The Coca

The Coca Abstract Coca-Cola Company is a giant corporation that specialises in manufacturing, retailing and marketing of about 500 brands of non-alcoholic beverages.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on The Coca-Cola Company’s marketing strategy specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The firm is present in about 200 countries across the world. It adopts a franchised system of distributing its syrup concentrate, which is sold to several bottlers globally. Strategic marketing approaches used by the Coca-Cola Company are aimed to increase consumer awareness and preference for the Company’s non-alcoholic beverages (Silverman, Sprott Pascal, 1999; Jain, Haley, Voola Wickham, 2012). In the light of increased global competition from its competitors, the Company has strategically positioned itself to maintain and increase its market share. In order to make strategic marketing decisions, the Coca-Cola’s marketing team conducts product research aimed to understand customer behaviour towards the company’s brand. This paper defines and analyses the following components that would have an impact on the Company’s marketing strategy: organisation’s capabilities, competition, markets and environments. The Coca-Cola Company’s organisational capabilities Organisational or corporate capabilities refer to the abilities of an organisation to achieve specific goals through a set of processes. First, consumer marketing is a core capability of the Coca-Cola Company that is crucial in shaping the Company’s marketing strategy. Companies make huge marketing investments so as to increase consumer awareness for their brand (Jain et al., 2012). The marketing investments made by the Coca-Cola Company have enabled the Company to achieve sustained market share growth, case volumes, and per capita consumption of its non-alcoholic beverages. The Company develops and implements both loca l and global marketing initiatives using market data obtained through the Company’s interactions with its bottling partners across the world. Research shows that organisations thrive in competitive markets by understanding market trends through consumer communications (Jain et al., 2012). Consumer communications developed by the Company could be vital in understanding the current brand positioning. Second, the Coca-Cola Company has a strong commercial leadership capability across the world. Research demonstrates that business organisations that have sound commercial leadership styles have better chances of thriving in markets characterised by perfect competition. The Coca-Cola Company is keen on understanding the customers’ needs because customers are crucial in distributing its products around the world.Advertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The Compa ny ensures that its customers have beverage products and promotional materials all the time. Through this, the Company enhances its value and that of its customers. Through an effective commercial leadership capability, the Company is able to develop unique consumer experiences through unique beverage products and unrivalled delivery systems (Jain et al., 2012). Product merchandising and displays are also used by the Company to develop innovative consumer experiences across the world. To produce the right brands for consumers, the Company jointly implements brand-building initiatives with its customers. The Company further develops and executes marketing strategies at the point of sale by engaging with its customers to understand market needs that vary based on consumer tastes and business environments. Third, the Coca-Cola Company concentrates on its franchise leadership capabilities by ensuring that it gives its bottling partners the opportunity to attain and maintain growth. It h as been shown that business organisations could achieve huge growth trends by empowering their partners. The Coca-Cola Company gives its partners a chance to grow and expand by supporting initiatives that are geared towards fulfilling dynamic customer needs and tastes. By working with its bottling partners, the Company identifies needs that are crucial in achieving business efficiencies. In fact, it has been shown that the Coca-Cola Company has one of the best business franchising practices across the world. Its partners are crucial in producing differentiated products and product packages that are aligned with product channels and consumers. The company also designs unique models for different beverages in certain markets to maintain the value created by its partners. The Coca-Cola Company should strive to establish a distribution network that correlates with its size and business systems in order to gain and maintain a competitive advantage (Werther Jr Chandler, 2005). Competitio n Business organisations perform uniquely in the business world and gain competitive advantage by analysing competition within markets. The Coca-Cola Company is the leading beverage company in the world, and it faces stiff competition from both emerging and established business organisations specialising in beverages. The business organisations are both local and multinational firms. Companies in the beverage industry deal with the following competitive products: Sparkling beverages, Ready-to-drink juices Dilutables. Performance enhancing drinks Functional drinks Waters (packaged and flavoured drinks) Dairy-based drinks The beverages are purchased by consumers in ready-to-drink and other forms. The three major competitors of the Coca-Cola Company are PepsiCo, Inc., Nestle S.A. and Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Inc. PepsiCo, Inc. is the major competitor of the Coca-Cola Company (Johnson Peppas, 2003).Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on The Coca-Cola Companyà ¢â‚¬â„¢s marketing strategy specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Beer firms are the major competitors of the Company in some markets. The Company also faces stiff competition from local retail businesses that have established local markets. For the Company to thrive in such markets, it adopts strategic marketing approaches to gain competitive advantage. Such marketing approaches are geared towards outshining the local retailers that have established local beverage brands. For any company to thrive in a market that is characterised by local established businesses, it has to develop strategic marketing and advertising initiatives that would be superior to those used by the local firms (Johnson Peppas, 2003). The initiatives would involve developing excellent product displays that would attract consumers of the existing products in the local market. A firm would also offer products of similar quality to those marketed by its rivals at lower prices . The marketing team of the Coca-Cola Company should use the SWOT analysis to come up with an effective marketing strategy (Jain et al., 2012). One of the strengths of the Coca-Cola Company is its incomparable popularity. The Company’s brand is printed on billboards, T-shirts, among other advertising materials. It has an easily recognisable branding that has gone a long way in attracting consumers across the world. Coca-Cola Company has an advantage of customer loyalty that has enabled the company to make huge profits over the years. In fact, the Company has been able to achieve the 80/20 rule. In this scenario, the company achieves 80% of its profit