Coca-Cola Ends 'Open Happiness' Theme, Unveils 'Taste The Feeling' In New Push

By
Femi Adeoya
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Since debuting "Open Happiness" seven years ago, Coca-Cola has used the lofty, ideals-based campaign to promote everything from anti-bullying to peaceful co-existence among Indians and Pakistanis. But to new global Chief Marketing Officer Marcos de Quinto, the campaign became just a little bit too preachy. And it failed to hammer home more simple pleasures, like enjoying an ice-cold Coke on a hot day.
 
According to Ad Age reports, in the first big move under his watch, Coke is closing down "Open Happiness." A new global campaign called "Taste the Feeling" will put the product at the center of every ad as Coke seeks to win over more drinkers in the struggling soda category. And in a major strategic shift, Coke will adopt a "one-brand" approach that will unite multiple varieties like Diet Coke and Coke Zero in a single campaign, rather than running disparate spots.
 
 
Coca-Cola executives are expected to annouce the campaign today in Paris as ads begin rolling out across the more than 200 countries where Coke is sold.
 
Before leaving for Europe, Mr. de Quinto previewed the strategy to Ad Age in an interview at Coke's Atlanta headquarters last week. It marked his first U.S. media interview since taking the marketing helm a year ago, following 14 years leading Coca-Cola's Iberia business unit, which covers Spain and Portugal.
 
While he has been working in the background for months, today's campaign launch marks the beginning of the de Quinto marketing era at Coke. It comes in the wake of the departure of high-profile North American marketing executive Wendy Clark, who also held a global role during her tenure. Along with former global CMO Joe Tripodi, Ms. Clark oversaw "Open Happiness," which debuted in 2009 and often took on big societal issues, like last year's "Make it Happy" Super Bowl ad that focused on online bullying.
 
In the interview, Mr. de Quinto spoke passionately about taking Coke in a new, more humble direction. Ads will use the kind of emotional storytelling long-associated with Coke. But they will depict everyday moments, like a first date, and put Coke bottles front and center. The new campaign is "going back to the core values of Coca Cola," he said. "We have been just talking about the brand, but talking very little about the product."
 
Coke had "started to talk in a preachy way to people. And Coca-Cola has always been a simple pleasure," he added. "The bigness of Coca-Cola resides in this humbleness, in its simplicity." But the "more that we tried … to preach to the people, the smaller we made it."
 
 
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