Communications and Media

Intercultural Communication is of much importance in todays globalize and fact-paced world. Companies which are successful in liking themselves to the whole world and integrating their ideas move ahead while others are left behind.  It is the time when one has to be diversified in skills and cater to all not just to a particular group.  Businesses have to make sure that they blend in with all the cultures around the world.  Displeasing and offending any culture can lead to severe consequences for the company.  It is the satisfaction of all the customers which makes a business powerful.

This is a case study of Pepsi the soft drink.  Pepsi was invented by pharmacist Caleb Bradham Began in 1898.  He started it as a unique mixture of kola nuts, vanilla and rare oils. Initially it was known as Brads drink but Caleb renamed it as Pepsi-Cola.  In 1902 he launched the Pepsi-Cola company.  An official patent was awarded to the company on June 16, 1903.  He advertised Pepsi-Cola in a very interesting manner.  Soon he gained brand loyalty.  In 1910, Pepsi-Cola franchises opened in 24 states and the country sold more than 100,000 gallons of syrup per year.  After huge development, Pepsi-Cola got bankrupt suddenly when World War I occurred. Caleb then sold the Pepsi-Cola trademark to Craven Holdings Corporation.  From there on, Pepsi-Cola saw many new owners with time (Pepsi, 2010).  After the Great Depression, Pepsi-Cola started using the low-price strategy and soon it became everyones favorite drink again.  As times changed, Pepsi-Cola shifted its strategy once again and moved to a more sophisticated and admired outlook.  Pepsi started targeting its market by innovations in its advertising. It made sure it focused the young, the old, the adventuress, the quite ones and people from every race and culture.  It started campaigning and gaining more and more customers from all around the world.  Pepsi introduced Diet Pepsi for the calorie conscious people and distribution also started in cans. As Pepsi became highly popular, Pepsi-Cola became a total beverage company. Today Pepsi-Colas products include water, juices, tea, coffee drinks, juice drinks and soft drinks.

Pepsi made sure that its communication was intercultural.  In 1998, Pepsi sported a whole new look called Globe.  This logo united people from all around the world.  To make connection possible with the whole world, Pepsi digitalized itself.  It partnered with Apple Computer, Inc.  Pepsi ensured that customers could access it and its features from any place in the world.  Today Pepsi is a 29 billion company and the worlds fourth-largest food and Beverage Company, employing more than 150,000 people speaking more than 40 languages.  This shows how dynamic Pepsi has become.  Apart from this the company has gained confidence of the citizens as it is doing philanthropic efforts and is reputed for its diversified programs ( HYPERLINK httpwww.amazon.comBob-StoddardeB000APFR4Yrefsr_ntt_srch_lnk_5_encodingUTF8qid1269878691sr1-5 Stoddard, 1999).

Currently Pepsi is doing its Pepsi Refresh Project. Pepsi is donating millions of dollars to fund ideas that can help to make the world a better place.  The ideas like Support food banks and sustainability, School garden in Kirkland, WA need votes and Pepsi has taken the initiative to fund these ideas ( HYPERLINK httpwww.amazon.comBob-StoddardeB000APFR4Yrefsr_ntt_srch_lnk_5_encodingUTF8qid1269878691sr1-5 Stoddard, 1999).

Besides this Pepsi also has its blog by the name Refresh Blog where stories of people doing good work are covered and published by Pepsi Ambassadors. So Pepsi is continuously trying to make a difference by doing things which can change the world. The ideas need a hearing, the talent needs to be unleashed and Pepsi is providing the world with a platform where people can come and contribute in the form of thoughts.  Pepsi is taking care of all the finances needed to achieve the goals.  The ideas being proposed will help the needy in the world by providing them with food, shelter, clothing, education and sanitation, health care and various other necessities of life. It is also changing the thinking pattern of people as the question which Pepsi has asked is What do you care about  It aims to make people become more sensitive to what is going on around them.

Blogcatalog is a famous blogging house where the topic Coca Cola versus Pepsi was being discussed in 2008.   The competition observed is almost equal as there as many supporters for Pepsi as there were for coke.  A person said Coca-Cola. Has that bite and burn on the back of the throat that the sweeter Pepsi just doesnt have... but when going diet - prefer the Diet Pepsi - Diet Coke is really, really, really bad. Though many people have come to love it for some strange reason.  Coke Zero is getting better but not sure if they have that everywhere.(Blogcatalog,2010).

Pepsis one product known as Pepsi Blue started in 2002 but was banned in 2004 by many countries.  Now it is hardly available in any country.  The major reason for discontinuing it was that it contained an ingredient to give it the blue color which was very controversial.
     
To avoid such failures and bad publicity, Pepsi should research properly about the quality of the product before launching it.  This would avoid creating a negative image of Pepsi (Thaindian News, 2009).

Pepsi is enlarging its product range due to the enormous competition it faces from Coca Cola.  The thing that Pepsi needs to do is to focus on quality rather than quantity.  Positive intercultural communication outcomes can result for Pepsi if it focuses on products which can be legalized in all countries not just a few.

Apart from this, Pepsi can cater to different regions according to their culture. It can research about various cultures and add up a little regional flavor in their products to gain the trust of their customers.  It can also help to develop taste in people as they would be able to explore varieties of the same product and they would learn about different cultures (Thaindian News, 2009).

In an article written by Asher Meir in The Jerusalem Post, it is mentioned that Pepsi has said it would not supply Pepsi-Cola in vending machines in schools where students are less than 18 years of age.  This is a good decision as the heavily sugared drinks are unhealthy and they can lead to many diseases.  Pepsi has taken this step correctly and it should be imposed as has been said (Meir, 2010).

Pepsi is a company which has great intercultural communication significance due to the above mentioned points.  Its products are consumed all around the world and the whole globe gets affected by the choices it makes.  Pepsi is a giant firm, contributing a lot to the entire world.  Either in sports or in any funfair, its Pepsi which has the power to make intercultural communication possible.