Coca-Cola Co.—which has put most of its marketing on pause across the globe—will only gradually bring back spending as countries begin emerging from coronavirus lockdowns.
The drinks giant today released two new ads that will initially target markets in Asia Pacific, Latin America and Spain. But the paid media support behind the ads will be minimal at first, avoiding the big TV buys that Coke is known for in normal times. “It’s going to be mostly owned media, digital, for the most part, across the board,” Coca-Cola global Chief Marketing Officer Manuel Arroyo said in an interview, referring to Coke’s social channels.
The approach comes as Coke battles sales headwinds caused by the pandemic. Volume plummeted 25 percent since the beginning of April, the company reported last week, driven by steep declines in away-from-home channels, such as stadiums and other venues that have gone dark.
The new ads are remakes of old Coke spots, redone for the coronavirus era. One spot, called “Reasons to Believe in the Human Race,” will hit Asia Pacific starting today and comes from Dentsu-owned shop Merdeka LHS. It contrasts negative thoughts with positive ones. “For every act of selfishness, there are thousands of selfless ones,” the ad declares, contrasting a scene of a woman buying up all the toilet paper in the store with another shot of a woman receiving medical treatment. It is an updated version of a spot from 2011 that contrasted tanks with teddy bears, along with other juxtapositions.