Loved by many and hated by others, Coca Cola is an incredibly successful product, the world’s most consumed drink. The Coca Cola company ranks fifth in the list of the most valuable brands, behind Apple, Google, Microsoft and Facebook; according to Forbes magazine.
Did you know that the creator of Coca Cola did not see the potential of the product and sold the recipe to an entrepreneur who ended up being a millionaire?
Also read: How to be rich and 21 other ideas from millionaire Warren Buffet.
Asa Candler (the entrepreneur) started working in a pharmacy in his homeland, Villa Rica, Georgia. Given the low income that this job represented, he decided to move to Atlanta to look for better opportunities. His desire to improve led him to achieve it. He worked at George J. Howard’s pharmacy where his good performance allowed him to move up. Over time and after a conflict with Howard, Candler decided to follow his own path.
Their constant migraines led them to try any number of possible solutions and that’s when they discovered that a pharmacist named John Pemberton had developed a product called Coca Cola. Pemberton sold a glass of Coca Cola for just 5 cents and that’s when Candler saw the opportunity and without hesitation he sold everything he had. He made an initial investment of $500 in the Pemberton company, but eventually took full control with an investment of $2,300.
The rest is the story we know, a good product combined with an aggressive marketing strategy have allowed Coca Cola to reach all corners of the world.
What lessons can we learn?
1. Make them remember your product.
It is not enough to develop a very good product, it is necessary to know how to offer it. Asa understood that Pemberton was selling on a small scale, so she decided to offer the product to other pharmacies and expand their reach. Today, Coca Cola continues to develop incredible campaigns with excellent results. So much so that in 2013 they invested 3.3 billion dollars in marketing and it is not surprising that it is one of the most recognized brands in the world. We all know what it looks like, we all know what it sounds like, and we all know what it tastes like.
2. Be unique.
Every day everyone is bombarded by information about many products and only through structured branding can we stand out from the competition.
When Coca Cola started to become popular, many copies appeared, so Asa’s vision allowed him to understand that his job was to show Coca Cola as the original product, so that customers only wanted the real thing.
Also read: How to develop, sell and distribute a product.
3. Seize the moment and project yourself.
It is quite possible that if it weren’t for Asa’s vision we wouldn’t know about Coca Cola. Asa knew how to see the potential that the product had and did not hesitate to take risks to make it his own. He gambled smartly and step by step took control of the company. Later he understood that he already had the perfect product, so he did not make the mistake of changing it, what he did do was change his marketing strategies and product presentation to open up new markets and become what he is today.
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