scott@hou2g.UUCP (N. Ersha) (07/11/85)
OK folks, now that ALL of you have assumed you were the ONLY ones who heard the old Coke is coming back, and just HAD to tell the WHOLE WORLD (who undoubtedly knew already anyway), you can stop patting yourselves on the back. WE ALREADY KNOW! WE ALREADY KNOW! WE ALREADY KNOW! WE ALREADY KNOW! So shut up already. And for those of you who think "consumer pressure" did the trick, wait until you find out how they'll PRICE the stuff before you congratulate each other. Someone earlier theorized that the only reason Coke did this was so they could "miraculously" bring back the "good ol' stuff" due to "popular demand" and charge an arm and a leg for it. Maybe I'm cynical (Hell! I KNOW I'm cynical), but that's what this looks like it to me. The new coke will be around forever, as well (just watch) because it's cheaper. If they got rid of it and charged, say, 20% more for the "classic" stuff, they might STILL lose customers to Pepsi.. SJB
lwb@watdcsu.UUCP (L.W. Borsato [DCS]) (07/12/85)
> And for those of you who think "consumer pressure" did the > trick, wait until you find out how they'll PRICE the stuff > before you congratulate each other. Someone earlier theorized > that the only reason Coke did this was so they could "miraculously" > bring back the "good ol' stuff" due to "popular demand" and > charge an arm and a leg for it. Maybe I'm cynical (Hell! I KNOW > I'm cynical), but that's what this looks like it to me. I too have the feeling that this was just a tremendously successful Coke marketing strategy ... did you see how Coke stock shot up ... highest in 12 years I believe. I don't believe in "popular demand" where marketing is concerned. -- A memo from the desk of : Larry W. Borsato Just one step away from total mental collapse ... but fine otherwise. {decvax|utzoo|ihnp4|allegra|clyde}!watmath!watdcsu!lborsato
treese@mit-athena.UUCP (Win Treese) (07/14/85)
One point I think is being missed is that having yet another version of Coke to go into machines and dispensers can create an enormous problem for bottlers. Most dispensers have four or six spigots, and the sellers already have to decide which drinks to use (especially in areas where the Coke bottler also bottles things like 7-UP or Dr. Pepper). Having both "classic Coke" and "New Coke" means that you can't have as many alternatives. It would be silly to try to sell both of them at the same time. Already on Coke machines at MIT I've seen notes saying: "Please put in Classic Coke quickly. No New Coke please." As for me, my roommate and I bought 16 cases of the old stuff before it all disappeared. It looks like we weathered the storm. Win Treese MIT Project Athena ARPA: treese@athena.MIT.EDU UUCP: ...!decvax!mit-athena!treese "Another fine product of the Sirius Cybernetics Corporation."
jfk@rayssd.UUCP () (07/19/85)
I couldn't agree with you MORE!!! I had heard that this was INDEED the case and that the coca-cola company now stands to gain a FORTUNE!! You have to admit though, this was a VERY clever stunt on their part. Cheers. Jack Kenton
andrew@orca.UUCP (Andrew Klossner) (07/19/85)
[This is a followup to article 42400005@gypsy.UUCP in net.consumers.] > The reason that I am led to believe this is all part of a major marketing > strategy is simple. First, reading the net for the past few months, I have > heard NOBODY favor the new Coke over the old Coke. There were a few people > who said they liked it in the beginning, but they sure disappeared fast. By > far, opinions have shown that the new Coke just doesn't cut it. You assume that everyone with an opinion is contributing to the net. Not so. Those of us who like the new better than the old haven't been motivated to keep karping about the change. And there are a *lot* of us: we're the old Pepsi drinkers, who think new Coke tastes much like Pepsi. When I have a choice now, I just choose randomly; the two are now equivalent to my taste buds. > Keeping > this fact in mind, consider the following. When a company as big as > Coca-Cola decides to put a new product on the market, regardless of what it > is, they have to spend millions of dollars to correctly test and market it. > Don't you think that Coke tested this product to see if people would like > it? Surely if they did test it and people would say they didn't like it just > like the majority of people are saying now. Why would they go ahead and put > a product on the market that was not going to be approved by the general > public? > > The only possibility is that they were in such a hurry they did not take the > time to test market it which would imply a big mistake (and the new Coke > obviously was a big mistake). Coke spent two years testing the new formula as part of testing formulas for the new Diet Coke product. They found (as did Pepsi in well-publicized tests) that people off the street prefer a blander, sweeter formula to old Coke. (We Pepsi drinkers compare old Coke to battery acid.) A previous article remarked on the fact that Coke, like oysters and cavier, is an acquired taste, which would account for this sort of test result. > Anyway, now Coke has you just where they want > you - dying for their product and when they bring it back you will buy it by > the barrel! Look at all the free publicity they got. They changed their > product for a few months and few don't stop talking about for the next few > years! Coke has done the right thing, which is to adopt a strategy to maximize revenues to their stockholders. They have brought a middle-of-the-road product to market and are attracting casual cola drinkers, like the guy standing in front of two vending machines or in a fast food joint. They have returned old Coke to the market, so as to keep the die-hard Coke aficionadoes, but it's not the flagship product so old Coke drinkers have to work a little harder to find their poison than do we casual drinkers. And they have done all this in such a way as to achieve major publicity. Nothing they did was illegal, or even immoral. It's a major coup, one that I'll bet becomes a textbook example in business schools. -=- Andrew Klossner (decvax!tektronix!orca!andrew) [UUCP] (orca!andrew.tektronix@csnet-relay) [ARPA]
peter@kitty.UUCP (Peter DaSilva) (07/26/85)
> motivated to keep karping about the change. And there are a *lot* of > us: we're the old Pepsi drinkers, who think new Coke tastes much like > Pepsi. When I have a choice now, I just choose randomly; the two are > now equivalent to my taste buds. I'm not an old Pepsi drinker. I'm an old Coke drinker. I failed the Pepsi Challenge (I couldn't tell the difference), but I marginally prefer the New coke to the Old, when I'm in need of a quick caffeine fix & I don't have time to make Sun Tea.