On this day April 23, 1985, Coca Cola introduced New Coke, an updated formula meant to replace the original version of the world’s most popular soft drink. The change was made after years of taste testing and internal research showed people preferred a sweeter formula closer to Pepsi.
What Coca Cola didn’t expect was the massive backlash. Loyal fans across the country rejected the new taste, flooded the company with complaints, and even formed protest groups. The company underestimated the emotional connection people had to the original Coke formula, and within just 79 days, Coca Cola brought back the original under the name Coca Cola Classic.
The incident has since become one of the most famous marketing failures in American history, but also one of the most studied. Oddly enough, the return of the original helped boost Coca Cola’s sales long term.
Fun fact: Some conspiracy theorists believed the entire thing was planned as a publicity stunt to boost sales of the original, but Coca Cola has always denied that.
Trivia question: What marketing research method did Coca Cola rely on before launching New Coke that failed to predict the public backlash?
What Coca Cola didn’t expect was the massive backlash. Loyal fans across the country rejected the new taste, flooded the company with complaints, and even formed protest groups. The company underestimated the emotional connection people had to the original Coke formula, and within just 79 days, Coca Cola brought back the original under the name Coca Cola Classic.
The incident has since become one of the most famous marketing failures in American history, but also one of the most studied. Oddly enough, the return of the original helped boost Coca Cola’s sales long term.
Fun fact: Some conspiracy theorists believed the entire thing was planned as a publicity stunt to boost sales of the original, but Coca Cola has always denied that.
Trivia question: What marketing research method did Coca Cola rely on before launching New Coke that failed to predict the public backlash?
