The Coca-Cola Company - Case Study Example

The Coca-Cola Company Your name Course name Instructor’s name Date of submission The Coca-Cola Company Outline (i) Introduction (ii) Vision and Mission and strategy (iii) Brand personality (iv) Positioning (v) Product design (vi) Conclusion Introduction The Coca-Cola Company which was started in 1886 is the most worldwide foremost manufacturer, marketer, and distributor of syrups and concentrates that are nonalcoholic. Currently, it operates in over than 200 countries in the whole world and is famous for the refreshing drink “Coca-Cola”. Coca-Cola is among the most visible companies in the entire world. The product from this company is available all over the world and has recently become one of the most famous world favorite soft drink. Coca-Cola as a company achieves all these through initiating explicit and simple vision and mission strategy, ensuring that the best product positioning strategy is adopted, improving the Coca-Cola brand personality, and ensuring that effective product design approaches are adopted in order to remain globally competitive. This paper seeks to explain the strategy behind the success of this company through examining the company’s mission and vision strategy, Coca-Cola’s brand personality, product positioning and product design. In order to compete favorably in the market, these strategies have to be clear and on target for them to bear fruits. Mission and Vision strategy While a firm must incessantly adapt to its competitive environment, often, there are certain central ideals that remain moderately steady and offer guidance in the strategic decision making process. These fixed ideals form the company vision and are articulated and expressed in the company mission statement. Coca cola as company understands the fact that the current world is dynamic and thus to maintain its position as a multinational corporation, it has to focus ahead, comprehend the forces and trends that have to shape the business in the future and make a swift advance to prepare for future uncertainties. The company appreciates this fact through factoring into consideration precise mission and vision statements. Mission The mission statement of Coca-Cola Company is enduring and it declares the company purpose and serves as a measure or a standard against which it weighs its decisions and actions: To inspire moments of happiness and optimism To refresh the world and To make a difference and create value Vision Coca-Cola’s vision statement serves as the framework for the Company’s Roadmap and essentially directs most aspects of daily businesses describing what the company ought to accomplish in order to continue achieving quality, and sustainable progress. Be a great work place where individuals are inspired to the best they can be Bring to the world an assortment of quality beverage brands that satisfy and anticipate the needs and desires of people Nurture a winning network of suppliers and customers, together to create enduring and mutual value Be a responsible citizen that creates a difference by assisting support and build sustainable communities Maximize long-term return to share owners while being considerate of our general responsibilities Be highly effective, target towards a fast-moving organization Our winning culture defines the behaviors and attitudes that will be essential and required of the company to attain vision 2020. The business world is rapidly changing. To continue to succeed as a business, business managers must look ahead, analyze the forces and trends that will shape their business goals in the future and move speedily to prepare strategic plans that are in line with the company’s mission. At Coca-Cola Company, managers clearly understand this. From the company’s website and annual reviews one can easily get a clearly picture of the company. For Coca-Cola Company, developing a strategic plan entails more than just drawing and setting goals for the future and picking a phrase from a textbook as the way to realize those goals. Coca-Cola has to consider the alignment between its present proposed values and various external and internal entities. Coca-Cola mission and vision, collaboration, passion, integrity along with quality must be incorporated into the company’s strategic plan when it comes to treatment of stakeholders (The Coca-Cola Company, 2010). The Coca-Cola Company exists to refresh and benefit every person it touches. The fundamental proposition of the company is uncomplicated, solid, and timeless. When Coca-Cola brings value, refreshment, joy and fun to their stakeholders, then they successfully nurture and protect their brands. That is the key to realizing their ultimate obligation to provide every time attractive proceeds to the owners of their company. One would say the audience for the mission is the stakeholder. In the company’s promise, the values are unambiguously stated: joy, refreshment, fun, joy and attractive proceeds. Obviously, the words were carefully chosen expressed in the company’s mission statement. The company identifies its stakeholders as one of its pivotal assets. It aims to make the company more than just place to work, instead a place of creativity, exploration and personal growth. At the company, management wants the employees as internal stakeholders to take pride not only in their work but also in the products they produce. Coca-Cola has more than 90,000 associates across the world who live and work in the respective markets they serve (The Coca-Cola Company (a), 2008). With such a large and diverse group, the company explores and learns about each of the market and shares the knowledge across the company. This promotes a culture of collaboration—in line