The Superbowl is a major football game that happens every year and most people throw Superbowl parties at home with tons of chips, dips, and drinks. People gather around the TV to pay close attention to the game and others just tune in for the commercials and halftime shows. Superbowl commercials are my personal favorite thing because they are always produced well and very entertaining.
Pepsi has always been a part of the Superbowl by being a sponsor and in 2013 they took over the sponsorship of the halftime show. Before Pepsi took over the halftime show they were just like any other brand spending millions for a 30-60 minute time slot to be featured across the world.
What makes Pepsi different is how Pepsi chose to deviate from the normal after what happened with Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson at the 2010 Superbowl halftime show. Pepsi announced that they will not be using the money they set aside for the Superbowl ad but instead use it to support grants for “cause marketing” – making the Pepsi Refresh project.
The 20 million dollars Pepsi set aside originally for the Superbowl Ad is now being split up between nonprofits and businesses to help with their needs. The donations allowed each organization to purchase new school books, and new construction, and help make long overdue upgrades to their original facilities. This helped so many people but it also helped Pepsi gain over 3 million new followers on social media. The campaign helped Pepsi build brand equity and receive positive sentiments. However, unfortunately, sales declined.
Pepsi continued to see a huge loss in revenue over the years which is due to the fact that the campaign did not make an impact on consumers. The whole project received a pat on the back for the good that they did for the communites but did not drive sales. The project did not continue and it is unfortunate because I think that maybe Pepsi may have been ahead of its time for this project. I would like to see them run a similar campaign today in hopes that the world would respond differently.
References:
Avery, Jill & Norton, Michael I. (2013, August 26). The Pepsi Refresh Project: A Thirst for Change.
Retrieved on March 26, 2021 from https://hbsp.harvard.edu/e8da0cfc-83b4-40cc-b942-5be6790a6d2b
Gillette Pepsi Co (2010). Gillette Pepsi-Cola Announces Recipients of Local Pepsi Refresh Project
Grants. Retrieved from: https://www.gillettepepsicola.com/about-us/news/gillette-pepsi-cola-announcesrecipients-of-local-pepsi-refresh-project-grants/
Devin's Blog 