The following is reprinted from Uncle John's Ahh-Inspiring Bathroom Reader
Lots of companies have ad campaigns that flop, but Pepsi seems to have more than its share. Here are a few classic bombs.
Keep On Truckin'
For its "Pepsi 400" contest in the summer of 2001, Pepsi offered to send the holders of five winning tickets on an all-expenses-paid trip to Florida's Daytona 400 auto race. One of the five would get to drive home in the grand prize, a brand-new Dodge truck; the other four would each get $375 worth of free gas.
There was just one problem: contest organizers accidentally printed 55 winning tickets instead of five. Rather than risk alienating the winners - not to mention millions of Pepsi drinkers - Pepsi sent all 55 winners to Daytona, gave away five trucks instead of one, and spent $20,625 on free gas instead of $1,825. Estimated cost of error: about $400,000.
Over-Stuffed
Pepsi Stuff catalog page featuring Cindy Crawford. Image: PepsiCo, Inc. (1996) from Wikipedia
In April 1996, Pepsi canceled its "Pepsi Stuff" merchandise giveaway campaign months ahead of schedule. Reason: Too many winners. The company underestimated how many people would redeem the points by 50%, forcing it to spend $60 million more than expected on free merchandise. "We're outpacing our goals on awareness," a company spokesperson explained.
Jet Lag
Another disaster from the "Pepsi Stuff" campaign: 21-year-old John Leonard tried to redeem seven million award points for the Harrier fighter jet he saw offered in a Pepsi Stuff TV ad. The rules stipulated that contestants could buy points for 10¢ apiece, so that's what he did. Leonard (who studied flawed promotions in business school) raised $700,000 to buy the required points and then sent the money to Pepsi, along with a letter demanding they hand over the $50 million jet.
When Pepsi refused, claiming the offer was made "in jest," Leonard filed suit in federal court. Three years later, a judge ruled that "no objective person could reasonably have concluded that the commercial actually offered consumers a Harrier jet." Pepsi lucked out ... case dismissed.
The King of (Soda) Pop
YouTube Clip of a Pepsi Ad featuring Michael Jackson from the 1980s
Even Pepsi's biggest successes can become colossal flops. In 1983 they signed the largest individual sponsorship deal in history with pop singer Michael Jackson. It was a multi-year deal and Pepsi made millions from it ... only to find itself linked to one of the most lurid scandals of the 1990s when Jackson abruptly cancelled his Pepsi-sponsored "Dangerous" tour in 1993.
Jackson's reasons for quitting: (1) stress generated by allegations that he had sexually molested a young boy, and (2) addiction to painkillers he took "to control pain from burns suffered while filming a Pepsi ad."
The Name Game
In 1983 another Pepsi contest ran into budget trouble when the company offered $5 per letter to any customer who could spell their own last name using letters printed on Pepsi bottle caps and flip tops. Pepsi hoped to control the number of cash prizes by releasing only a limited number of vowels ... but it failed to take into account people like Richard "no vowels" Vlk, who turned in 1,393 three-letter sets and pocketed $20,894 for his effort.
Vlk, a diabetic who does not drink Pepsi, collected the letters by taking out classified ads offering to split the winnings with anyone who sent him a matching set. "I don't even remember making one whole set myself," he says. "I didn't buy any Pepsi." (The company got even by mailing him his winnings in $15 increments, one check for each winning set.)
They Can See Clearly Now
In 1992 Pepsi introduced Crystal Pepsi, an attempt to cash in on the booming popularity of see-through soft drinks like Clearly Canadian. Sales were less than half of what Pepsi projected, even after the company reformulated the product.
Marketing experts point to two critical flaws that they say doomed Crystal Pepsi from the start: (1) customers balked at paying extra for a product that, because it was clear, was perceived to have fewer ingredients than regular Pepsi, and (2) after more than a century of conditioning, consumers want colas to be dark brown in color. "Clear sodas are about as appetizing as brown water," an industry analyst explains.
The article above is reprinted with permission from Uncle John's Ahh-Inspiring Bathroom Reader.
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If i were Vlk, I would sue them for the missing $1. ;)
I can't stand Pepsi...too sweet for me. I do like me some Coca-Cola though. However, as of late I've been cutting off taking Pop drinks all around because of the sugar in them.