from 20% of its consumers who are loyal to its beverage products. One of the weaknesses of the Coca-Cola Company is the unpopularity of some of its beverage products. Beverage products like Coke and Sprite are very popular across the world. However, the Company should be concerned about the limited popularity of the over 400 beve rage products it markets. In developing the marketing strategy for the Company, the marketing team should focus on increasing popularity of the other drinks so that the Company’s turnover could increase tremendously. Another weakness of the Company is the issue of health that is associated with some its drinks. For example, Coke has been linked, although not supported through scientific research, with cancer cases. The Coca-Cola Company has some opportunities that it should exploit in order to increase its presence in the market. The Company could increase its turnover by advertising its less popular beverage products. The Company has enough capital to invest in advertising the less popular products. If the less popular drinks could achieve the same sales levels with the popular products, then the company would have excellent performance. Although it could be costly, the firm could plan to buy its competition.Advertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This is an opportunity that is always available in the business world. By buying its competitors drinks, the Company could aim to gain competitive advantage and achieve excellent performance (Balmer, 2009). The marketing strategy could also take note of the threats that face the Coca-Cola Company. One of the threats that could have negative impacts on the Coca-Cola Company is health-consciousness among consumers. People across the world are attempting to change their eating and drinking habits in the light of the increasing number of disease conditions associated with various types of food and drinks. Competition is a major threat that could decrease the sales of the Coca-Cola Company. PepsiCo, Inc. is the major competitor of the Coca-Cola Company, and it sells Pepsi drink that is almost similar to the Coke product. Therefore, the Coca-Cola Company needs to view PepsiCo, Inc. as a major threat in the commercial beverage industry. The markets to investigate The Coca-Cola Company shou ld try to investigate emerging markets because they present excellent opportunities for recording impressive sales (Jain et al., 2012). Emerging markets are characterised by rapid growth and industrial activities. Another feature of an emerging market is a high human population that presents ready market for various good and services (Cavusgil, 1997; De Mooij, 2009). On the other hand, established markets have minimal growth rates. However, established markets would have more loyal customers to a product than customers in emerging markets. Emerging global markets are found in China and India. The other emerging markets are found in Sub-Sahara Africa, Russia and Brazil. In 2013, the Coca-Cola Company recorded an impressive jump of 2% in sales, a performance that was mainly attributed to starling performance in the new markets of Sub-Sahara Africa, China, Russia and Brazil. In the second quarter of 2013, sales stagnated in the established markets of North America. The impressive resul ts from the new markets imply that the markets present great potential for growth of the Company. The marketing strategy of the Coca-Cola Company should be redesigned to focus more on the global emerging markets. Some of the emerging markets like the Sub-Sahara Africa have poor infrastructure that is not conducive for viable business operations (Cavusgil, 1997). Thus, entering new markets requires huge capital that is required to start operations from the scratch. However, the Coca-Cola Company is characterised by sound financial strength that could be used to invest heavily in the emerging markets. For the Company to successfully venture into the new markets, it needs to conduct extensive research that would give crucial findings on business issues related to short-term and long-term gains. For example, a company might be the first firm to enter a new market, but other firms would also penetrate the market and present a major threat in the form of competition to the first company. If a company does not find long-term financial gains in a new market, then it should not venture into it because it would incur losses. On the other hand, a firm could enter a new market and strategically position itself. This would be achieved through sound marketing and advertising strategies that would increase brand awareness among consumers. A firm would also have low prices for its products so that most customers would afford. Particularly, emerging markets in Sub-Sahara Africa require low prices of products because the majority consumers are poor (Cavusgil, 1997). In addition, a firm would gain a competitive advantage in a new market by producing and marketing quality products. Consumers in both new and established markets always like the idea of purchasing quality products. The Coca-Cola Company should investigate and enter the global emerging markets by positioning its popular drinks in the markets. Furthermore, the new markets present wonderful opportunities for marketing the company’s less popular beverage drinks. The less popular drinks would be marketed using low-pricing strategies. The Coca-Cola Company has formed excellent franchising networks for the marketing of its beverage products. It would be important for the firm to continue to expand its distribution networks in new markets so that it would continue to grow. The Coca-Cola Company would use business tactics it has used in other emerging markets to gain competitive advantage in new markets in different geographical locations (Harvey, 1995). For example, the Coca-Cola Company would use similar approaches it used to enter the Brazil market in order to enter and grow in Sub-Sahara African markets. The use of the social media for advertising would also have positive impacts on the Company if it concentrates on advertising on platforms like the Facebook and Twitter (Mangold Faulds, 2009; Montgomery Chester, 2009). Environment Both internal and external environments have great impacts on the operations of the Coca-Cola Company and its customers. Firms could control internal environmental factors, but they could do little to change dynamics brought about by external business environmental factors (Walsh, 2005). To address the challenges caused by environmental factors, business organisations conduct an environmental analysis so that they could develop proper systems aimed to enable them to thrive in dynamic business environments (Walsh, 2005). The organisational leadership of the Coca-Cola Company is a vital internal business factor that has helped the firm to be a giant multinational business player. There are many aspects of company leadership that the Coca-Cola Company could use to redefine its marketing strategy. First, communication within a firm is important because it facilitates the speed at which policies and strategic decisions are communicated to all employees. Second, hiring of personnel is crucial because it ensures that the right people to drive the performance of a firm are recruited by the human resources department. Third, placing value on customers has been cited as one of the best approaches to motivating personnel within