Friday, November 03, 2006
Likely you've been seeing the Coke + Mentos video on YouTube since sometime last summer. These are tricky times for marketers, having something so big that's out of your control. Uh, was "soda explosions" in the brand strategy planning session last fall? So here's a good example of embracing a pop culture phenomenon, courtesy of Coke and Mentos. Check out this 3-minute video that Diet Coke just launched.
Pulled together by the fun-seekers at Eepybird, "Experiment #214, The Domino Effect" is a treat to watch and wonder about. Let's just say it's an 8th grader's science fair dream. Someone should say "Don't try this at home," but you won't hear it from us!
We love it for the entertainment, but let's not forget the marketing at work here for both Diet Coke and Mentos. (Coca-Cola sponsored this project.) Who won't share this with at least one friend? How much time will be spent by people stopping to enjoy this video, playing it back and forth and talking about it with co-workers? How many people are going to search for [Coke and Mentos] in the coming weeks? How many additional 2-liter bottles of Diet Coke, not to mention packages of Mentos, is this going to sell? It looks very promising to us. Stay tuned as we track this campaign.
Oh, and in case you wondered....
"...the carbon dioxide in the soda has an affinity for the surface of the Mentos and sticks to it. Tiny bubbles start to form at such a fast rate that it forces a fountain to come out of the bottle. The flavoring in the soda affects the rate and size of the explosion. The more flavoring droplets, the faster the flow." -- CBS News