I fail to see how Pepsi got even with Vlk, they would have had to print nearly 1400 checks, pay their accounting to process 1400 different payments, and pay postage on 1400 letters instead of 1. Plus Vlk was going to split it with everyone that helped him so I imagine he just signed the checks over to them.
Oh and as for the guy trying to get the harrier jet, Pepsi should be glad it didn't happen today. He would have sued in CA or TX and won.
They don't have sugar in them. They have Corn syrup that gives it that bland after taste. Sugar has a sharp fresh taste that some refer to as a super "pop". I miss those days.
I am a first-year law student, and Leonard v. Pepsico is a case that everyone reads their first semester in Contracts class! We even got to watch all three versions of the commercial which inspired Mr. Leonard.
There's also the "Pepsi Number Fever" phenomenon in the Philippines way back in the late 80's. The contest goes that Pepsi would choose a three-digit number every day and anyone with the number can claim their cash prize (of up to PHP 1 million). One night Pepsi raffled the number "349." Unfortunately that was also the "test number" that wasn't supposed to be aired--but the audience wasn't informed of that. Hundreds of PHP1m million winners came in droves. The court case is still pending until today.
Do you want to be healthy? Drinking soda is bad for your health in so many ways; science can't even state all the consequences. Here's what happens in your body when you assault it with a Coke:
Within the first 10 minutes, 10 teaspoons of sugar hit your system. This is 100 percent of your recommended daily intake, and the only reason you don't vomit as a result of the overwhelming sweetness is because phosphoric acid cuts the flavor.
Within 20 minutes, your blood sugar spikes, and your liver responds to the resulting insulin burst by turning massive amounts of sugar into fat.
Within 40 minutes, caffeine absorption is complete; your pupils dilate, your blood pressure rises, and your livers dumps more sugar into your bloodstream.
Around 45 minutes, your body increases dopamine production, which stimulates the pleasure centers of your brain – a physically identical response to that of heroin, by the way.
After 60 minutes, you'll start to have a sugar crash.
Jimbo -- Coke produced in Mexico is still made with sugar. Sometimes you can find it in Latino stores, or if you're near Mexico, just hop across the border. I saw somewhere that you might also be able to find it at Costco.
It also looks like you might be able to find it during Passover: http://www.nypost.com/seven/03192007/news/regionalnews/kosher__coke_a_big_hit_regionalnews_rita_delfiner.htm
i stopped drinking soda a long time ago, but still find myself sneaking sips from my boyfriend's on occasion. i don't understand what it is with soda that makes it so difficult to NOT drink. i go to class and see about 1/3 of the students drinking soda and it almost disturbs me.
@ we are in some deep s#*^: agreed. the biggest reason that i don't drink soda is the main ingredient: HIGH FRUCTOSE corn syrup. yes, its the high fructose part that's the worst.
basically, they process this corn syrup to give it a greater sweetness content, and the process makes it thinner, so more sugar in less volume. they do this so save money because sugar is not that cheap. they profit BIG TIME by doing this.
also, our human bodies were not made to process concentrated sugars like this so it becomes a great shock to our systems, forcing them to work harder and innaccurately. when this happens, our blood sugar goes up. the more you drink, the worse-off your system is, and then can lead to diabetes. wonder why diabetes has become prevelant in youth these days? yes, it does have to do with obesity rates as well, but it's because high fructose corn syrup is used in EVERYTHING. just like hydrogenated oils, you will find high fructose (whatever syrup) in almost all commercially sold food products. organic food is the only kind that guarentees these ingredients will not be in it. read your labels, know what's in your food, and save your own life by knowing what foods your body can process. you will be in much better health if you do.
Another man's poison, is another man's cure. Cola does wonders to me. so much about it being bad. if you think its bad to you, dont drink it. but if you feel good drinking it, then go ahead.live and let live.if its your time to die, it is your time.
