Introduction
The Coca Cola Company is one of the multinational firms that have learnt the art of passing communications to their clients in the form of advertisement (Gerber 2008, p. 78). One of the most interesting advertisements that this firm has used is the one targeting the African market. In this advert, this firm has developed a short play involving African youths. The youths are in a party, but they realize that they do not have the refreshment that always characterizes such parties.
While these individuals are looking for a way out, a Coca Cola van comes to the vicinity and they all start singing and running towards the can. As they unpack the drinks, it is apparent that they are happy that their problem has been solved. This short play is accompanied by a beautiful song which says, ‘I love you Africa.’ The last message in the advertisement says, ‘Live on the Coke side o life.’
Discussion
The Coca Cola television commercial was developed in a way that brings out the message intended by the company to the audience. The beginning of the advertisement does not betray the possibility that this is an advertisement. It starts out as an interesting story of youths out to look for pleasure is a beautiful sandy beach. However, their joy is negatively affected by the absence of refreshment.
They look worried as it has come to their realization that happiness they were looking for cannot be achieved without the refreshments. They look confused because their location might not allow them to find an instant solution. Just as they were almost despairing, a solution comes knocking. The Coca Cola drinks therefore, are seen as a source of happiness.
This advertisement has succeeded in passing a number of communications to its consumers in the target market. The first message is that Coke is a source of happiness. Another message is that Coke will always be available when you need it the most. The advertisement also says that Coke will always penetrate to those areas you least expect it would (Handlechner 2008, p. 112).
The advert was developed in a near perfect manner. In this advert, the company makes the target market believe that Coke is a local drink that has been available to the locals for years. The advertisement also targets its largest market segment which is the youth (Gountas & Mavudo 2008, p. 87).
Conclusion
This advertisement meets all the requirements of theory as has been proposed by many scholars. For instance, one cannot realize that this is an advert until the last message (Hooley 2008, p. 72). It easily convinces the viewer that this is a short play that tries to bring out the importance of using Coke when in parties.
The advertisement is also accompanied by a soft music which makes it very entertaining to the viewers. Although the developers of the advertisement succeeded in making it a success, the developer should try to use all races other than only using the blacks. This is because Africa is currently a home to all races.
List of References
Gerber, K 2008, Marketing communication, Pearson Education, Cape Town.
Gountas, J & Mavudo, F 2008, Marketing Strategy: A Decision-Focused Approach, McGraw-Hill, North Ryde.
Handlechner, M 2008, Marketing Strategy, GRIN Verlag GmbH, München.
Hooley, G 2008, Marketing Strategy and Competitive Positioning, FT Prentice Hall, Harlow.Source: (Viardot 2004, p 90)