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Before Candler took over Coca-Cola operations, Pemberton had been doing business on a small scale. He ran a local company with a local customer base and had little chances of growing it much larger at the rate he was going. His only promotional effort was an oil cloth with the sign “Drink Coca-Cola” that hung on a local drugstore. Candler, however, knew that there were billions more thirsty people out there; he just needed to find a way to reach them. It was through a strategy of aggressive and memorable marketing, initiated by Candler but one which continues to this day, that Coca-Cola became the billion dollar company it is today.
Pemberton had been selling his soft drink to Jacob’s Pharmacy for five cents a glass. When Candler bought the rights from him, his first plan of attack was to expand that base of distributors. Candler immediately began marketing the syrup to other pharmacists. Initially, many of the drugstores were reluctant to sell Coca-Cola. After all, they each already had their own beverages of the same sort. Not one to take ‘no’ for answer, however, Candler refused to back down.
By selling his own pharmacy and living frugally, Candler used that money to begin making deals to other pharmacists that proved irresistible. He offered pharmacies their first barrels of syrup for free, and also gave out coupons to their customers for complimentary tastes of the drink. If it was not a hit, there would be no losses to the drugstores. Candler also began putting the distinctive Coca-Cola script on everything from clocks, fans, trays, and urns to calendars and apothecary scales in an effort to saturate these stores with the Coca-Cola brand. Taken together, these initiatives helped to overcome the reluctance on the parts of both the pharmacists and customers.
Once a pharmacist agreed to carry his drink, Candler also entered into a deal with them whereby each new soda fountain owner had to provide Candler with the names of 128 influential individuals in the local community – after the number of ounces of syrup in a gallon of Coke concentrate. Candler would then mail letters to these 128 people announcing his new product and offering coupons for a free glass at that pharmacy.
Candler’s strategy worked. From 1892 to 1916, 10 percent of adult Americans tried a free Coca-Cola through this program. While the company lost money on the first kegs it distributed for free, once customers got a taste of Coca-Cola, they kept coming back for more. It was not long before he had more orders than he needed to offset his expenses. Over time, Candler used this same strategy in expanding his operations throughout the U.S.
In addition to giving away samples of his product for free, Candler also engaged in a series of aggressive advertising campaigns. In 1892, the company’s advertising budget was $11,401, a large sum of money for the time and for a regional product. Candler used ads that featured pretty girls to convey the image of youth and happiness, and placed the ads not only in pharmacies but also on billboards, the sides of bars, and in full-page newspaper ads. Candler also dropped the idea of Coke as a medicine, after he realized it was getting in the way of the image of the drink as something delicious and refreshing.
In little time, customers were asking for Coke by name and pharmacists had no choice but to carry the product. Candler also hired ambitious salesman who would not only pitch his product across the country, but also engage in quality control – checking on such things as the carbonated water machinery in each new customer’s pharmacy.
Today, the Coca-Cola Company continues Candler’s innovative marketing techniques by affiliating themselves with worldwide sporting events such as the Olympic Games and the FIFA World Cup and introducing such memorable ads as “Always Coca-Cola” and the lovable Coca-Cola Polar Bear. Candler was a marketing genius who saw opportunities for expansion anywhere and everywhere he went.
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