Coke. GIANT COKE....

Since I gave Coke a bit of a hard time in my blog about Pepsi's stunt in Argentina during the World Cup, I have decided to dedicate this blog to the cool things that Coke has been up to in Argentina:

Argentina and other Latin American countries celebrate "Dia del Amigos" (Friend's Day) every year on July 20th and this year Coke joined in on the fun with a giant Coke vending machine. The machine was twice the size of a normal machine and dispensed two Cokes for the price of one- the catch being that one person had to lift their friend up to be able to reach the money and buttons. There was only one machine and it was placed in a sold-out movie theater in Buenos Aires and it sold ten times the amount of bottles that a normal machine does.

Let me get this out of the way-- why is Argentina getting all this great advertising?! How about some American brains start thinking of entertaining and innovative stunts for brands? And I also think it's fantastic that these Latin American countries celebrate Friend's Day to this extent; what a wonderful thing to dedicate an entire day to. It has become so popular in recent years that almost all restaurants are booked days in advance and the mobile network in Argentina temporarily crashed from all of the communication between people on Friend's Day.

Okay, now that I've gotten that out... I love when companies incorporate their brand or product into an event, holiday or occasion. It can be done so well and it's a free partnership that already has its own great publicity. The ultimate success in a stunt like this is that not only did it delight people and draw attention, it upped sales! A lot of companies sink a lot of money into getting their brand out there without seeing their investment pay off in an immediate way (or perhaps at all), and this is a great way to be able to instantly measure success. 

I think Coke hit a home-run with this on a very unique holiday, I just wish they would have done this in more than one location. The lone jumbo vending machine was such a hit, it's a shame they didn't think to roll out vending machines all across Argentina (or all across Latin America even). They had a great idea and they should have run with it... and I'll definitely be paying attention to Dia del Amigos next year to see if Coke can top this one.