The Coca-Cola Company unveiled a new global slogan on December 8 to turn around its image and sluggish financial fortunes. The new line is: “Welcome to the Coke side of life.” It supplants the three-year-old “Make it real” campaign, which analysts say never really got off the ground, despite the billion-plus dollars spent on advertising. The latest strategy sees Coke revisiting its roots with a strong focus on the iconic shape of the old-fashioned Coke bottle, which was apparently modeled on a woman’s curves. There will be different takes on the slogan, including, “Dream on the Coke Side of Life” and “Float on the Coke Side of Life.” Executives said these will be fine-tuned to tap deeper into local markets and more accurately reflect specific cultural tastes and lifestyles.

Coke CEO Neville Isdell said the new global ad strategy should return the company to its former glories within eighteen months. Such confidence is important, particularly as Coke’s shares have lost almost 20 percent in value under Isdell’s short reign. He acknowledged Coke had suffered an “innovation deficit” of late. Marketing chief Mary Minnick outlined three new themes to appeal to customers – enjoyment, comfort and nutrition. She said: “We want Coke brands to be more relevant, an integral part of consumers’ everyday lives. We want to build a relationship with consumers.” She also spoke of a “more targeted brand portfolio,” to include a host of new product launches. In January, Coca-Cola Blak, a coffee-infused cola, will hit the stores to get the ball rolling.

WARM-UPS

1. COKE SEARCH: Talk to as many other students as you can to find out what they know about Coke. After you have talked to lots of students, sit down with your partner(s) and share your information. Tell each other what you thought was interesting or surprising. What is your impression of the Coca-Cola Company?

2. COKE SLOGANS: Coca-Cola constantly remarkets itself with new slogans. What do you think about these past and present slogans? Why were they chosen?

1. “The ideal brain tonic.” (1893)
2. “Universal symbol of the American way of life.” (1943)
3. “Hello Coke.” (1944)
4. “Coke time.” (1954)
5. “Coke... after Coke... after Coca-Cola.” (1966)
6. “It’s the real thing.” (1970)
7. “I’d like to buy the world a Coke.” (1971)
8. “Welcome to the Coke side of life.” (2006)

3. CHAT: In pairs / groups, decide which of these topics or words are most interesting and which are most boring.

Coca-Cola / slogans / financial fortunes / campaigns / roots / the bright side of life / local markets / innovation / enjoyment / comfort / nutrition / brand portfolios

Have a chat about the topics you liked. For more conversation, change topics and partners frequently.

4. MY COLA LIFE: In pairs / groups, talk about your history with cola drinks. Did you drink a lot when you were a kid? Do you prefer Coke or Pepsi? Are you worried about colas being unhealthy?

5. FAMOUS SLOGANS: Discuss these slogans with your partner(s). Do you like them? Why are they good? Would (Do) they work in your country?

1. “Don’t leave home without it.” – American Express
2. “Just do it.” – Nike
3. “The ultimate driving machine.” - BMW
4. “Think different.” – Apple Computer
5. “Heineken refreshes the parts other beers cannot reach.” – Heineken
6. “A diamond is forever.” - DeBeers
7. “Put a tiger in your tank.” - Esso
8. “Say it with flowers.” - Interflora

6. COCA-COLA: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with Coca-Cola. Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.

BEFORE READING / LISTENING

1. TRUE / FALSE: Look at the article’s headline and guess whether these sentences are true (T) or false (F):

a.	Coke’s new slogan is to help its image and sluggish financial fortunes.	T / F
b.	The new slogan is “Welcome to the fizzy side of life”.	T / F
c.	Coke is going back to its roots with its new ad strategy.	T / F
d.	Coke’s taste will be fine-tuned and made available on tap.	T / F
e.	Coke’s CEO said it would take 18 years to return to former glories.	T / F
f.	Coke’s CEO acknowledged the company was lacking in innovation.	T / F
g.	Coke wants its drinks to be an integral part of consumers’ daily lives.	T / F
h.	Coke said a new cola-flavored coffee drink will hit stores in January.	T / F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:

a.	unveiled	array
b.	sluggish	penetrate
c.	supplants	intrinsic
d.	roots	control
e.	tap	replaces
f.	reign	listless
g.	deficit	go on sale
h.	integral	revealed
i.	host	beginnings
j.	hit the stores	shortfall

3. PHRASE MATCH: Match the following phrases from the article (sometimes more than one combination is possible):

a.	turn around its image and	to its former glories
b.	never really got	on the slogan
c.	The latest strategy sees Coke revisiting	into local markets
d.	different takes	off the ground
e.	tap deeper	“innovation deficit” of late
f.	return the company	targeted brand portfolio
g.	Coke had suffered an	sluggish financial fortunes
h.	an integral part	get the ball rolling
i.	a more	of consumers’ everyday lives
j.	…will hit the stores to	its roots

WHILE READING / LISTENING

WHOOPS: Delete the six incorrect words from the ten in bold in each paragraph. Think of suitable replacements.

