Budget 2001: A Primer

It may be recalled that on Friday last, Coca Cola India released a television commercial on Thums Up which took potshots at Pepsi and openly challenged Pepsi on the taste plank: the storyline shows Pepsi as being ``too sweet'' and preferred only by kids, in a `blind' test by a teenage consumer.

Sharing a recent study undertaken by the IMRB, a leading marketing agency, Pepsi claims a much higher consumer preference score than both Coke and Thums Up. According to the IMRB survey conducted among more than 5,000 consumers in top metros of Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Calcutta and Bangalore during July to December 2000, Pepsi is overwhelmingly preferred by consumers over both Coke and Thums Up with the preference for Pepsi being even stronger over the latter.

Interestingly, Pepsi does not intend to use this data to counter Coke's claim about Thums Up either through its advertising or any other communication. ``We have no intentions to use this data to counter Coke's claim,'' Pepsi's executive vice-president marketing Ms Vibha Rishi said. According to this particular piece of market research, overall consumer preference for Pepsi versus Thums Up is 70:28. More specifically, between the age groups of 12 and 15 years (with an approximate sample size of 1000 respondents in each age group) 76 per cent preferred Pepsi while only 23 per cent preferred Thums Up. And in the age group of 16-19 years, the ratio for Pepsi vs Thums Up is 76:22. However, it's in the older group-25-29 years and 30-39 years-though the preferences narrow to 67: 31 and 64:34 respectively.

As for Pepsi vs Coke, the overall preference score is 63:32 and in the brand relevant age group such as 12-15 years and 16-19 years, the preference score is 59:40 and 59:39. Coke's Thums Up ad, claims the company is based on research conducted by a third party for the company which revealed that Thums Up as a brand stood out for its unique strong taste. It claims to have carried out blind test of cola brands wherein Pepsi because of its sweetness was more liked by smaller kids while Thums Up was liked by teens, who aspire to be young adults and do not want to be looked upon as kids.

Thums Up gets ready for more
Undeterred by Pepsi's legal proceedings against its Thums Up ad released on February 23, Coke is taking forward its ``Grow Up To the Thums Up Challenge'' campaign this week. To start with, the company plans to launch another ad in the series this week and subsequently to leverage the initiative, Coke is taking the Bollywood hero and Thums Up brand endorser Salman Khan on a nationwide tour to meet consumers. Under the initiative, Salman Khan will actually hold blind tests and `demonstrate' Thums Up's alleged higher-ranking on the taste platform to consumers, locally.

Meanwhile, Coca Cola India has also challenged Pepsi's legal notice for infringing on its copyright Yeh dil mange more which was used in the Thums Up commercial on SET by responding through a legal response sent to Pepsi on February 26.

The storyline of the new ad, according to Coke sources, will be the same and will continue to have the controversial catchphrase `Yeh dil mange more'. The only difference will, however, be the location- instead of a helicopter, Salman Khan will this time emerge from a boat on a beach. According to sources, Mr Guy Mansfield, an Australian film director-who was responsible for special effects in the Tom Cruise-starrer Mission Impossible-had been commissioned to shoot the Thums Up series for Coke.

The TVCs have been produced by Mr Sunil Moolchandani of MAD Films for Leo Burnett, the agency which handles the Thums Up account. Continuing his promise of ``Main aa raahon hoon aapke shehr mein aapke paas'' (I will be visiting you soon), Salman Khan will visit youth hangouts in several towns and cities where the Thums Up brand is strong.