a firm. In fact, some companies opine that motivated workers could increase sales of a firm’s products rapidly. It has been shown that motivated employees generally produce better results than unmotivated workers. Workers could be motivated through several ways. For example, a firm could adopt excellent salaries for its workers without introducing any form of discrimination in the form of gender, race and other personal characteristics. Fourth, developing clear vision and mission statements of a company goes a long way in helping the firm to thrive in a competitive business environment. The Coca-Cola Company has clear and motivating business statements that the management uses to make effective decisions for the company (Barney, 1995; Kreuter Bernhardt, 2009). PEST analysis could be used to identi fy the political, economical, social and technological factors that have impacted the Coca-Cola Company. These are the external factors that could negatively or positively impact the operation of the Company. Political factors have had great impacts on the profits made by the multinational firm. For instance, the Company was affected by political unrest in some of its international markets. The ease at which a firm could enter emerging markets is based on the political aspects of the markets (Esty Winston, 2009). Changes in laws have impacted the Company in the recent past. For example, laws that increase taxes have made the company incur more costs on operations (Barney, 1995). The increase in the cost of operations has a negative impact on its profits. Economic factors have influenced the Company’s operations in several ways. For example, the economic recession of 2001 made the Company record decreased growth rates in many markets across the world. Global recession trends have negative impacts on most of the business organisations across the world. However, businesses can borrow capital during a recession to invest heavily in other products. The Coca-Cola Company could achieve this by adopting effective research systems. In addition, the company could adopt lower-pricing of its drinks during a recession to ensure that sales do not decrease rapidly (Cavusgil, 1997). Social factors have caused changes in the lifestyle that have negatively impacted the Company. Many persons are adopting healthier lifestyles, and this has led to a decrease in the sales of the non-alcoholic drinks manufactured by the Company (Johnson Peppas, 2003). There is also a social concern that older people are adopting strict lifestyles that are not characterised by consumption of carbonated drinks. In the long run, the lifestyle changes would have many negative impacts on the Company that will culminate in decreased sales. Technological factors play important roles in the operati ons of many organisations in the modern world. The Coca-Cola Company has adopted new technologies in advertising and marketing its products. The company has also purchased new machines in its production units that are characterised by new technologies. This has led to an increase in the volume of drinks that the firm produces in a day. The new technologies have also enabled the firm to adopt cans and plastic bottles that are easier to carry (Besanko, Dranove, Shanley Schaefer, 2009). Conclusion In the light of increased global competition from its competitors, the Coca-Cola Company has strategically positioned itself to maintain and increase its market share. Strategic marketing approaches used by the Coca-Cola Company are aimed to increase consumer awareness and preference for the Company’s non-alcoholic beverages. The Company has the following organisational capabilities: consumer marketing, commercial leadership, and franchise leadership. The Coca-Cola Company should try to investigate emerging markets because they present excellent opportunities for recording impressive sales. The three major competitors of the Coca-Cola Company are PepsiCo, Inc., Nestle S.A. and Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Inc. The Company performs uniquely in the business world and gains competitive advantage by analysing competition within markets. The organisational leadership of the Coca-Cola Company is a vital internal business factor that has helped the firm to be a giant multinational business player. External business factors that negatively or positively impact the Company are political, economical, social and technological factors. References Balmer, J. M. (2009). Corporate marketing: apocalypse, advent and epiphany.  Management Decision, 47(4), 544-572. Barney, J. B. (1995). Looking inside for competitive advantage. The Academy of  Management Executive, 9(4), 49-61. Besanko, D., Dranove, D., Shanley, M., Schaefer, S. (2009). Economics of strategy. Hoboken, NJ: John Wi ley Sons. Cavusgil, S. T. (1997). Measuring the potential of emerging markets: An indexing approach. Business Horizons, 40(1), 87-91. De Mooij, M. (2009). Global marketing and advertising: Understanding cultural  paradoxes. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Esty, D., Winston, A. (2009). Green to gold: How smart companies use environmental  strategy to innovate, create value, and build competitive advantage. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley Sons. Harvey, C. R. (1995). Predictable risk and returns in emerging markets. Review of  Financial studies, 8(3), 773-816. Jain, S.C., Haley, G. T., Voola R., Wickham, M. (2012). Marketing: Planning Strategy  (Asia Pacific Ed.). Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning. Johnson, V., Peppas, S. C. (2003). Crisis management in Belgium: the case of Coca-Cola. Corporate Communications: an international journal, 8(1), 18-22. Kreuter, M. W., Bernhardt, J. M. (2009). Reframing the dissemination challenge: a marketing and distribution perspective. American Journal of P ublic Health,  99(12), 2123-2127. Mangold, W. G., Faulds, D. J. (2009). Social media: The new hybrid element of the promotion mix. Business horizons, 52(4), 357-365. Montgomery, K. C., Chester, J. (2009). Interactive food and beverage marketing: targeting adolescents in the digital age. Journal of Adolescent Health, 45(3), 18-29. Silverman, S. N., Sprott, D. E., Pascal, V. J. (1999). Relating consumer-based sources of brand equity to market outcomes. Advances in Consumer Research,  26(1), 352-358. Walsh, P. R. (2005). Dealing with the uncertainties of environmental change by adding scenario planning to the strategy reformulation equation. Management Decision,  43(1), 113-122. Werther Jr, W. B., Chandler, D. (2005). Strategic corporate social responsibility as global brand insurance. Business Horizons, 48(4), 317-324. The Coca Delineate the Ethical Issues and Dilemmas the Company Faced Each company is required to adhere to some laid down ethics when engaging in business. Without ethical regulations, business would be carried out in very unclear circumstances. Companies that have the ability would aim at maximization of their profits without taking into consideration effects of their activities on other stakeholders.