Out of all the different types of soft drinks today, these two still are the big hitters. Although they look the same, kind of taste the same and basically are made from the same ingredients, there are still those who whole-heartedly favor one side over the other.
The picture above explains how the two are different; basically, Coke is the older, more traditional standard of cola. The Coca-Cola writing and symbols in the above picture are more traditional with the old school girl holding a glass bottle like from back in the day. They have been the golden standard ever since anyone can remember and they were good at it.
Pepsi, on the other hand, is the young up-and-coming punk, the proverbial little brother who doesn't care about anything but is great at everything. (If you have younger siblings than you get what I just said, if not think of the new guy at the office who gets everything right the first try every time.) Pepsi is the young, attractive pop-star who is all about the glitz n' glam of the cola world. Look how they don't even have their name capitalized, they're just like yeah this is our name and we're good, no big deal.
Coke has it's edge in advertising, which is they are grandfathered into the cola world and use their traditional style to keep their audience happy and filled with Coke. However, Pepsi however, came in strong years ago when they did the public blind taste tests and showed it on air letting people know that just because their name isn't Coke doesn't mean they can't put out some great tasting cola.
(I know the video is old and from Australia, but it is the same concept and there are plenty more just like it)
I like pepsi's ad campaigns, grabbing the attention of the younger crowd so they could build from the ground up. They present themselves as the hot new thing, the party person, the young hip cola compared to it's counterpart old faithful.
Coke has put out a new campaign that uses social media as a way to get it's name out there. #shareacoke This is a great way to utilize new age tools and not depend solely on their name to sell their product, as they are stepping away from the comfort zone.
When it comes down to it, they both taste good and I wouldn't mind having either one right now cause it's so hot out here in Cali, but thats besides the point. They both are hugely profitable, as both companies have plenty of contingencies in case these two heavy hitters fail to produce and whichever side you choose will not be based solely on taste but the whole company and it's advertising.
Storyselling at it's finest
