Monday, May 21, 2007

The Pepsi Challenge

A couple of weeks ago, the new marketing company crayon announced a revolutionary campaign undertaken on behalf of their client, The Coca-Cola Company. It's called Virtual Thirst and it invites users to participate in the Coke experience by generating ideas for creating their own vending machines that can do absolutely anything. The winner will see their creation become reality in Second Life.

The folks at crayon have developed a number of social media components to the campaign, including concerts and gatherings at the Coca-Cola Pavillion in Second Life, YouTube videos inviting response/entry videos, the landing page and a panel of celebrity judges to choose the winner. Undoubtedly a creative campaign that is designed to spark user-generated ideas to make the Coke brand come to life. More information is available at VirtualThirst.com.

But you have to wonder when Coke's #1 competitor Pepsi launches a campaign the same month that features...ads on bus shelters? Yes, bus shelters.

It seems a step down from the uber-cool Second Life approach from crayon. Or so I thought when I read the headline. But as I got a little further into the MediaPost piece, my interest grew.

Evidently, the ads feature a technology called LumiGraphics that

lights up the ad and the shelter. This is the first time LumiGraphics have been used in the United States; the ads are currently being run in Boston, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Denver, New York and Washington.

But what makes this illuminated outdoor ad stand apart from others is that it also brings Bluetooth technology to the mix. Passersby who are Bluetooth-enabled can download content such as a rap by New York Yankee Johnny Damon (!) or hip-hop artists, if you're a rap purist. The creative also encourages viewers to go to PepsiSmash.com for more music - a site that is driven by Yahoo! Music.

Not bad, not bad. I never was a Pepsi fan myself, except for Mountain Dew. Will this change my mind? Not likely. Will it grab some attention? Definitely. But to me, it doesn't invite the same level of participation - of conversation - that the Coke campaign does. This still smacks of one-way marketing. Which is fine, but I hope for their sake that Pepsi has a little more bubbling.

I say let the Yankees associate themselves with Pepsi. I'll stick with the Boston Red Sox and Coca-Cola, thank you very much.

Labels: brand, crayon, innovation, New Media, outdoor, Second Life, social media

Posted by Scott Monty at 5:23 PM

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About Scott

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The best way to describe Scott is "Renaissance Man." Friends and colleagues that know Scott from one facet of his life are very frequently surprised to learn of his interests and talents in other areas.

Scott is a marketing and communications professional focused on the digital industry — specifically on social media. His career spans a number of industries such as healthcare, pharma, biotech, travel, automotive, tech, and communications, and includes a wide range of clients, from start-ups to Fortune 500 companies.

Currently on the staff of corporate communications in Ford Motor Company, Scott heads up the social media function and holds the title Global Digital & Multimedia Communications Manager. He is a strategic advisor on all social media activities across the company, from blogger relations to marketing support, customer service to internal communications and more, as social media is being integrated into many facets of Ford business.

Prior to joining Ford, Scott served as Consigliere for crayon and spent a number of years with PJA Advertising + Marketing, a boutique BtoB agency specializing in health sciences & high tech.

In addition to his consulting and agency background, Scott is an active blogger and podcaster. He writes about the intersection of advertising, marketing and PR at The Social Media Marketing Blog and also writes The Baker Street Blog, a literary undertaking. Scott has been featured in numerous news and business publications, on a variety of podcasts, and on national television. Scott is a recognized thought leader in the social media industry and frequently speaks at industry events.

Scott received his Master's in Medical Science from Boston University's School of Medicine concurrently with his MBA from BU's Graduate School of Management. He lives in the greater Detroit area with his wife and two young sons, golfs all too infrequently, and has a hidden talent for voice over work.

Oh, and one last little-known fact: Scott coined the term "tweetup."

You may download a headshot here, courtesy of C.C. Chapman and a PDF version of Scott's bio here.

Books in which Scott's work is featured:
The New Rules of Marketing & PR
Twitterville
Six Pixels of Separation
Monkeys with Typewriters
Read This First
World Wide Rave
Get Seen

Disclosures/Relationships

Scott is on the Advisory board of SavvyAuntie
Scott is on the Advisory board of Business Smart Tools
Scott is a judge for the SAMMY Awards
Scott is on the Advisory board of The Hive Awards
Named one of iMedia's 25 Top Internet Marketing Leaders & Innovators
This blog's content is also syndicated on Social Media Today
Plaid occasionally does web work for me and designed this site
No animals were harmed in the making of this blog.

Speaking Events

Scott speaks on social media at events, seminars and conferences around the world. His topic generally focuses on corporate use of social media, becoming an online spokesperson, and specifically on the progress that Ford has made in the recent past. If you're interested in booking Scott to speak at your event, please send an email to speaking [AT] scottmonty [DOT] com. Scott's bio and headshot can be found in the "About Scott" tab above.

Some previous engagements include:

BlogWell - How Big Companies Use Social Media - Minneapolis - August 13

Who is Scott Monty?

Hi, I'm Scott. I'm the head of social media for Ford Motor Company. This is my personal blog, where I share my perspectives on social media - the convergence of marketing, advertising and PR on the Web - for marketers, agencies, the enterprise and the individual. This blog contains my personal views.