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Coca-Cola Company Struggles with Ethical Crisis specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More On the same note, environmental protection and affairs of the common person will be given minimal priority if any. The laid down ethical standards are therefore designed to ensure that issues of other stakeholders are protected. Coca-Cola’s activities have been found to violate the ethical requirements in various instances. To begin with, Coca-Cola has been associated with the production of contaminated pr oducts in various countries. The first case was reported in1999 in Belgium where the product caused illness in several children. Cases of contaminated products were also reported in France and Poland. These cases were occurring when Coca-Cola was insisting that its production system was perfect and every product was of high quality. On the same note, Coca-Cola was reported to have anti-competitive prices in some European countries. It is important to note that Europe has very tough antitrust laws which Coca-Cola was breaching. In Italy, Coca-Cola was accused by PepsiCo and Virgin Cola for using rebate and discounts in the strategies to increase its sales. On the other hand, its planned acquisition of Cadbury Schweppes had to be stopped because it was against the antitrust laws of France. Additionally, Coca-Cola has been blamed of having discriminatory practices against minority employees. Minority groups complained that promotions, payment and performance evaluation was tailored aga inst them. Management had knowledge of these practices since 1995 but had chosen to remain quiet while the vice continued. In Columbia, it has been said that Coca-Cola mistreats its employees especially those that belong to labor unions. The death of some employees and death threats to others, which has made them go into hiding, has been cited to support these claims. It is ethically required that any business organization should give its true and fair financial position to the public. However, Coca-Cola compelled bottlers to buy more stock than they required thus inflating their sales and reporting higher profits than the company actually made.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This misrepresentation can misguide investors to invest in the company on the hopes that the company is stable in the long run. Though respect of contracts with various stakeholders is vital, Coca-Cola has never completely upheld this. The Company has been taken to court for breaching its contracts with its distributors. Additionally, Coca-Cola does not reveal all the information concerning the health effects of its products. It has been noted that though Coca-Cola sales its products as being healthy, they have some health side effects that are critical. Moreover, Coca-Cola Company accepted having a problem with its waste water in India where it was releasing contaminated water. On the same note, the company was also accused of using contaminated water in its plants. Determine which of the issues was the most significant and explain the reasons Arguably, the worst ethical scenario that Coca-Cola was involved in is that of selling contaminated products. The contaminated products caused illness to children in Belgium. On the same note, France also reported cases of people who became sick after consuming contaminated coke. Contaminated products can lead to loss of lives or other severe health conditions and the legal repercussions in such instances are quite serious. It should be noted that this could lead to permanent closure of the company. Similarly, contaminated products raise questions about the production process of a firm. Furthermore, if contaminated products get out of a firm it means that quality control measures of the firm are questionable (Shaw, 2010). Similarly, presence of contaminated coke products in the market could be interpreted to mean that health standards are not given priority in the company. This can adversely affect demand of the company’s commodities thus reducing its sales. The recalling of the products is also costly as the company has to incur all the expenses related to the activity. Discriminatory activities are also very serious to be practiced by any company. In many nations, discrimination of any form has been prohibited by law and there are penalties if the same is breached. Additionally, discrimination prac tices depict a company as being unwilling to uphold the principle of equality. As a result, potential employees will be unwilling to apply for job opportunities in the firm. This means that the firm will miss very many good talents that would be helpful in the future of the company. Similarly, there is a high tendency that current employees will leave the firm and move to firms where they will be treated fairly. Increased employee exit from a firm is costly because the firm will have to continuously train new people. Morale of employees is also affected by discriminatory practices and this reduces output of the company (O. Ferrell, Fraedrich L. Ferrell, 2012).Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Coca-Cola Company Struggles with Ethical Crisis specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Determine the Steps that Should have been Taken to Prevent the Issues Identified For the case of contaminated products, Coca-Cola should have put in place quality control measures to ensure that all the products leaving its plants meet the required quality standards. It should be made part of the organization policies that always all products should be tasted to ensure that they are of high quality before releasing them to the market. Each production step should be carried out carefully while maintaining the highest level of hygiene. On the same note, Coca-Cola should have ensured that all laws and regulations of any country in which it has activities, are followed to the latter to avoid being sued. This will minimize cases of the company going against laws when marketing or advertising its products (O. Ferrell, Fraedrich L. Ferrell, 2012). It would be prudent to have local legal advisors who will ensure that everything is according to the law. The company should have ensured that equality is upheld always. Payment should be based on the academic qualification of employees and their experience. Moreover, promotions shoul d be given on merit. Using a panel that is composed of people from different backgrounds would have been essential in ensuring that the color of a person would not be used to discriminate against him or her (Mackavey, 2006). On the same note, there should be laid down rules that should be followed when carrying out a performance evaluation and the same criteria should be applied across the board. Holding discussions with various stakeholders is very essential in avoiding conflicts before implementing any policy. Consequently, Coca-Cola should have ensured that consultations were always carried out and this would have eliminated the problem they had with the distributors concerning delivery of Powerade to Wal-Mart. Furthermore, there was no need in the first place of giving false financial information to the public knowing that eventually the truth will be known. Coca-Cola should have therefore adhered to the international financial reporting standards (Shaw, 2010). This would have e liminated the problem of misrepresentation which is against Securities and Exchange Commission requirements. Environmental sustainability should be among the priorities of any firm. Policies should be instituted to ensure that environmental pollution is eliminated. In this regard, Coca-Cola should have ensured that waste water treatment channel was complete before opening any plant for activities.