(Courtesy the Atlanta-Journal)...It seemed like a good idea at the time.
Twenty-five years ago Friday, Coca-Cola executives stepped up to a podium at the company's headquarters and told the world that the old Coke formula was being shelved in favor of something called "New Coke." As the ads said, you were gonna love it.
The story of New Coke is still taught in business schools, and not in a good way.Coca-Cola, anxious to fight off a challenge from Pepsi, had forgotten its fans' deep psychological connection with the brand. It hadn't asked them if they would mind if the 99-year-old Coke formula disappeared. The result was perhaps the biggest marketing blunder of the century.
Within weeks, protests broke out, callers lodged thousands of calls to Coca-Cola headquarters and shoppers poured New Coke down gutters. After three months, the company acknowledged its mistake. It reintroduced the "classic" formula, which remains the top-selling soda in the U.S. New Coke lingered on through the late 1990s, but the world had passed it by.
As some of you know I'm a very very moderate collector of Coca-Cola Bottles and some memorabilia. When you collect something, over time you accumulate some amount of knowledge about your collectibles. The above article brings back the memory of the New Coke disaster. I have one of the commemorative 10 oz. bottles of New Coke and remember when New Coke was wheeled out by the geniuses at the Coca-Cola Corporation. New Coke was scrapped and Coca-Cola Classic was reintroduced. (That's why it says "classic" on the can, it used to not be there).
I don't really remember what New Coke tastes like, but apparently it was bad. Especially when compared to The Real Thing. This is a reminder when something is perfect don't change it. You can't improve upon it. You can't make it more palatable. Some people like Pepsi instead of the Classic. I don't know why. People have told me that Pepsi is sweeter and Coke has a "harder" taste. Its not a perfect analogy but it reminds me of the Gospel. Don't change it. You can't change it. Try as many may, in the end it will be a disaster.
"I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel - not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed." Galatians 1:6-8
2 comments:
That's right, Coke is like Jesus and Pepsi is like Satan. I completely agree. Dr. Pepper must be the Holy Spirit because it helps me a lot...
I remember New Coke vividly. It had just come out when my mom had the accident that left her in the hospital for over 6 weeks. That stuff was terrible and all she wanted was barbecue and a Coke and New Coke wasn't cutting it. I remember hating it, too. I think that you have made a great comparison!
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