Together, Coca-Cola and the World Wildlife Federation are are finding creative ways to raise awareness about the conservation efforts taking place to help polar bears in the Arctic. Using a QR Code, an iPad and iPhone app, and Facebook, Coca-Cola has created a social game complete with prizes (including iPads) and a cause marketing connection.
Consumers can join the game by visiting a local 7-Eleven store where they can scan the QR code on cups in the store to download the Snowball Effect by Coca-Cola app to their iPhones or iPads. The app is also available in the iTunes store. Once the app is installed and connected to Facebook, players can start playing the entertaining snowball-throwing game.
The game is actually very simple. The more you play, the bigger your snowball gets and the better you can protect the polar bear’s home in the game. that means more points and better chances for prizes. Alternately, players can become members of 7-Eleven’s Slurpee Rewards program to get additional points by scanning QR codes on select Coca-cola product packaging.
7-Eleven will award the eight iPad prizes each week to players with the highest cumulative scores. After the final week of the campaign, eight randomly selected players will each get an iPad and the single player with the highest cumulative score will win a trip for 2 to the Arctic to see polar bears in their natural habitat.
Players can play alone in a practice mode, challenge their Facebook friends, or accept challenges from others, which adds a social element to the game. There is also a link in the app that leads directly to the World Wildlife Federation page where players can donate money to help with polar bear conservation. Coca-Cola will match all donations dollar-for-dollar up to $1 million.
The reviews for the app and game from players are positive so far, and the campaign is generating a lot of buzz. That’s great for Coca-Cola, 7-Eleven, the World Wildlife Federation, and polar bears!
Dubbed the Arctic Home campaign, this is a great example of how multiple brands can work together to create a meaningful social media campaign that integrates online and offline marketing as well as cause marketing strategies. Kudos to Coca-Cola, 7-Eleven, and the World Wildlife Federation for getting it right.
What do you think of the Arctic Home campaign? Love it or hate it? Leave a comment and share your thoughts.
Image: Slurpee.com
Susan Gunelius is the author of 10 marketing, social media, branding, copywriting, and technology books, and she is President & CEO of KeySplash Creative, Inc., a marketing communications company. She also owns Women on Business, an award-wining blog for business women. She is a featured columnist for Entrepreneur.com and Forbes.com, and her marketing-related articles have appeared on websites such as MSNBC.com, BusinessWeek.com, TodayShow.com, and more.
She has over 20 years of experience in the marketing field having spent the first decade of her career directing marketing programs for some of the largest companies in the world, including divisions of AT&T and HSBC. Today, her clients include large and small companies around the world and household brands like Citigroup, Cox Communications, Intuit, and more. Susan is frequently interviewed about marketing and branding by television, radio, print, and online media organizations, and she speaks about these topics at events around the world. You can connect with her on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or Google+.