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Moreover, it would have been vital to recycle water in areas where there is scarcity of water. Furthermore, engaging the local communities in issues that affect them will go a long way in ensuring that conflicts with the local people is avoided. Over and above, business code of ethics should be the guide of Coca-Cola in any business activity that they carry out (O. Ferrell, Fraedrich L. Ferrell, 2012). Analyze how Coca-Cola responded to the crisis and Determine it was the Best way or not Of course Coca-Cola did not just keep cool when the ethical dilemmas were unfolding; it took steps though some were not equal to the problem. In the case where Coca-Cola was accused to breach its contract with the bottlers, it settled the matter by reaching an agreement where guidelines were issued on where delivery to Wal-Mart could take place. Nonetheless, the action came rather too late when reputational damage had taken place. Coca-Cola should not have left the matter to go this far. Management should have held talks with the involved bottlers to settle the matter. The delay in taking necessary actions ended up exposing Coca-Cola as a bad company (Shaw, 2010). Ensuring that the relationship with all stakeholders is good all the time should be a priority of an interlinked company like Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola thought the issue of contaminated products in Belgium was minor and did not act immediately. This was a very wrong move. Human live is human live whether it is one person involved or the whole community. It makes no difference whether it is children involved or adults. Immediately the first case was reported, Coca-Cola should have moved into action to investigate the problem. This could have sent a signal to the public that the company is very concerned with the welfare of its customers thus ensuring that the customers remain loyal to the company. Management should have addressed the media as quick as possible to avoid spread of negative information during this period (Ma ckavey, 2006). It was not sufficient that Coca-Cola waited until its employees moved to court in order to address the discriminatory claims. This showed how unwilling the firm was to address the issue. Policies to counter discrimination should have been instituted from the very moment it was realized that discriminatory activities took place. Moreover, action should have been taken to the managers under whose watch discrimination had thrived. It does not help setting up a committee that will take forever before giving any feedback. Situations like this require rapid and immediate actions (O. Ferrell, Fraedrich L. Ferrell, 2012). In India where the problem of water has been the issue between Coca-Cola and the local community, the company should have found ways of negotiating with the locals. The firm just assured people that it had an alternative pipeline and made no efforts to ensure that the toxins are contained. Instead of contemplating to recycle water used in the plant, the opt ion of relocating could also have been explored. The company should have ensured that contaminated water does not leave its plant under any circumstances. References Ferrell, O. C., Fraedrich, J. Ferrell, L. (2012). Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making and Cases. Mason: Cengage Learning. Mackavey, M. G. (2006). Practicing Ethics in HR: Where’s the Action? Journal of American Academy of Business, 9(2), 244-249. Shaw, W. H. (2010). Business Ethics. Stanford: Cengage Learning. The Coca Abstract The Coca-Cola Company retains a business leadership position the world over and is one of the companies with a promising future. Its operations qualify for deeper study. The thesis statement for this study is that strategy behind the success of the Coca-Cola Company revolves around advertisement, a worldwide presence, and revenue maximization.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on The Coca-Cola Company specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The fact that the world consumes half a billion servings of company’s products daily justifies its expenditure on advertising, such as on the current advertising campaign dubbed open happiness. One of the definitive proofs of Coca-Cola being the world’s most valuable brands is its ability to withstand the smashing test. The gist of the test is the ability of consumers to identify the logo despite its smashing. Advertising is the key behind the brand excellence of Coca-Cola. Secondly, the Coca-Cola Company has had international operations for very many years now. The emergence of globalization is only a further advantage for the company’s international business and is not the basis. This knowledge of international business gives Coca-Cola competitive advantage. The third element of the business strategy the Coca-Cola Company is revenue maximization built on the understanding that financial soundness is the measure of a good and enduring business. The company attains this by using similar production and manufacturing processes in all its plants, using the same advertisements for all its marketing, and by using local production to reduce and eliminate the cost of transport and warehousing. The Coca-Cola Company The Coca-Cola Company is one of the greatest enterprises on earth. It is one of the oldest multinationals with operations spanning one and a quarter centuries (Zegler, 2007). The company retains a strong evolutionary character and is one of the companies with very attractive growth prospects. With the kind of achievements that the company boasts of, there is indeed a good reason to look at its operations in order to understand the reasons behind its success. While it is true that there have been difficult moments in the company’s history, it remains one of the most enduring companies of all times. This paper contends that there are three reasons why the Coca-Cola Company remains a market leader and one of the most valuable global brands. Specifically, the strategies used by the Coca-Cola Company to become successful includes advertisement, a worldwide presence, and revenue maximization. Advertisement is the most important aspect of the marketing strategy of the Coca-Cola Company. The Coca-Cola Company has an international market that spans almost all the countries of the world. As of 2009, the world, on average, consumed over a billion and a half servings of Coca-Cola products every day (Black, 200 9). It is therefore understandable why the company spends billions of dollars in advertising.Advertising Looking for research paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The latest advertising campaign by Coca-Cola is the open happiness campaign. The thinking behind a campaign is to identify an enduring theme that resonates with every Coca-Cola consumer. Each of these campaigns forms the basis of the advertisements produced. The genius in the Coca-Cola Company advertising strategy is the ability to reach an international audience using the same basic elements in advertisements in all its international markets. Coca-cola, according to Super Brands, is the world’s most valuable brand (Jeffrey, 2005). This means that it has achieved such success as a brand that it is impossible, or at least very difficult to tamper with it. It can survive the â€Å"smashing test† (Jeffrey, 2005, p. 278). The gist of it is that if someone