GROUP MEMBERS MEGHA WADHWA NAMRATA DHANRAJANI NIKHIL GUPTA SURAJ KALRA

New Coke was the reformulation of Coca-Cola introduced in 1985 by The Coca-Cola Company to replace the original formula of its flagship soft drink, Coca-Cola,

For the purpose of launching New Coke, a thorough market research was conducted which included interviews of 2,00,000 consumers which involved an expenditure of $4 million.
Survey research showed 10-12% of the total consumers preferred Coke and People who preferred Coke over Pepsi were found drinking Pepsi at times or any other drink which was available and was sweeter than Coke

Focus group research revealed that many people were willing to try New Coke however some believed that Coca Cola should not alter the test of the existing Coke Both the Focus as well as Survey Research showed Consumer dissatisfaction but the New Coke was launched based on the BLIND TEST According to BLIND TEST the new drink introduced by Coca Cola tasted better than Pepsi and scored 6 to 8 points in the test. It was expected that the New Coke would make Coke popular than Pepsi by approximately 16 to 18 points. The New Coke was unsuccessful and there was a significant decline in the market share from 15% to 1.4% and Coca Cola was forced to revert back to its original formula with the name of Coke Classic.

OTHER RESEARCH METHODS WHICH COULD HAVE BEEN CONDUCTED ARE

1) Conduct a careful but unobtrusive observation of the consumer interaction with different products in the same category. Is there any difference in the way the consumer handles the different brands Subtle behavioral differences may be clues to different levels of emotional attachment to each product.

2) Researchers may use more exotic techniques such as simulated psychodrama to try to uncover consumer opinion. For example, consumers maybe asked to imagine themselves as a beverage and then describe the beverage in detail. Through this technique, the researcher can often learn more about consumer preferences than through more direct methods.

NEW COKE:A MARKET BLUNDER??????????

The failure of New Coke was a pure market blunder mainly because of the following reasons1) The old coke was completely pulled out of the market which led to resentment in the minds of the consumers. 2) Severely underestimated the power of its original brand and its attachment to its loyal customers

3) The majority of the tests had been carried out blind, and therefore taste was the only factor under assessment.
4) The questions which were asked in the research paper were wrong , so the research provided irrelevant information.

RESEARCH PAPERS

According to TOWSON UNIVERSITY good marketing research is more than money and numbers Good marketing research including both quantitative and qualitative techniques gets to the root of how consumers really feel about a certain product. As Coca Cola company experience proves, sometimes consumers true feelings run even deeper than they realize themselves. According to PACIFIC RESEARCH INSTITIUTE another research paper Coca Colas market research failed to predict a high level of brand loyalty to the original formula, As a result, the company did not expect a consumer backlash against the new formula nor declining consumer interest in new Coke soon after its introduction on the market.

The Influence of Fast Food Images

A recent study reveals just why so many outlets use photographs or display their products so clearly to prospective customers. The research was performed on people who were already obese, the researchers focused on obese Hispanic women who are considered a high risk group both for obesity and diabetes. The womens brains were scanned as they looked at pictures of caloriedense foods, like burgers, cookies and cakes. After seeing the images participants rated their hunger and desire for sweet or savory foods. It transpired that the images stimulated the appetite and reward centers of the brain: in other words, seeing the pictures triggered the desire to eat.

REFRENCES
www.google.com www.wikipedia.org www.pacificresearch.org