An Ice-Cold Can of Unity:

If we were to define marketing in simple terms, it would look something like this:

To promote perceived mutually beneficial exchanges between seller and buyer.

In most cases, we assume this exchange to be a product or service for money, but as marketers we know that buyers don’t just buy a product because they can. Usually, buyers are buying an experience or a feeling. 

Let’s take Coca-Cola for instance, if you remember back to about 2014, Coca-Cola came out with the “Share a Coke” Campaign. They printed names and monikers on their bottles and containers and boosted sales about .4% after over a decade of decline in sales! Not only did they increase sales, but their competitors stayed negative!

So, did consumers wake up one day and decide they all wanted a nice ice-cold carbonated drink? 

No, Coca-Cola had shifted from selling refreshments to now selling the experience of sharing a drink with friends, family and even Santa! They were going from store to store searching for their names, gifting their cans to their loved ones, and posting it all over social media. Consumers were buying the feeling of unity and personal connection. 

So next time you’re looking at your marketing campaigns, rather than the product itself, look at what feeling and experiences your customers are buying into.