Coca-Cola has been engaged in a massive pre-Olympic global campaign entitled ‘Move to the Beat’. The campaign, which launched in June 2011, has included several key pieces, including: ‘Future Flames’, which encouraged consumers to nominate young people to carry the Olympic Torch through the UK and a giant urban artwork piece named ‘Beat Wall’, which was purposely created as a way of using urban culture to enthuse and involve teens and inspire them to become involved with the 2012 Olympic Games.

On May 1 Coca-Cola launched its most recent outdoor campaign to celebrate its sponsorship activity of the Olympic Torch Relay. This campaign consists of a chain of images which display various pop-music artists alongside young torch bearers. Artists include Eliza Doolittle, The Wanted and Dizzee Rascal. The leading carbonated drinks manufacturer has also included the introduction of a new 375ml ‘pocket-sized’ bottle as part of the outdoor campaign.

Buzz for Coca-Cola, amongst those aged 18-34, significantly increased following its outdoor campaign launch. By June 1, Buzz scores had shot up by more than 7 points (moving from +4.9 on May 1 to +12.0). This increase in Buzz was so strong, amongst the younger generations, that it made an impact on Coca-Cola’s overall Buzz score, sending it upwards by 3.3 points in May 1.

Things have certainly been moving the right direction for Coca-Cola. What remains to be seen is the impact on its remaining overall brand health measures as the Olympics continue to draw closer.