Tapestry of Brazil Provides Backdrop for Coke Torch Marketing

(ATR) A polar bear in Brazil, great local stories, and a journey that brings Olympism to remote parts of Brazil is what makes the 2016 Torch Relay special for Coca-Cola.

The soft drink company has been a mainstay sponsor for the Olympic Torch Relay, having sponsored each Olympic edition since 1992 in Barcelona. According to Marketing Director James Williams, that longevity gives the company a frame of reference to start each undertaking, allowing them to build on the experiences from two years ago.

Williams told Around the Rings that the 95 day journey around Brazil did not faze the company, but provided them with a platform to bring the Olympic spirit to over 20 million people in the world’s fifth largest country.

"We’ve done this so many times now that we have become quite proficient in it and we know the good and bad things we do and can continue to build on it," Williams said to ATR. "People are getting behind it and its celebrating Brazil and Brazilians, and that’s what we bring as a brand."

To continue building momentum through the entire relay Coca-Cola is relying on multiple strategies to keep Brazilians engaged and inspired. One way to achieve this and achieve the global strategy of marketing to teenagersis through the use of the company’s iconic polar bear.

"We’ve used social influencers to engage young people on the relay, so on the way they are taking a road trip with the bear, and the bear is taking a road trip with the relay," Williams added. "We’re doing this little series with the influencers and the bear when they run with the torch, and that’s been the way we keep this high engagement all the way through."

Another challenge Coca-Cola faces is the diversity of stops that the Torch Relay faces. Over the 95 days over 320 cities are going to be touched by the Olympic Flame. Some of those cities are some of Brazil’s largest, while others have populations of only a few thousand people.

To drum up interest all over Brazil, Coca-Cola has partnered with local torchbearers with interesting stories to use in activation. Williams says that "local pride," is important to highlight along the relay because it captures the true spirit of what people feel when they see the Olympic Flame running through their hometowns.

All corners of the country of Brazil will be touched during the relay, as the torch will make appearances in all 27 states and every state capital. Logistically, organizers will be flying the flame over 10,000 kilometers and driving the flame over 20,000 kilometers. Organizers say that over 90 percent of the country’s population will have the opportunity to view the Torch Relay as it travels toward Rio de Janeiro.

Visiting the remote parts of Brazil was not lost on Coca-Cola when they were planning activation throughout the entire country. In reality, as the torch goes to more and more remote places, the activation almost gets to speak for itself.

"There are so many amazing places and the torch will have seen so much more of Brazil than most Brazilians [by the end]," Williams said. "Taking it to those remote places and doing these remote things and seeing these great local elements are something that will be so important about building that local pride into Brazil and the local people."

Written by Aaron Bauer in Rio de Janeiro

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