Coca-Cola unveils new global ad strategy

The Coca-Cola Company unzipped a new global slogan on December 8 to turn around its image and sluggish financial fortunes. The new line is: “Welcome to the Coke side of life.” It supplants the three-year-old “Make it real” campaign, which analysts say never really got off the sky, despite the billion-plus dollars spent on advertising. The latest strategy sees Coke revisiting its boots with a strong focus on the iconic shape of the old-fashioned Coke bottle, which was apparently modeled on a woman’s curves. There will be different gives on the slogan, including, “Dream on the Coke Side of Life” and “Float on the Coke Side of Life.” Executives said these will be fine-tuned to top deeper into local markets and more accurately reject specific cultural tastes and lifestyles.

Coke CEO Neville Isdell said the new global ad strategy should return the company to its former gory within eighteen months. Such confidence is important, particularly as Coke’s shares have gained almost 20 percent in value under Isdell’s short reign. He acknowledged Coke had suffered an “innovation surplus” of late. Marketing chief Mary Minnick outlined three new themes to appeal to customers – enjoyment, comfort and nutrition. She said: “We want Coke brands to be more relevant, an integer part of consumers’ everyday lives. We want to build a relationship with consumers.” She also spoke of a “more targeted bland portfolio,” to include a host of new product launches. In January, Coca-Cola Blak, a coffee-infused cola, will hit the stores to get the box rolling.

LISTENING

Listen and fill in the spaces.

Coca-Cola unveils new global ad strategy

The Coca-Cola Company _________ a new global slogan on December 8 to turn around its image and sluggish financial fortunes. The new line is: “Welcome to the Coke side of life.” It _________ the three-year-old “Make it real” campaign, which analysts say never really got off the _________, despite the billion-plus dollars spent on advertising. The latest strategy sees Coke revisiting its _________ with a strong focus on the iconic shape of the old-fashioned Coke bottle, which was apparently modeled on a woman’s _________. There will be different takes on the slogan, including, “Dream on the Coke Side of Life” and “Float on the Coke Side of Life.” Executives said these will be _________ to tap deeper into local markets and more accurately reflect specific cultural tastes and lifestyles.

Coke CEO Neville Isdell said the new global ad strategy should return the company to its former _________ within eighteen months. Such confidence is important, particularly as Coke’s shares have lost almost 20 percent in value under Isdell’s short _________. He acknowledged Coke had suffered an “innovation _________” of late. Marketing chief Mary Minnick outlined three new themes to appeal to customers – enjoyment, comfort and nutrition. She said: “We want Coke brands to be more relevant, an _________ part of consumers’ everyday lives. We want to build a relationship with consumers.” She also spoke of a “more targeted brand _________,” to include a host of new product launches. In January, Coca-Cola Blak, a coffee-_________ cola, will hit the stores to get the ball _________.

AFTER READING / LISTENING

1. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionaries / computer to find collocates, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words ‘global’ and ‘slogan’.

• Share your findings with your partners.
• Make questions using the words you found.
• Ask your partner / group your questions.

2. ARTICLE QUESTIONS: Look back at the article and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.

• Share your questions with other classmates / groups.
• Ask your partner / group your questions.

3. WHOOPS: In pairs / groups, compare your answers to this exercise. Check your answers. Talk about the words from the activity. Were they new, interesting, worth learning…?

4. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

5. STUDENT “SLOGAN” SURVEY: In pairs / groups, write down questions about Coca-Cola’s new slogan and the slogans of other brands.

• Ask other classmates your questions and note down their answers.
• Go back to your original partner / group and compare your findings.
• Make mini-presentations to other groups on your findings.

6. TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall exactly how these were used in the text:

turn supplants ground roots curves tap

glories reign deficit themes portfolio ball

DISCUSSION

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

1. Did the headline make you want to read the article?
2. Do you think the Coca-Cola Company is good at marketing and branding itself?
3. What do you think of the “Welcome to the Coke side of life” slogan?
4. Do you think Coke is right to refocus on its iconic bottle?
5. What makes a good slogan?
6. What are some of your favorite slogans and why do you like them?
7. What slogans in your own language do you think are good?
8. Can you think of any bad slogans?
9. How do you think Coke brands can be made “more relevant” in consumers’ everyday lives?
10. Why has Coca-Cola spelled its new product “Blak” - without the “c”? Do you think this is good?

