Pepsi - For those who know what they want

CONTEXT: In 2019, Pepsi launched a global communication platform, For the love of it, to celebrate those who live life by their own rules and mute all self-doubt to follow their passions. To localize the platform, the brand launched limited edition cans with messages related to the local target’s passions, sourced from national-level research. CHALLENGE: Bring local relevance and depth to the messages on the cans, by tapping into a cultural insight and creating a manifesto of the Romanian free-spirited generation. TARGET: Our campaign addressed the younger target (18-24), who are defined by their free spirit. Curious and open to new experiences, they are positive and confident in their potential and on a journey to defining their identity. They want to carve their own life path, while navigating the complexities of young adulthood. They don’t view failure as a life-altering event and are not afraid to try things again and again, until they succeed. This attitude towards life is quite different from that of older generations, so they often feel misunderstood by them and are not welcoming of their unsolicited life of career advice. INSIGHT: We started from the discrepancy between how this young generation with global and contemporary values approaches life and the constrains of the outdated system they grew up in. Both the educational system and how older generations value success fail to encourage passions or alternative lifepaths. Our target is familiar with hearing things like “You shouldn’t” or “This is not for you” when wanting to choose an alternative path to success. The difference in the free-spirited comes from their determination to overcome every NO to live life by their own rules. IDEA: Create a community of like-minded people, by challenging them to make a common effort to prove that true passion can turn off every NO in its way. Execution: We chose a message from the cans, that stands for a common value of our target and the essence of the Pepsi brand: For those who know what they want. We flipped the meaning by adding a big NO to it (Pentru cei care NU stiu ce vor – For those who DO NOT know what they want) and placed it on a non-branded billboard in Bucharest, with the NO made up of 1000 lights. We called on our target to claim the original message, by turning off the NO through sharing their stories of how they obstinately followed their passion, despite repeatedly being told “You’re not good enough”, “This is not for you” or ”You can not make it”. People could upload their stories to the campaign website, which was directly connected to the billboard – each story turned off one light in the NO, in real time. Soon, stories were pouring in and the NO on the billboard stared to fade. In order to completely turn off the NO, we brought together 1000 people who, like us, believe that there is nothing that can stand in the way of following a dream, and got them to share their inspiring stories. The final light was turned off during an event where influencers shared their stories and The Mono Jacks performed the campaign anthem. Stories from the website were projected during the event. We created an aftermovie highlighting the most important moments of the campaign and the most inspiring stories received. During the campaign, we registered significant uplift in cans sales compared to the same period last year, as people took to the stores to find the message that best illustrates their passion. Credits Client: PepsiCo Brand: Pepsi Creative Agency: Kubis Interactive Media Agency: OMD Alin Marghidanu: Creative Director Carina Toma: Group Creative Director Maria Teodorof: Group Creative Director Marius Goleanu: Art Director Victor Firan: Art Director Talida Cristea: Client Service Director Ada Gheorghiu: Account Director Alina Stanciu: Sr. Account Manager Sebastian Luba: Head of Social Media Stefania Bercu: Strategic Planner Stefan Chiritescu: Head of Strategy Daniel Placinta: Chief Technology Officer Dani Ivan: Senior Front-End Developer Ionut Avadanei: Director of Photography Marian Ciungu: Editor Adriana Nestoriuc – Beverages Marketing Activation Manager Iuliana Dragomir – Sr. Brand Manager Pepsi Georgiana Nițu – Jr. Brand Manager Pepsi Laurențiu Ion – Beverages Digital Marketing Manager Irina Perju – Beverages Digital Specialist Razvan Meirosu – Media Director Cristina Filipeanu – Media Manager Mihnea Pretorian – Digital Director Dana Constantin – Digital Manager Adela Bozgan – Digital Executive