Coca-Cola enters new journey with launch of ‘Real magic,’ a new company platform & philosophy

Following a pandemic sales downturn and a $4 billion evaluation of Coca-Cola’s worldwide creative and advertising agencies, the beverage giant recently announced “Real Magic,” a new global brand platform.

Coca-Cola’s new brand platform features a “Hug” logo based on the company’s packaging, which is the company’s first redesign since 2016. The curved logo, created by Wieden+Kennedy London, KnownUnknown, and Kenyon Weston, drapes round Coca-Cola bottles and cans like a hug. The artwork is aimed to emphasise times of enjoying a Coke with friends.

Manolo Arroyo, chief marketing officer for The Coca-Cola Company, commented about the new initiate, “Real Magic is not simply a tagline or a one-off campaign: It is a long-term brand philosophy and belief that will drive and guide marketing and communications across the Coca-Cola trademark.”

“Real Magic” is meant to highlight “the many contradictions experienced as new generations find harmony and human connection in a virtual and divided world. Coca-Cola is a brand defined by dichotomies: humble but iconic, authentic yet secret, real yet magical,” he added.

Coca-Cola launched a campaign called “One Coke Away From Each Other” to showcase the new platform that ties into the world of gaming. Throughout the video, players compete in an esports battle. If one of the players drinks a Coke, the game’s protagonists quit attacking and unite.

Daniel Wolfe directed the commercial produced by BETC London and Mathematic, a company that specialises in gaming and CGI. DJ Alan Walker, Aerial Powers of Team Liquid, and Average Jonas, all well-known gamers, feature prominently.

On October 11, Coca-Cola will establish a code search in which participants can win prizes such as gaming sessions with famous gamers. In the “One Coke Away From Each Other” commercial, fans can look for 25 secret codes. Coca-Cola teamed up with Twitch’s Brand Partnership Studio to allow fans to gain ten more codes while watching gaming creators live video streams on their Twitch channels.

The “Real Magic” brand platform debuts as Coca-Cola faces a global agency consolidation review, following a 28 percent reduction in sales in 2020 when eateries, bars, sporting venues, and other sites were forced to close due to the outbreak.