How Brand Recognition Screws Up Your Brain - The Pepsi Paradox

[Fritzo]

A while back, Pepsi held a marketing campaign called "The Pepsi Challenge." In a blind taste test, nearly 3 out of 4 people preferred the taste of Pepsi over Coke. When the testers were actually shown what brands they were drinking before the test, nearly 3 out of 4 preferred Coke over Pepsi.

This is known as the Pepsi Paradox and is often cited as how brand recognition turns you into a sheep in the flock. If a brand is able to place itself so it stimulates various regions of the brain, it will become more desirable, despite advantages of any competition.

Interesting stuff:

http://www.farnamstreetblog.com/2010/06/mind-hack-why-do-we-prefer-coke-over.html

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=neuromarketing-brain&page=2

 

[deanx0r]

Pepsi held a marketing campaign called "The Pepsi Challenge."

^_^ Thats the problem right there.

There is a distinctive difference between Pepsi and Coke when it comes to taste. Unless they brought in people who never drunk Pepsi or Coke before.

 

[Cogman]

^_^ Thats the problem right there.

There is a distinctive difference between Pepsi and Coke when it comes to taste. Unless they brought in people who never drunk Pepsi or Coke before.

They poll random people, I don't think they call it "the pepsi challenge" either when they are doing it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pepsi_Challenge

They poll pretty much anyone that will stop and take a drink.

 

[Tweak155]

Ok stating "nearly 3 out of 4 people" just sounds weird, as though you can't count to 3. I was confused until it was stated again later on. Then I found this was for serious. Nearly 3 out of every 4 people makes it clear its a repeated test. Or simply nearly 75%. Gawd.

 

[Vic Vega]

Pepsi is flat and sweet, I don't like it. Any Cola drink can tell the difference between the products, they are night and day.

A blind taste test hosted by the company who makes the product (Coke or Pepsi) is not scientific or objective and the conclusions mean nothing.

Paradox not found.

 

[Craig234]

It's interesting stuff. Brands are really powerful - which is why Naomi Klein started 'no brand' to try to make a little counter-movement.

They give themselves away in marketing surveys. They ask questions about a brand by saying things like, 'imagine Ford Motr Company was a person. Tell us how you feel about him as a person.' Then it's followed by dozens of traits to rank - honest? fun? aggressive?

Because this is what they're doing to people - they want people to have those views of brands like people, and they have targets for their demographic to have the 'right' answers about these nonsensical ideas. But if not enough people think Ford Motor Company is at the 'aggressive' target, watch for ads to push that.

Marketing messes with people. It's an interesting story, for a century.

A century ago, they realized they could make a huge amount more if they could get people to stop buying things they need, and 'manufacture desire' with advertising.

There's a reason just having these logos - like Coca-cola - visible all over, saying nothing, increases sales and market share.

Some companies' main value is in their logo - carefully promoted and honed over decades - so they may just buy their actual product from any convenient factory in China, who cares, but the logo they put on it is worth billions of dollars in increased customer demand.

 

[MikeyLSU]

there is another problem with the taste test that makes it not a paradox of just branding.

In a very similar "test" more people prefer coke when they had to drink the entire bottle. Pepsi wins in a small taste test of a sip, but when drinking a bottle of the drink, more people prefer coke.

 

[crashtestdummy]

Actually, the Pepsei Challenge really freaked out Coca-Cola, as they got the same result as Pepsi when they repeated the experiment. The funny thing is that Coca-Cola then made New Coke based on similar taste tests, but it didn't work. Part of the reason is that the sweeter Pepsi does better when you take a sip of it, but not for drinking a whole can.

 

[foghorn67]

actually, the pepsei challenge really freaked out coca-cola, as they got the same result as pepsei when they repeated the experiment. The funny thing is that coca-cola then made new coke based on similar taste tests, but it didn't work. Part of the reason is that the sweeter pepsei does better when you take a sip of it, but not for drinking a whole can.

p-e-p-s-i.