with the company’s mission statement. In conformity with this, company has sought employee participation in determining the strength and weakness of the company strategy. The management provided a forum for employees to give their views regarding the company’s mission, vision and values (The Coca-Cola Company (a), 2008). The company makes a strenuous effort to satisfy its external stakeholders in several ways suitable to its mission, vision and values. The external stakeholders include customers, investors, and the surrounding communities in which the firm operates. To its external stakeholders, the company has made annual dividends since 1920 and has been increasing the dividends yearly. The company makes attempts to satisfy its customers by releasing into the market diverse products in a broad range of sizes and for almost every occasion. For surrounding communities in which Coca-Cola operates, it is attempting to improve the environmental impact. The company has in the past faced legal action for over-utilizing community resources. Currently, the company has established programs to make it water neutral. Brand personality The personality of Coca-cola has developed over the years. Initially in 1886, Coca-cola] made its debut as possessing the valuable tonic and nerve stimulant properties of the cola nuts and the coca plant. From advertisements made by Pemberton Coca-Cola is both a refreshing, delicious, exhilarating, invigorating, and a temperance drink. The brand slogan in Coca cola’s function has been “the most refreshing drink in the world.” However, the image link which distinguished the brand from the others was its appeal to emotions as the socially acceptable drink. During the period of 1917, the company associated coke with common daily scenes of individuals undertaking their daily routines, this perception, made people part and parcel of the pleasant interludes of daily life. Nonetheless, with the onset of the Great Depression in 1929, an advertising campaign led by the slogan ‘the pause that refreshes’ was run. The 1935 advertisement portrayed a man nonchalantly smiling while on his way to work; a perfect conceptualization of American life at that moment. This captured both the hearts and minds of consumers; presenting a simple moment of uplifting refreshment. It fueled the nation both physically and emotionally. As a matter of fact, through supplying the United States army during World War 2 with drinks, the company emphasized the power of Coca cola’s power as a morale booster. In 1985, the formula of the drink was changed to New Coke. As a business corporation, Coca cola is conscious of what is pertinent to the lives of its consumers such as entertainment, family and sport. Life experiences are created around these interests. Positioning Coca cola operating in over than 200 nations, it is faced with an explicit choice of whether to standardize their product globally and thus reap the most likely benefits of economies of scale, adapt their products to a specific market (which may facilitate increased market particular penetration), or espouse an integrated approach utilizing both approaches concurrently. Product design The bottle of Coca-cola is perhaps the most easily identified worldwide. This product as described by Andy Warhol is the “design icon of the decade” (Cite). This organically, smooth shape for the company bottle was conceived initially in 1900. During this period, both the actual Coca-cola product and the packaging were being imitated. In reaction to this, company was determined to find a bottle that an individual could easily recognize as the Coca-cola bottle even if in the absence of light. Conclusion Coca-Cola has recognized several values as significant for the way to operate. The company consistently maintains its belief in the values via its actions. The company’s mission, vision and values align with the way the company treats its external and internal stakeholders. Such practices are not only essential for the continued existence of the company but also to ensure that Coca-Cola reaps maximum returns from its sales while maintaining the buyer-customer relationship that is crucial for the continued operation of every company. Coca-Cola has ensured its continued existence for several number decades through ensuring that its vision and mission strategy is clear and adheres to the expectations of stakeholders. Through innovative product design approaches, Coca-Cola ensures that its products are not only standard but manufactured and brands designed with the customer’s wish being given the prime priority. The company ensures customer satisfaction in brand design through adopting modern ways of designing drinks and carrying out surveys in order to comprehend the expectations of its customers. By ensuring that the decision of changing the name of the product rests within the wish of its customers, Coca cola maintains an effective brand personality strategy. Finally, the company imitates and initiates best strategies as far as product design is concerned and thus maintaining high-brand positioning within the markets in the entire world. References: The Coca-Cola Company (a). 2008 Annual Review. Retrieved February, 18, 2011 from . The Coca-Cola Company. Mission, Vision & Values. Retrieved February 18, 2011 from . Maleena, Crum. Market Positioning. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008. Hug, Mark. Marketing Strategies. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2002. Aderinola, A. Marketing Research. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1998. Tulchinsky, T. The Coca Cola’s History. New York: Academic Press, 2008. Print. Okonofua, E. Competitive Brand Design Strategies. New York: Pocket. Read More