That Mercola.com quote... I'm ignoring the advice, given the source:
Joseph Mercola, D.O. (born 1954), is an osteopathic physician, health activist, and entrepreneur practicing in Hoffman Estates, Illinois.[1] He is the author of two New York Times bestsellers, The No-Grain Diet (with Alison Rose Levy), and The Great Bird Flu Hoax, together with several other books. Mercola is best known as founder and editor of the alternative-medicine website Mercola.com, where he advocates dietary and lifestyle approaches to health and markets a variety of health-related products. Mercola criticizes many of the practices of mainstream medicine and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), particularly vaccination and the use of prescription drugs and surgery to treat diseases.[2] He is a member of the politically conservative Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, as well as several alternative medicine-related organizations.[3] Mercola has received two warnings from the FDA for marketing nutritional products in a manner which violated the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.[4][5] A 2006 BusinessWeek editorial criticized Mercola's marketing practices as "relying on slick promotion, clever use of information, and scare tactics."[6]
Yea. An alt-med quack is going to tell me I'll SUGAR CRASH an hour after a single cola. Mhm.
Oh and as for the guy trying to get the harrier jet, Pepsi should be glad it didn't happen today. He would have sued in CA or TX and won.
Best thing they ever did.
Sick Of Corn Syrup
(Methinks Pepsi needs to hire some new statisticians.)
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/1/19/what-happens-to-your-body-within-an-hour-of-drinking-a-coke.aspx
Do you want to be healthy? Drinking soda is bad for your health in so many ways; science can't even state all the consequences. Here's what happens in your body when you assault it with a Coke:
Within the first 10 minutes, 10 teaspoons of sugar hit your system. This is 100 percent of your recommended daily intake, and the only reason you don't vomit as a result of the overwhelming sweetness is because phosphoric acid cuts the flavor.
Within 20 minutes, your blood sugar spikes, and your liver responds to the resulting insulin burst by turning massive amounts of sugar into fat.
Within 40 minutes, caffeine absorption is complete; your pupils dilate, your blood pressure rises, and your livers dumps more sugar into your bloodstream.
Around 45 minutes, your body increases dopamine production, which stimulates the pleasure centers of your brain – a physically identical response to that of heroin, by the way.
After 60 minutes, you'll start to have a sugar crash.
It also looks like you might be able to find it during Passover: http://www.nypost.com/seven/03192007/news/regionalnews/kosher__coke_a_big_hit_regionalnews_rita_delfiner.htm
@ we are in some deep s#*^:
agreed. the biggest reason that i don't drink soda is the main ingredient: HIGH FRUCTOSE corn syrup. yes, its the high fructose part that's the worst.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_fructose_corn_syrup
basically, they process this corn syrup to give it a greater sweetness content, and the process makes it thinner, so more sugar in less volume. they do this so save money because sugar is not that cheap. they profit BIG TIME by doing this.
also, our human bodies were not made to process concentrated sugars like this so it becomes a great shock to our systems, forcing them to work harder and innaccurately. when this happens, our blood sugar goes up. the more you drink, the worse-off your system is, and then can lead to diabetes. wonder why diabetes has become prevelant in youth these days? yes, it does have to do with obesity rates as well, but it's because high fructose corn syrup is used in EVERYTHING. just like hydrogenated oils, you will find high fructose (whatever syrup) in almost all commercially sold food products. organic food is the only kind that guarentees these ingredients will not be in it. read your labels, know what's in your food, and save your own life by knowing what foods your body can process. you will be in much better health if you do.
Crystal pepsi was the best drink evar.
Joseph Mercola, D.O. (born 1954), is an osteopathic physician, health activist, and entrepreneur practicing in Hoffman Estates, Illinois.[1] He is the author of two New York Times bestsellers, The No-Grain Diet (with Alison Rose Levy), and The Great Bird Flu Hoax, together with several other books. Mercola is best known as founder and editor of the alternative-medicine website Mercola.com, where he advocates dietary and lifestyle approaches to health and markets a variety of health-related products. Mercola criticizes many of the practices of mainstream medicine and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), particularly vaccination and the use of prescription drugs and surgery to treat diseases.[2] He is a member of the politically conservative Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, as well as several alternative medicine-related organizations.[3]
Mercola has received two warnings from the FDA for marketing nutritional products in a manner which violated the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.[4][5] A 2006 BusinessWeek editorial criticized Mercola's marketing practices as "relying on slick promotion, clever use of information, and scare tactics."[6]
Yea. An alt-med quack is going to tell me I'll SUGAR CRASH an hour after a single cola. Mhm.