 

[Fritzo]

Pepsi is flat and sweet, I don't like it. Any Cola drink can tell the difference between the products, they are night and day.

A blind taste test hosted by the company who makes the product (Coke or Pepsi) is not scientific or objective and the conclusions mean nothing.

Paradox not found.

 

[zinfamous]

A while back, Pepsi held a marketing campaign called "The Pepsi Challenge." In a blind taste test, nearly 3 out of 4 people preferred the taste of Pepsi over Coke. When the testers were actually shown what brands they were drinking before the test, nearly 3 out of 4 preferred Coke over Pepsi.

This is known as the Pepsi Paradox and is often cited as how brand recognition turns you into a sheep in the flock. If a brand is able to place itself so it stimulates various regions of the brain, it will become more desirable, despite advantages of any competition.

Interesting stuff:

http://www.farnamstreetblog.com/2010/06/mind-hack-why-do-we-prefer-coke-over.html

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=neuromarketing-brain&page=2

the article in Malcolm Gladwell's "The Tipping Point" regarding the Pepsi Challenge is pretty awesome. Or was it in "Blink?"

Though, it's more related to the disaster of "New Coke." Coca Cola's failure to realize that what people prefer for tasting--basically, the sip performed in these taste tests--is in no way related to what people will continue to drink, as in a full 12oz beverage.

People preferred to sip Pepsi b/c it is very much sweeter, but that gets to be too much for a full beverage. Brilliant marketing by Pepsi, and Coke simply failed to see this difference, panicked, and spent millions on ver-hauling their business, nearly driving themselves into bankruptcy with the disaster that was New Coke. They eventually noticed that The Pepsi Challenge never actually translated to increased sales of Pepsi, but when they brought in New Coke, their own sales plummeted.

 

[zinfamous]

Pepsi is flat and sweet, I don't like it. Any Cola drink can tell the difference between the products, they are night and day.

A blind taste test hosted by the company who makes the product (Coke or Pepsi) is not scientific or objective and the conclusions mean nothing.

Paradox not found.

no, it is a useful test that does show a real difference in preference, but what it is actually testing is not what they are telling you is being tested. That is where the marketing whores come into play.

 

[drebo]

Pepsi > Coke

 

[IGBT]

tobacco co.learned that decades ago.

 

[darkswordsman17]

OP, this is the type of stuff I was talking about in that bottled water thread.

 

[coloumb]

Coke > Pepsi. 1+ billion Chinese will agree.

 

[DCal430]

Most cola drinks taste nearly identical. The differences you are perceiving as a difference in taste is not taste but in fact a differences in smell.

Around 75% of what think of as taste is in fact smell. Our brains just perceive smell as being taste when we eat.

 

[Vic Vega]

no, it is a useful test that does show a real difference in preference, but what it is actually testing is not what they are telling you is being tested. That is where the marketing whores come into play.

No, it just doesn't. It was hosted by the manufacturer. The results cannot be used to draw any conclusions.

 

[DCal430]

I would hardly call Pepsi sweeter given that it contains only 3 more grams of sugar per serving than coke. A 10% difference in sugar content, which isn't significant.

 

[DCal430]

It is likely much of what you are perceiving as being much sweeter is not, It is just how your brain is perceiving one of the many smells found in Pepsi.

 

[Leros]

The Pepsi Challenge results would be very different depending on where you had the challenge. Different regions of the country have different preferences on the Coke/Pepsi debate.

 

[Newbian]

And that's why pepsi > coke as everyone knows.

 

[slayer202]

pepsi throwback >>>>>>>>> pepsi > coke

 

[Anubis]

pepsi throwback >>>>>>>>> pepsi > coke

Moxie >*

 

[Chaotic42]

Pepsi is sweeter and if you're just drinking a little, I can see why people would prefer it. For an actual beverage which you are going to consume quite a bit of, Coke is more "drinkable" to me.