If you’re attending the Vancouver Olympics this year, and you find yourself in a 100 percent environmentally sustainable, carbon-neutral café, then it’s probably sponsored by Coca-Cola. The soda company, building on past efforts, is going green this year – big time. The brand is using bottles, furniture, and other products – some quite surprising – all with recycled materials and reusable energy.

The experienced brand knows that making such claims incurs a substantial amount of scrutiny from eco-friendly organizations and consumers alike, so it is prepared to meet, and even exceed, expectations. Coca-Cola aims to make every aspect of its involvement in the Olympics green, from staff uniforms and delivery trucks to waste streams for compostable coffee cups and lids.  

Sound too good to be true? It just might be.Continue reading...

The 2010 Winter Olympics offers world-class athletes an intense and competitive environment to showcase their talents. Yet no other participant is preparing more intensely for the games than McDonald’s.

That’s right, McDonald’s.

The fast food juggernaut has devised a marketing strategy that is as specific and yet as varied as the many competitions being offered at the games next February. McDonald’s is embracing the Winter Olympics in every aspect, and will fill everywhere from host city Vancouver to social networking phenomenon Twitter with its messaging.Continue reading...

When historic brands undergo change, they must establish a delicate balance between leveraging a strong traditional foundation with the perception of modernity.

For the much-loved Nestlé Crunch Bar, changing its 60-year-old recipe could result in coveted success or a level of failure reminiscent of the New Coke debacle.Continue reading...