took a Coca-Cola branded item such as a bottle and smashed it, people would still be able to recognize it as a Coca-Cola product. Not so many brands can stand up to this test. The power of the Coca-Cola brand is not in the uniqueness of its logo or any superior graphic design elements. Rather it is in the enduring and patient work done by the company over many years to provide a product that consumers across many generations value and appreciate. The strong company in existence today is the result of the investment the company made over the years in its advertising campaigns coupled with a careful branding effort to develop a loyal customer base (Zegler, 2007). These efforts continue to propel the company’s growth despite the challenges that it faces at various times in its existence. Carefully planned advertising is one of the keys to strong corporate performance in the increasingly competitive world that characterizes the operations of the company. The second reason behind the success of Coca-Cola is its worldwide presence. Long before many companies begun to think about global business, Coca-Cola developed a global business (Zegler, 2007). The forces of globalization found the company well on its way towards a truly global business. Coca-Cola pursued a consistent strategy by placing its products â€Å"in the right place and at the right time†, just when a consumer would need one of them (â€Å"Why Colca-Cola†, 2006, p. 19). Working with a global mindset when the world was still under the limitation of geographical boundaries provided the company with a lot of insight into how global markets operate. The company came to possess a wealth of knowledge that continues to give it competitive advantage when it comes to doing business in a global setup. Each market has its own peculiarities and hence the understanding of the local environments provides the company with a strong basis for making business decisio ns. The company’s worldwide presence, based of its long-term vision of providing a product that meets a human need, gives the company a strong place as an international player. As most companies expand to take advantage of emerging opportunities to operate globally, Coca-Cola is simply adapting its methods to take advantage of the new opportunities (Patrick, 2002). This will ensure that the company remains a leader in developing international business.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on The Coca-Cola Company specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More It already has unmatched infrastructure in about two hundred countries, so the advantages of globalization such as faster communication, real time order processing and faster analysis of market trends only boosts its traditional strengths (Black, 2009). These possibilities build on the already existing presence and are not the only basis for the company’s inte rnational business. In this sense, Coca-Cola is decades ahead of its competitors. The third core element in the success of the Coca-Cola Company is its commitment to revenue maximization. No matter how strong a company’s brand is, and no matter how good its business strategy is, if they do not translate to revenue, the business cannot survive (Black, 2009). The Coca-Cola Company clearly understands this precept. There are a number of things that Coca-Cola does to ensure that it keeps its operating costs down. The strategies include using standardized products, common adverts, and local production. All Coca-Cola products have the same ingredients regardless of point of manufacture (â€Å"Why Coca-Cola†, 2006). The company uses standardized production processes to take advantage of the efficiencies that such methods bring. It is possible to reduce the operating costs and maximize revenues by using standardized processes. It reduces the unknowns in the production process and reduces the need and cost of maintenance. Comparable manufacturing units produce the Coca-Cola products hence the technical personnel can work in any of the plants. This reduces the wage bill and makes the scheduling of maintenance convenient. The other method that the company uses to maximize its revenues is that it uses similar advertisements in all the countries to reach its customers (Jeffrey, 2005). What this does is that it eliminates the need to develop custom adverts for every market, which would consume substantial resources. Coca-cola has the knack for producing adverts that do not require any linguistic components to communicate. Language is a very strong barrier. By using concepts that do not depend on any language, the advertisements can meet the needs of the company in any part of the world. The overall result is a significant reduction in operating expenses that helps to maximize revenues. The third way through which Coca-Cola maximizes its revenue is by using loc al production within its markets to reduce the transport and warehousing costs that a central manufacturing system would entail. Coca-Cola has several bottling plants in all the markets that it serves.Advertising Looking for research paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The role of the regional offices is to ensure that the bottlers are operating profitably and that they maintain the quality standards set by the company. Local production reduces the interruptions in supply and makes it possible to develop unique products for local markets to hedge the other flagship products (â€Å"The Science†, 1998). The products developed locally normally have business advantages that do not exist if their development targets the international markets. Local production ensures that the company can take advantage of profitable opportunities to improve the overall standing of the company. More importantly, it reduces the high cost of transport and warehousing hence it serves to improve the bottom line of the company. In conclusion, the Coca-Cola Company stands as an example of a company with a fundamental understanding of its markets. It is also a good example of why every business ought to have strong fundamentals if it plans to operate for a long time to come. What the Coca-Cola Company has achieved over the years is testament to the fact that understanding customers is central to the long-term success of any business. The company’s use of advertising is legendary, and demonstrates the innovativeness inherent in the company. Apart from that, the company has made good use of its worldwide presence to create value for its shareholders. Globalization is only making operations more efficient for the company, because it already operated as a global corporation before the technological developments that increased the rate of globalization came up. Thirdly, the company has strived to pursue revenue maximization by adopting business practices that make it possible for it to save on inputs, and to reduce on operating costs. This unique mix of strategies, developed over time, is the source of the company’s enviable standing in the business world. The future of the Coca-Cola Company seems secure as long as it remains committed to the values that have contributed to its current success. Reference List Why Coca-Cola has lost its fuzz. (2006). Strategic Direction , 22 (1): 19. Black, K. (2009). Business statistics: Contemporary Decision Making. John Wiley and Sons: New York, NY. The science of alliance. (1998). The Economist . Retrieved from https://www.economist.com/business/1998/04/02/the-science-of-alliance Jeffrey, P. (2005). Brand sense: How to build powerful brands through touch, taste, sight and sound. The Journal of Product and Brand Management , 14 (4/5): 278. Patrick, S. (2002). Cashing in on the world cup. Far Eastern Economic Review , 165 (22): 42. Zegler, J. (2007, July). Coca-Cola, 125 years young. Brand Packaging: 30-32. The Coca The Brand Coca Cola is a brand name that is known and recognized across the world. The Company was founded in 1886 and it has carried the brand name all along. A brand is the image and the recognition the organization has because of the products or the services it offers. It is what the customers identify with the company (Champniss and Vila 67). The brand creates identity of the organization with the customers.