Dive Brief:

• Coca-Cola has relaunched its iconic “Share a Coke” campaign with a focus on shareability, customization and digital experiences as a way to engage Gen Z consumers, per details shared with Marketing Dive. 
• Along with personalized Coke bottles and cans, the effort includes a QR code-powered digital hub that allows for further personalization, a Memory Maker digital experience that can help consumers create and share videos and a Personalization Experience Tour.
• Created by WPP Open X, the campaign will be supported by new video creative across traditional TV, online video platforms and social media, as well as out-of-home advertising. 

Dive Insight:

Coke is refreshing one of its best-known and most-successful campaigns with a focus on Gen Z, a group that is comfortable making connections online but also craves authentic experiences that outlast fleeting digital moments. “Share A Coke” originally launched in Australia in 2011 and the U.S. in 2014 and was most recently iterated on in 2018. The marketing effort has become well-known for its focus on soda bottles with names printed on the packaging, a strategy that has contributed to a sense of personalization.

The theme of the latest version of the campaign is captured in new video creative in which three young consumers have their mental state represented by digital icons in a sort of augmented reality. Their respective concerns fall away when they message each other to meet IRL to share a Coke. The 45-second spot is set to The Temper Trap’s “Sweet Disposition,” a song with lyrics (“a moment, a love, a dream, aloud, a kiss, a cry”) that speak to the emotional connections the brand seeks to forge with its overarching “Real Magic” platform.

Beyond video content, the latest “Share a Coke” is supported by experiences that bridge the digital and physical. Consumers who can’t find products with the names they’re looking for can scan a QR code to personalize cans and bottles via a digital hub. Meanwhile, a separate digital experience launching March 31 encourages consumers to create and share memories for a chance to win a trip to Hawaii, with support from creator integrations.

“The iconic ‘Share a Coke’ is back and supercharged at a global level, celebrating the pure magic that happens when people connect. It’s not just about likes and shares — we’re talking real-world moments, amplified,” said Islam ElDessouky, global vice president of creative at Coca-Cola, in a statement. “We’re bringing new channels and experiences to this campaign to help people uplift friendships through real-life everyday moments.”

In addition to digital activations, the campaign includes an in-person tour of college campuses, sporting events and music festivals in key markets across the country that will give consumers a chance to personalize cans and stickers. Personalized Coke bottles and cans will be available nationwide at local convenient stores and supermarkets on March 31, with personalized glass bottles available for purchase via CokeStore.com.

The campaign was developed by WPP Open X, led by VML and supported by Ogilvy PR, EssenceMediacom and Subvrsive. The Coca-Cola Company this month moved its media and data business in North America from WPP to Publicis Groupe following a closed door review, with WPP retaining other parts of the business.

Coke’s parent in February announced that organic revenues grew 14% in Q4 2024 and 12% for the full year. The company is seeing “tangible results” from its marketing transformation, with the trademark brand’s retail sales increasing approximately $40 billion over the past three years, said CEO James Quincey on an earnings call.