Coca-Cola is set to go back to the old marketing 101 with “it does what it says on the can” with the launch of new Coke No Sugar. as it attempts to turnaround its flagging soft drink sales.
The beverage manufacturer already has two no-sugar varieties on the market – Diet and Zero, but apparently research has found only 50 per cent of consumers were aware of the fact.
So to make things abundantly clear, it’s getting rid of confusing names like Zero and just telling it like it is.
News of the launch, due on Aussie shelves, next week follows on from Coke Life disappearing off supermarket shelves in April after it proved an utter flop.
Coke Life, made with the natural sweetener stevia, clearly didn’t resonate with health conscious soft drink consumers despite its multi-million marketing campaign.
However, new Coke No Sugar looks set to claim the scalp of Coke Zero, which will reportedly be phased out.
The biggest problem Coke has had with its healthier, sugar-free alternatives is that it’s never been able to replicate the taste of the original, turning many drinkers off.
Normal, full-sugared up Coke in the red tin still accounts for almost three-quarters of all Coke sales in Australia.
“We think it’s the closest we have ever come to the classic taste of Coca-Cola,” Roberto Mercadé, the President of Coca-Cola in Australia said of new No Sugar.
To get people excited about its new offering, the company plans to hand out two million cans of the stuff, including at major sporting events and via downloadable vouchers through music app Shazam.
The launch of No Sugar Coke comes as sugar is portrayed as the new dietary villain and consumers turn off it en masse. The price of sugar has plummeted in recent times due to a lack of demand, while companies whose products are associated with it have been hammered on the stock market of late.
