If you still question whether the future of brands’ marketing strategies will be based on becoming media companies, the new Coca-Cola website should give you the answer once and for all.
Coca-Cola’s new corporate web presence is actually a digital magazine. It is called Coca-Cola Journey, the name of a previously published employee magazine. While it still includes the “standard” information about the company – press releases, investor information, etc., the central focus of the site is on storytelling, inviting participation and sharing those stories. The major sections mirror those of a consumer magazine: stories, opinions, brands, videos and blogs.
Clyde Tuggle, Senior Vice President and Chief Public Affairs and Communications Officer, said, “Coca-Cola Journey is the most ambitious digital project Coca-Cola has ever undertaken, and we are doubling-down on our commitment to be a quality publisher of compelling content.”
That content centers around stories. And, those stories involve the brand in topics of popular culture, including, sports, entertainment, sustainability and innovation. As Stuart Elliot explained in his New York Times article on the new site, “The use of the word ‘story’ is significant because the Web site changes are indicative of the growing interest among marketers in recasting their communications with consumers as storytelling rather than advertising. Just as attention is being paid to developing content to use for brand storytelling, an appetite also exists for corporate storytelling.”
Of course, Coca-Cola is not the first brand to bring storytelling to the forefront of its marketing efforts. As noted on this blog, another beverage marketer, Red Bull, has been focused on storytelling since its beginning. However, Coke’s effort is significant because it is the most ambitious effort by one of the top brands in the world.
Coke’s effort is not a simple digital initiative. It’s the future of marketing.
Related reading:
Ashley Brown, Coke’s Director of Digital Communications and Social Media, explains the strategy behind the new website.
Ashley Brown gives detail on how Coke built its new digital magazine on the Coca-Cola Unbottled blog
Coke’s YouTube Videos Explaining its Content Marketing Strategy: Part 1 and Part 2
My earlier blog on Coca Cola’s Content Marketing Strategy