New Coke @ "Stranger Things"

I don’t find this strange at all…

You may not be old enough to remember one of the biggest marketing mishaps ever…New Coke. It was an instant disaster, with fans rejecting the new formula quicker than a social media minute, back when there was no social media. The year was 1985, I was graduating from Cornell with a degree in marketing, and I was personally fascinated.

I’m just as fascinated now, quite a few years later, to see New Coke come back via the hit show Stranger Things. The show also takes place in 1985 and of course it’s going to feature New Coke. And now you can buy it online as a special Stranger Things pack. For just a limited time, likely to coincide with the fever surrounding the show’s own phenomenon.

Coca-Cola was a big topic of discussion last night in my class at NYU. We’ve started the summer semester and every week the students have to discuss a current marketing topic. Coca-Cola came up over and over again.

We talked about the recycling billboard found in Europe…

…the brand’s new coffee beverage…

…and the Coca Cola energy drink…

Lots of exciting product development going on with this brand. We talked about whether it makes sense for Coca-Cola to forge its way into these beverage territories and the sentiment was mixed. To me, as a beverage leader then it makes perfect sense for Coca-Cola. As long as it’s all “new” :).

It also makes perfect sense for the brand to be promoting recycling!

What’s your experience?