And why would they mind the Pepsi ads?
Everytime Pepsi mentions Coke in their ads,
Coke’s sales go up.
(One of those marketing “rules” - don’t spend your money advertising someone else’s product)

BTW… I’m a fan of Coke because they don’t market their colas directly to children.
(And yes, I realize that this Coke policy was prompted by a legal ruling WAY before my time)
Pepsi, on the other hand, hires child spokespeople.

Turns out, there are tons of references to “Coke vs. Pepsi taste tests” on Google… but truly scientific studies have discovered (through fMRI applications) that your preference for either has as much to do with the hard wiring in your prefontal cortex, as to actual taste.

Score one for branding and big ad budgets.

However, my main point stills stands. Researchers chose the cola debate because of the fervent dedication people show to one or the other brands… and yet, both products are so similar, they cancel out enough “x” factors to allow the docs to feel their fMRI images reveal good insight to brain function.

The thing is, they’re both sugar water products. The good readng for marketers comes in the comments that accompany these articles — where people get downright nasty passionately defending their choices and trashing the alternatives. For sugar water.

Here’s one stop that explains the 2004 study: http://www.hnl.bcm.tmc.edu/cache/eurekalert.org.htm

John

Still, I’ll do a little digging and see what googles to the surface on this matter… if I’m gonna keep using the analogy, you’re right to ask me to back it up.

John

I know you’re looking at this from the Pepsi side
because I’m certain the results from Coke would “prove” the opposite.

Regardless of their experience, people will hold on to their own beliefs like their lives depended upon it.

“But you gotta have your protein” they will argue. It’s either that or a bunch of other uneducated garbage they spew out of their mouths.

99% of the time, these people have never tested alternative diets themselves, yet they seem to know what is best for them. And they will argue their point ferociously despite not having 1 iota of direct experience.

I quickly learned to avoid talking to ignorant people if at all possible.

Of course if they have a credit card in hand, I’ll shut up, nod my head, and say… “Yes indeed, I hear ya. I’m with ya man”.

It’s not even close to being a fair fight.”

Brilliant marketing insight.

What I’d be interested in is how do deeply held convictions get settled in our minds in the first place. There has to be a point where we go from “it could go either way, I guess” to “No! I’m right! Lalalalala I can’t hear you! I can’t hear you!”

Either way, though, if we get good enough at salesmanship to tap into the “abandon all logic and reason” areas of our customers’ brains, id’s sure make a difference in sales.

Dan