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Coca-Cola Brand specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The brand distinctiveness is always a combination of a name, symbol, logo, slogan, color or a signature. The name is the most important of all the components of a brand because its use in language will give a reference. All the other components in a brand can change over time, but the name will hardly change. For instance, the Coca cola company has maintained its name ever since but the color and the writings of its logo has been changing over time. The writing on the Coca Cola bottle has changed severally over the years, but the name and the colors have remained the same. Pepsi Company too has its own logo which has been changing over the years but the name and the colors have remained the same (Beverland 87). Pepsi Cola Company Coca Cola Pepsi Created first in 1886 Created in 1890 Uses curly Spencerian script font to represent the youthful spirit Uses italic roman font for easier reading Red and white colors dominate was to keep it simple and to attract youth Blue and Red color dominate and white it was to symbolize American culture The contour bottle was to symbolize youthfulness A 3-dimensional object resembling the globe Registered as a trademark in 1887 Registered as trademark in 1903 Marketing and Marketing Mix Marketing is an all embracing business activities that attempt to achieve the organization’s goals by meeting the customer’s expectations by means of deliveri ng the right product or services at the right place at the right time in right quantities. It includes all the strategies employed in Business development, sales and communication that will eventually increase profits and create wealth for the stakeholders. Marketing mix is a deliberate plan by the organization to control all the products components that is the product itself, the price, the place where the product will be found and the promotion of the product in the market. These components are adjusted until the optimal level is achieved where it best serves the interest of the customer and at the same time generating revenues for the organization (Cadogan 54). Product overview The Company has employed the market mix in the sale of it products, the Coca Cola or just Coke is one of the products which have carried the company’s brand name. There are over 3, 500 brands sold by the company world wide and in the UK there are about 20 different brands.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The coca cola brand in the UK has three variants. The Coca Cola which was introduced more than hundred years ago, the diet coke which was introduced about 30 years ago and the Coca Cola zero which was introduced in the market in 2006. The three brands are the leading product line for the company in the UK (Bodden 38). Coca cola or just Coke is the most popular brand in the company that has generated more revenues and sales than any other. It has been found that coke is the most consumed liquid after water. This means the product is so popular and the demand is big. The design of the bottle known as the contour bottle is the famous one aimed at ensuring a firm grip in the hand when holding the bottle, Its design has remained the same ever since. The drink is packed in bottles that vary from 2 liters, 1. 25 liters, 600 ml, 300 ml; they are also packed in cans u sually 375mls. There are also packaging in plastic bottles of various sizes (Bodden 42). Pricing Pricing policy is among the primary goals of companies in the long run. For the Coca Cola Company to thrive in the market and be ahead of its competitors, the company has to pursue a pricing strategy which guarantees profitability and affordability to the end consumers. The company is the most popular and the biggest producer of soft drink and its products are among the cheapest. This is possible through the low cost production giving the consumers, retailers and distributors real value for money. Because of its efficient distribution chain the company is able to produce en mass therefore enjoying economies of scale and therefore keeping the prices of the products low and raking in profits at the same time (Doole and Lowe 120). Coke is still the best selling soft drink, although every product has different stages called the product life cycle which varies from the time it was introduced in to the market, it’s the growth over time and finally the maturity where some decline is experienced. The company has done great and in-depth analysis of the product life cycle and it has managed to maintain growth. This has been achieved by introducing new variants of the same product for instance; in 1984 the Diet Coke was introduced in the UK market, this saw a big success in terms of sales and has kept the coke brand a head of other brands. Besides, it introduced other variants such as the Lemon, Vanilla and Caffeine free coke.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Coca-Cola Brand specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Coca Cola Company has managed to introduce new variants of the already existing products especially when the product has reached it maturity stage, thereby invigorating once again the life of the product and making competition even more intense in the market (Kotler and Lee 145). The Place and th e Distribution Channels The right place where the product is found is a very important aspect as far as coke is concerned. The company has enormous distribution channels that ensure the product reaches every corner of the country, and this is not only in the UK, but across the globe. The distribution system is so efficient and effective; it ensures supplies are in big superstores like Tesco or Sainsbury, small supermarkets, corner shops, petrol stations, restaurants, cafes, cinemas, clubs and bars. Virtually every shop stocks coke for sale in its shelves. The company’s motto has been to find the product within an ‘arms reach of desire’, and it has really lived up to its saying. This is a strategy to ensure the product is accessed to by all the potential consumers, and the market to remains saturated with the product all the time (Grant 180). The company uses the appointed distributors in the different sales regions to distribute their products to different outlet s; there are salesmen who work closely with the distributors to ensure the supplies in the territory are at optimal levels. These salesmen gather data on the availability of the products and any other complaints from the customers and retailers; the same is used to improve the services in future (Doole