Coca-Cola puts the spotlight on diversity with Super Bowl 2014 ad

 6th February 2014    Good and Bad PR 

Great PR 

Coca Cola puts the spotlight on diversity with Super Bowl 2014 ad

Coca Cola pushed for greater diversity through the ad for America’s biggest sporting event, the Super Bowl 2014.

The ad showed America from different ethic persuasions singing “America the Beautiful” in 7 languages including Hindi and Spanish.

It also shows a gay couple with their child. While the ad celebrates inclusion it has drawn a storm of criticism from the right wing conservative side of the US.

I think it’s an ad with lessons for India as well, with our huge diversity and elections around the corner; it’s good to think beyond vote banks.

Bad PR

Odisha Government displays live tribal models and scarecrow like effigy at Adivasi Mela

Politicians certainly need several lessons in sensitivity training. After the UP government’s Saifai Mahaotsav fiasco, the Odisha government has joined the ranks of insensitive behaviour by governments.

At the Adivasi mela held from January 26^th, the mela not only had live models of Munda and Saura tribes in barricaded areas but also a scarecrow like effigy of an Oram tribal.

India at the moment is facing a lot of scrutiny due to the behaviour of AAP ministers towards Ugandan women as well as the recent beating and death of north east Indian Nido Taniam, both these incident took place in south Delhi .

It is time India faced its racist side and changed this narrative.

More Great PR

ALZHEIMER NEDERLAND uses Facebook to befuddle users and raise awareness about Alzheimer’s

In a brilliant campaign Alzheimer Netherlands encouraged users to put up their friends photos with photo shopped backgrounds. Friends were confused to see their pictures at events that they have no memory of attending, giving them a taste of what  it feels like to have the disease.

A truly innovative campaign.

ALZHEIMER NEDERLAND - The Alzheimer's Event [casefilm] 2:00" from N=5 on Vimeo.

This reminds me of a campaign done in UK where an NGO working with Alzheimer had wiped out entire timelines in Facebook to give users an idea of what it is like to forget.

MTS uses the song DK Bose to extend its brand

The song DK Bose I am sure needs no introduction. MTS the telecom network from Sistema Shyam TeleServices, has now come up with an interesting way to use the song to publicise   MTS MBlaze Ultra, a high speed 3 G internet access.

A version of the song incorporating MTS has been released.

Consumers are also invited to submit their own versions of the Browse DK Bose number.

Crowdsourcing of content is clearly the flavour of the year as far as B2C digital campaigns are concerned. Recently Tanishq asked consumers to submit their own designs for the Mia range of jewellery for the working woman.

Have you seen any great or even bad PR?

Write to Paarul Chand at paarul@prmoment.in or tweet @PaarulC or @PRmomentIndia throughout the week and we’ll happily credit you for your trouble.