While walking along Yonge St. in downtown Toronto last weekend, I noticed something that struck me as a little odd.
At several major intersections and high-traffic areas, there seemed to be a party of Coca-Cola Blak drinkers who had been and left. I could tell what they were drinking, because they left all their empty bottles behind.
I didn’t notice the bottles at first, but my curiosity was struck as I walked by a Tim Hortons at a very busy intersection. There was a large collection - maybe around 15 or so - of the bottles on a windowsill, just under eye level, all reasonably well spaced. The really odd part was that the bottles of Coca-Cola Blak were the only litter there. There wasn’t a coffee cup, a Pepsi bottle, or a muffin bag. Nada. Nothin’ but Coke Blak.
What struck me as odd was the way that they only seemed to gather near areas of high on-foot traffic… at intersections, by coffee shops, and in transit areas. Which normally wouldn’t make me give it a second thought, except for the absence of any other litter. It didn’t look natural.
As the day wore on (we walked for about 8 hours), I noticed the bottles in many other places. In the bus shelter, under a subway seat, on a window sill, in a corner. True, it’s not unusual to find bottles in these places. In fact, it would be unusual to not find litter around. But the same bottles, with no other litter in the area, always with the label facing out… odd.
Let’s just imagine for a minute that the bottles where placed there on purpose to show people how popular this drink is. If this were the case, then the bottles represent a clever marketing tactic. Creative, with just a hint of desperation.
The Coca-Cola Blak bottles remind me of how difficult it is to generate buzz through social marketing. Occasionally, with just the right link bait, you get a hit. And a hit with social media can be much more effective than traditional “push” advertising. Look at the Dove ad on YouTube.
The bottles also remind me of tactics like signing blogs, creating fake reviews, and pretending to be third parties suggesting a product or service. They can work, but not if the audience suspects the information is planted.
Social media marketing is the next big thing in online marketing. There’s no question that it is already the subject of research and debate on how to best monetize it. There is not yet a tried and true way to leverage social marketing. One of the few tactics that can be agreed on is that you need a hook for people to latch on to. And effective marketers understand that people need to feel that they are acting on their own impetus, and are not being manipulated.