When It Comes To Social Media, Pepsi Gets It

Some big brands pay lip service to the marketing power of social media, but Pepsi is a leading brand that really understands how to make it work.

At the recent TechCrunch Disrupt conference, Frank Cooper, Pepsi’s Chief Consumer Engagement Officer (don’t you just love that title?), spoke about Pepsi’s social media initiatives and made a bold statement about the brand: “We want to become a catalyst in the culture rather than act like a big brand announcing something.” Cooper admitted that his pronouncement “goes against all the systems put in place that were designed for mass marketing.”

Cooper expands on Pepsi’s philosophy in an article he wrote for the Huffington Post:

“At PepsiCo, we found that our consumers’ social relationships serve as the foundation for our most effective marketing. Once you engage your loyal consumers to help lead the evolution of your brand or products, those consumers communicate authentically within their real-life social networks about the meaning of your brands and the reasons others should love them too. The collaboration and innovation led by consumers will lead to word-of-mouth communications, which can influence revenue and profit.”

Pepsi doesn’t just talk the talk, they walk the walk. Cooper cites two campaigns that demonstrate first-hand the power of consumer engagement, Mountain Dew DEWmocracy and the Pepsi Refresh Project.

The Mountain Dew DEWmocracy campaign “started with a simple question,” says Cooper: “What if we gave the power to our consumers to lead product innovation?” That’s just what Pepsi did. The company created an interactive video game that encouraged consumers to develop new Mountain Dew products. The result of the campaign was the creation of a real product, Mountain Dew Voltage. According to Cooper, it was “one of the most successful product launches in PepsiCo beverage history.”

On the opposite end of the spectrum, the Pepsi Refresh Project didn’t focus on products at all; instead, “we looked to add value to a community or a real-life social network,” says Cooper. “We knew that our consumers wanted to play a central role in developing and promoting ideas that they believed would move the world forward.”

For the Pepsi Refresh Project, PepsiCo allocated over $20 million to fund ideas created by ordinary consumers that could “make a positive impact on their communities.” Cooper says the campaign has generated over three million unique visitors and 16 million votes on the Pepsi Refresh Project website. He says “the Pepsi Refresh Project has expanded our consumers’ perception of what the Pepsi brand can be: Pepsi remains a fun brand that leads culture. However, it also has social responsibility – a sense of purpose – built into its behavior.”

This is pretty forward-thinking stuff for a soft drink brand. PepsiCo could be spending megabucks on traditional advertising, as it has done in the past, but instead the company is now making a concerted effort to turn its attention to the impact it can have on consumers via social media. They are very serious about consumer engagement, and ultimately, consumer empowerment.

PepsiCo is itself engaged in a shrewd strategy that will have great appeal to a connected generation; in fact, the company is making a connection with youth that is likely to last far beyond one or two campaigns. Give credit to Pepsi for breaking the mold and realizing the potential of social media in promoting its brand. They really get it.