Share a Coke Just Got Bigger

At the start of summer 2013, Coca-Cola South Africa announced that it would be swapping its name with the most popular names in Mzansi. 450 of the country’s most popular first names were selected and printed on selected Coca-Cola packaging. Excited consumers discovered the various names and as the word spread through social media, more consumers began the hunt to find their names.

Coca-Cola decided to take it one step further, affording South Africans the opportunity to nominate and vote for the next set of names they wanted to see on a Coca-Cola bottle. Through the use of social media, Coca-Cola South Africa asked its fans to nominate and vote for their favourite names. An additional 250 new names were released in January 2014. The most popular names included Nikhil, Morne, Khutso, Monica, and Vukani. In total, there are currently 700 of the most popular consumer names in South Africa available in stores across selected Coca-Cola packs.
‘The best part of the campaign has been the consumer stories and how this campaign has brought people together,’ said Sharon Keith, Marketing Director Coca-Cola South Africa.

As an all-inclusive brand, Coca-Cola gave consumers an opportunity to create their own names on cans if they could not find it amongst the 700 names released. With this in mind, Coca-Cola embarked on a journey across the country with the Share a Coke vending machines to share happiness with as many consumers as possible. More than 300 000 Share a Coke cans have been distributed by the Share a Coke vending machines to date.

‘We wanted to try and give as many people the opportunity to experience this unique campaign and remind people that Coca-Cola is all about sharing happiness. With this in mind, we have not only introduced new names, we have also introduced Valentine’s day limited edition packs like Love, Kiss, Bokkie,’ added Keith.