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

1. Did you like reading this article?
2. What do you think about what you read?
3. If you had a slogan to market yourself, what would it be?
4. What do you think is interesting about slogans?
5. Do you think there’s an art to designing a good slogan?
6. Do you think good slogans can only be created by innovative and creative advertising executives?
7. Why do you think Coke changes its slogan every two or three years, while other companies stick with theirs for a decade or longer?
8. What does “Welcome to the Coke side of life” say?
9. Will you be trying the new Coca-Cola Blak?
10. Did you like this discussion?

AFTER DISCUSSION: Join another partner / group and tell them what you talked about.

1. What was the most interesting thing you heard?
2. Was there a question you didn’t like?
3. Was there something you totally disagreed with?
4. What did you like talking about?
5. Which was the most difficult question?

SPEAKING

ETERNAL SLOGAN: You are a marketing executive for the Coca-Cola Company. You must choose one of the eight slogans below to be Coke’s “eternal” slogan. Discuss each slogan in relation to the criteria required of a good slogan.

1. “The ideal brain tonic.”
2. “Universal symbol of the American way of life.”
3. “Hello Coke.”
4. “Coke time.”
5. “Coke... after Coke... after Coca-Cola.”
6. “It’s the real thing.”
7. “I’d like to buy the world a Coke.”
8. “Welcome to the Coke side of life.”

Criteria:

1. A good slogan is memorable.
2. A good slogan includes a key benefit of the product or service
3. A good slogan differentiates the product – puts it higher than competitor products.
4. A good slogan facilitates immediate brand name recognition.
5. A good slogan imparts positive feelings about the brand.
6. A good slogan cannot be used by a competitor.

For Discussion:

• Change partners. Explain your choice and reasons for deciding on your slogan.
• If your choices are different, try to persuade each other to accept your choice.
• If your choices are the same, explain where the other slogans fell down.
• Return to your original partner(s). Make a presentation on why you believe your choice of slogan is best.
• Give your presentations to the class.
• In pairs / groups, discuss the quality and content of the presentations and vote for the best one.

HOMEWORK

1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.

2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find more information on the Coca-Cola Company. Share your findings with your class in the next lesson. Did you all find out similar things?

3. SLOGAN CREATION: Make a poster explaining how to make a good slogan. Include examples of good and bad slogans from real companies to illustrate your points. Explain why the slogans on your poster are good or bad. Show your posters to your classmates in your next lesson. Did you all think of similar things?

4. MY SLOGAN: Create a slogan to market yourself. Provide the reasoning behind the slogan. Show your slogan to your classmates in the next lesson. Do they think it’s an effective slogan?

ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE:

a. T

b. F

c. T

d. F

e. F

f. T

g. T

h. F

SYNONYM MATCH:

a.	unveiled	revealed
b.	sluggish	listless
c.	supplants	replaces
d.	roots	beginnings
e.	tap	penetrate
f.	reign	control
g.	deficit	shortfall
h.	integral	intrinsic
i.	host	array
j.	hit the stores	go on sale

PHRASE MATCH:

a.	turn around its image and	sluggish financial fortunes
b.	never really got	off the ground
c.	The latest strategy sees Coke revisiting	its roots
d.	different takes	on the slogan
e.	tap deeper	into local markets
f.	return the company	to its former glories
g.	Coke had suffered an	“innovation deficit” of late
h.	an integral part	of consumers’ everyday lives
i.	a more	targeted brand portfolio
j.	…will hit the stores to	get the ball rolling

WHOOPS:

Coca-Cola unveils new global ad strategy

The Coca-Cola Company unveiled a new global slogan on December 8 to turn around its image and sluggish financial fortunes. The new line is: “Welcome to the Coke side of life.” It supplants the three-year-old “Make it real” campaign, which analysts say never really got off the ground, despite the billion-plus dollars spent on advertising. The latest strategy sees Coke revisiting its roots with a strong focus on the iconic shape of the old-fashioned Coke bottle, which was apparently modeled on a woman’s curves. There will be different takes on the slogan, including, “Dream on the Coke Side of Life” and “Float on the Coke Side of Life.” Executives said these will be fine-tuned to tap deeper into local markets and more accurately reflect specific cultural tastes and lifestyles.

Coke CEO Neville Isdell said the new global ad strategy should return the company to its former glories within eighteen months. Such confidence is important, particularly as Coke’s shares have lost almost 20 percent in value under Isdell’s short reign. He acknowledged Coke had suffered an “innovation deficit” of late. Marketing chief Mary Minnick outlined three new themes to appeal to customers – enjoyment, comfort and nutrition. She said: “We want Coke brands to be more relevant, an integral part of consumers’ everyday lives. We want to build a relationship with consumers.” She also spoke of a “more targeted brand portfolio,” to include a host of new product launches. In January, Coca-Cola Blak, a coffee-infused cola, will hit the stores to get the ball rolling.

TOP