and Lowe 201). Promotion Promotion has been the major secret of coke’s success; it is through the promotion that the consumers become aware of the product. This is the link between the consumer and the product, when the link is met the outcome is always a big success. Coca cola has managed its promotions very well. The way the product is promoted and advertised will determine the success of the product in the market (Brassington and Pettitt 456)Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Advertisement The company so far has come up with most outstanding adverts, for example the special Christmas adverts featuring Santa Claus and the polar bear, the advert changed the perception people had for Santa Claus. It is such adverts and promotions that have made coke to stand out from the rest. It is believed that Coca cola trade mark has almost 94 percent recognition all over the world and the word coke comes second as the most used words after the word Ok. To reach that level of popularity needs a lot of innovative ways of massive and consistent advertisements, and this is seen in the various advertisements made almost everywhere, in the newspapers, the magazines, radio, internet, billboards and Television (Grant 206). Internet selling Coca Cola Company uses its web page to promote some of its key marketing concepts. One of which is the demographic data gathering where the company will use to find which groups of consumers are using its products. These consumer groups can be divided and subdivided over sex, age, interest, country residence and ethnicity. The data can be analyzed to give an insight of trends and which groups consume what brands. This will give a direction of where to concentrate more efforts in future. This will also provide information on how to update their websites depending on the feedback information got from the customers visiting the site (Doodle and Lowe 403). The company also uses its website on marketing by use of customer relationship Management (CRM) that is building and maintaining a lasting relationship with the customers by way of providing good customer service and keeping customers satisfied. This will keep the customer base growing and will boost profits in future. From the website the company provides email links and telephone numbers where customers can contact the company with questions or any other complaints. There is also the frequently asked questions section where customers can find frequently raised issues c oncerning customer service. Another internet selling concept is the demand management by allowing the users to customize the site after they have registered. In customizing the user will set which icons and links are visible, this process allows the company to market the products to certain group of people and consequently increasing demand on the target markets (Beverland 203) Sales Promotions There are different types of sales promotions the company has engaged in the UK, in the past the company has sponsored English football league, where the division one league was re branded as English Coca Cola Championship. The aim is to target the young generation and all the football funs. ‘A win a player’ was a very effective sales promotion of the company with a huge success, where and individual could participate by sending a text on a mobile phone or participating online. An individual could win â‚ ¤0.25 million for his club of choice and a personal cash win of â‚ ¤ 1 0,000. To implement the promotion, massive TV advertisements, press and online advertising, in store POS materials, paintings were used extensively (Brassington and Pettitt 503). Personal selling Promotions The company has engaged in personal selling promotions in the past, for instance, in the months of May and June 2009, the coca cola company in UK started a mobile coupon campaign in partnership with i-movo Company where numerous products of the Coca Cola company were distributed to consumers using the digital voucher on the mobile phone. Some selected PayPoint outlets were given Point of sale (POS) material and other posters which showed the simple steps required of any customer to get a free drink. The instructions were simple; the customer had to send a text massage ‘YES’ from their mobile phone including their date of birth. The customer gets a valid voucher code number instantly which is validated at the PayPoint terminal. The company was able to monitor the prog ress of the campaign from one store to the other and the type of brands consumed in real time. The retailers of the products were reimbursed within a week through the PayPoint. By the end of the promotional campaign which took about eight weeks, approximately 200,000 drinks were given away to about 100,000 customers all over the UK, this was recognized as the most effective and popular mobile phone campaign by the company in the UK. This system allows the company to run a promotional campaign of some products in selected stores which facilitates sampling of various retail outlets without any costs of additional staff (Doole and Lowe 426). Public Relation Exercise The Coca Cola’s PR activity has been witnessed in several countries around the world, when the company is sponsoring of a major event like the FIFA world cup in 2010, they would like to get the pre-event time as part of the contractual package. This gives the company to showcase their logo and their brand name and in addition the opportunity to create a unique experience towards the excitement preceding the main event (Champniss and Vila 304). The company’s PR in the forthcoming London Olympics in 2012 has already started in earnest, and the company has a long history with Olympic Torch relay. Before the start of the Olympic Games the torch will pass through several cities in the UK and the company as one of the main sponsors of the event will have an opportune moment to present different PR strategies (Grant 312). Conclusion The company has employed the strategy of market mix in its history of business with the greatest ingenuity which has made it the world leader in soft drink market. The types of promotions have made a permanent impression on the minds of customers and have translated into sales increase. The company spends a lot of money on advertisements and research to come up with new and innovative products that appeal to customers (Kotler and Lee 201). Beverland, Michael. Build ing Brand Authenticity: 7 Habits of Iconic Brands.  London: Palgrave Macmillan, 2009. Print. Bodden, Valerie. The Story of Coca-Cola. New York, NY: The Creative Company, 2008. Print. Brassington, Frances and Stephen Pettitt. Principles of Marketing. 4th ed. New York, NY: Prentice Hall, 2006. Print. Cadogan, John. Marketing Strategy: Marketing-mix Strategies. London: Sage Publishing. 2009. Print. Champniss, Guy and Fernando Vila. Brand Valued: How Socially Valued  Brands Hold the Key to a Sustainable. New York, NY: John Wiley and Sons, 2011. Print. Doole, Isobel and Robin Lowe. International Marketing Strategy: Analysis,  Development and Implementation. 5th ed. Washington, D. C.: Cengage Learning EMEA, 2008. Print. Grant, John. Brand Innovation Manifesto: How to Build Brands, Redefine  Markets and Defy Conventions. New York, NY: John Wiley and Sons, 2011. Print. Kotler, Philip and Nancy Lee, Marketing in the Public Sector: a Roadmap for  Improved Performance. New York, NY: Wharton School Publishing, 2007. Print.