Gen Z are a group driven by values and purpose, therefore, Coca Cola must find ways to sell their agenda to the group. So, Coca Cola must find ways to ensure that the target audience first responds positively to their agenda. Responding to the agenda at hand would, in the end, lead to increased profitability.
Gen Z are considered the first digital natives because they grew up in the age of the internet. Their interests are centered on doing things that involve little to no movement, especially gaming and watching. Because of their technology savviness, this group is also heavily dependent on social media use, with their most preferred platforms being Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube (Petrock, 2021). In a bid to offer more clarity, Ceci (2022) adds that TikTok is the most used social media platform for Gen Z with users estimated to spend more than 10 hours every week on the application. According to a study on YPulse (2021), Gen Z spend more time watching social media videos than watching television series. Therefore, with these changes in the generation, organizations need to also alter their approach, and hence the outlined plan for Coca Cola.
As consumers, Gen Z present different characteristics to the millennials and the other generations. First, they are particular with regard to what they like in a product, how an advert is conducted, and the people behind product promotions. Francis and Hoefel (2018) from McKinsey & Company note that Gen Z are a hypercognitive generation with a knack for cross-referencing different sources and integrating outside experiences into their decision-making process. A 2020 McKinsey Podcast hosted by Lucia Rahilly (2020) reveals that Gen Z is not simply concerned with the products sold. Conducting the best advert in terms of messaging or in terms of seeking to sell the best product in the market may not necessarily influence this generation. A respondent in the 2020 McKinsey Podcast, Bo Finneman, indicates that Gen Z look beyond a product and wish to know more about a company. So, Coca-Cola would need to make a case for themselves, especially as a brand that is aiming to ‘make a difference’ in the world. While the statistic shared by the CDC is a good enough reason for Coca-Cola to initiate such a campaign, they ought to be prepared with questions like ‘why now’ or ‘what they stand to gain from the campaign.’ Therefore, Coca-Cola should expect a much tougher crowd.
The marketing persona for the audience would best be presented by a young man aged 17 years. This young man named Joe lives with his parents, drives a Honda Accord that he bought for himself, spends more than 70% of his time on his phone and laptop, and is a social media influencer. Joe is an ardent believer in making the world a better place; therefore, he is a member of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN). Further, he is also a member of Oceana, an organization committed to making the world a better place through the preservation of oceans. Joe spends a significant number of hours sitting down and playing video games. Also, he takes a lot of soft drinks as well as what could be categorized as junk food. Finally, it is crucial to also mention that he is well-informed about matters of the world. This persona is the kind of target that Coca-Cola will be dealing with.
Objectives
The customer journey that this campaign is focusing on is greatly influenced by the AIDA model. So, the campaign will first seek to create awareness of the brand Coke Zero to Gen Z. Secondly, the campaign will then proceed to generate interest and buzz around the brand Coke Zero. Thirdly, the campaign will seek to turn the buzz and interest into a strong desire to purchase the product or to want to try the product. Finally, the customer journey culminates in making a decision to buy the product and having the same experience be shared with others.
The SMART goals for the campaign are divided and influenced by the AIDA model. At the awareness stage, the objective lies in striving to make the brand as popular as possible to Gen Z. Awareness should be generated through social owing to this audience’s preference and use of social media platforms. With regard to interest, the objective would be to have the target audience attentive to the campaign. Here, a specific objective would be guided by the question: How many Gen Z members on TikTok are watching the campaign videos? On the other hand, desire entails a longing, and therefore, the campaign should seek to activate a longing or a craving to join in the movement. The objective here would, therefore, be to make the target audience feel like they are being left out. Finally, on the action, the objective would be to get as many Gen Z ...