The Brief

To create happiness on the streets of China between total strangers and drive awareness of Coca-Cola's role as a 'happiness creator'.

Describe how the promotion developed from concept to implementation

The idea was to turn total strangers into friends. We called it 'The Friendship Experiment'. We engaged a photographer to approach different passers-by on the streets of Guangzhou and got them to pose with each other. After sharing a few bottles of Coke to break the ice. The photos of these happy encounters were then placed on a website and at a gallery exhibition. Press/TV/Online Media Companies were invited to view the Experiment and promote the campaign. The target was to reach 5 million consumers.

Describe the success of the promotion with both client and consumer including some quantifiable results

Thanks to the positive promotion by the Media Companies, over 13.5 million people have seen the Experiment to date. The campaign exceeded the target of 5 million viewers by 170%. The Friendship Experiment generated nearly US$1.4 million of free media value. This was a massive ROI of 1,166% on a modest budget of just US$120,000. Coca-Cola certainly profited from this campaign. This allowed the reinvestment of traditional media budgets to campaigns like this that drive more value. The plan now is to implement more Friendship Experiment campaigns beyond Guangzhou and into the other cities of China.

Explain why the method of promotion was most relevant to the product or service

It was relevant because Coca-Cola's brand value is all about happiness. This Friendship Experiment brought people together, creating friends out of complete strangers, and got them to share a happy moment over a few bottles of Coke.