Monday, September 22, 2008

Pepsi wins the hearts, and wallets, of Quebec's soda drinkers

A lesson in branding, 20 years in the making...

It seems there's no competition between Pepsi and Coca Cola in the province of Quebec. In the hearts of French-Canadians, Pepsi reigns as their cola of choice.
Here's a summary of what I read in a recent ReportOnBusiness article:
When both companies entered the Canadian market, several decades ago, their strategy was to tailor their marketing initiatives to a nationwide culture, wrongfully assuming that Canadian culture was homogeneous from the Rockies to the Maritimes. It was Pepsi who chose to listen to the market reaction and to this day is reaping the benefits.While Coca Cola became an instant favourite with English Canada-its impact was limited in Quebec. Coca Cola felt it was enough to simply translate their English slogans to French, but the response was disappointing. As Canadians well know, Quebecois pride themselves on their unique culture and disapprove of anything that lumps them in with the rest of Canada (apparently soda included!)

Having faced a similar defeat, in the French-speaking market, Pepsi chose to re-vamp its campaigns. They hired French-Canadian comedian Claude Meunier to star in a series of commercials that highlighted Quebec landmarks.

Did it work? By 1984, just 2 years after introducing their Quebec-only ads, Pepsi had a 20% lead in the cola market. The featured ads were obviously striking the right chord in Quebec. According to a recent ReportOnBusiness article, while a Pepsi spokesperson wouldn't provide specific numbers, she was insistent that Pepsi was still the market leader in Quebec.
The lesson: An undeniable loyalty was built between Pepsi lovers and Quebec during a period of great uncertainty and turmoil in the French province. This loyalty proved to be critical; nearly 20 years after Pepsi’s initial Quebec-only campaigns, Coca Cola is still struggling to find their footing in this market. Pepsi serves as a precedent for other companies' considering the Quebec market; they prove to be successful you must understand the culture you are entering.

The facts provided are based on several news reports that I read throughout the last week, namely one from ReportonBusiness.com

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