The PepsiCo 10 is a two-day event, today is day two, where an invited set of tech companies get a shot at presenting their ideas to the company.
Here's how they describe it.
"PepsiCo will to bring together PepsiCo brand marketers, venture capital and media partners, category specialists and thought leaders for a two-day idea exchange on media, communications and technology.
The group will assess presentations from 20 finalist entrepreneurs and choose the PepsiCo10 from among them. Up to 10 entrepreneurs will be named the PepsiCo10 following the Summit's end and offered the opportunity to pursue a pilot project with a PepsiCo brand team.
In addition to entrepreneur presentations and judging, the PepsiCo10 Summit will include keynote addresses from top media, communications and technology visionaries."
As you can see from this video- the initiative is being driven by Pepsi's media, social media and digital technology guys.
It's interesting to see a brand make such direct moves and it's not doing it alone- helping them are; Mashable (for the coverage carrot) and Highland Capital Partners (for that all important cash).
Clearly there's a lesson here for agencies to find forums and opportunities to bring the best external thinking in the rapidly developing tech space to their clients attention
Posted by Ed Cotton
However, Red Bull has been a "one trick pony"- extracting more and more from a single SKU and resisting the temptation to line extend itself to death. Something that certainly would have happened if the company had been taken over by one of the soda giants.
Red Bull's latest move must have those same soda giants sweating because the new line extension, is a cola with a twist; a completely natural version.
This is a product formulation that's achieved some success in countries like Germany and even Pepsi has experimented with a new natural variant called RAW, but Red Bull could be onto a winner here.
The brand has significant awareness, a massive distribution system and the challenger credentials to help it take on the giants. On top of all this, the brand has the zeitgeist impact of the shift to all things natural and a backlash against un-natural sodas, in its favor.
Via Coolhunting
Posted by Ed Cotton
It's only being sold in selective nightclubs and not nationwide. It's also only in the UK.
Which leaves me to speculate the following question
Is Coca-Cola going to seize on the opportunity and launch a new natural formula Coke anytime soon?
Will Pepsi go global with Raw?
It looks like we might be entering the next phase of the cola wars.
Posted by Ed Cotton
How many brands are have let consumers, artists and designers play with their pack design?
As a marketing concept it appears done to death.
The trouble with my cynicism, is that it takes no account for execution.
I was forced to reverse my thinking when I came across this can design.
It allows the artist to dominate the can, rather than the brand, which makes for a fantastic design.
The can's designer is JKaczmarek.
Will we ever see this can on grocery store shelves?
Posted by Ed Cotton