Capitivatinig the attention of an audience will always be a consistent “rubiks cube” that needs to be solved. One strategy that will help a brand acquire the attention of a population is entertainment. In this week's article, I'll walk you through the power of Branded Entertainment and how The Coca-Cola Company and Sprite can leverage it to develop a menaningful connection.

1. P A G E 1
ISBRANDEDENTERTAINMENTTHE
ANSWER?
Net
f
lix: Stranger Things

2. P A G E 2
YES!
Net
f
lix: Stranger Things

3. P A G E 3
“As media consumption habits continue their ever-fragmenting path, brands
need to be comfortable playing a smaller role in a bigger story. Your product
isn’t the star. It’s a supporting character that organically
fi
ts into the scene in
a way that resonates with the audience. People shouldn’t feel like they are
being advertised to, even if that’s the reality. In short, the future requires
more entertainment, less sell.”
- Adrian Flores, VP, Creative, The SpringHill Company
Source
Branded Entertainment is
a cleaner path to connect
with an audience

4. P A G E 4
Product integration is up by an
estimated 14 percent since 2020.
BRANDEDENTERTAINMENT
HASCREATEDA$23
BILLIONINDUSTRY
Source: NY Times

5. P A G E
Emily in Paris and McDonald's is the collaboration we never knew we
wanted.
For a limited time, McDonald's France was offering a special meal in
partnership with the release of Emily in Paris season three. It comes
with french fries, two macarons, a medium-sized drink, and, you
guessed it, the McBaguette.
5
Emily in Paris x McDonlad’s

6. P A G E
According to Data and analytics
specialist YouGov, Coca-Cola has
leveraged the greatest value from its
screen time so far, with the drinks
brand netting the equivalent of $1.83m
from its exposure.
6
Stranger Things x Coca-Cola

7. P A G E 7
Those wholesome yellow boxes can be spotted on HBOs Curb Your
Enthusiasm.
CURBYOURENTHUSIASMXCHEERIOS

8. Brand-funded content also enables the stories of the underserved to be
told. For brands it enables them to build emotional connections with
consumers that can then lead to securing a larger share of wallet.”-
Sarah Squiers, Executive Vice President of Business Development,
Univision Communications, Inc
The Future of brand-
funded content is
strong
P A G E 8
Source: Forbes
Bel Air

9. P A G E 9
Only 5 percent of online adults in the United States said they rarely skipped ads; 74 percent said they
often did.
- NY Times
PEOPLEAREAVOIDINGADS

10. P A G E 1 0
WHATAREPEOPLEPASSIONATE
ABOUT?

11. P A G E 1 1

12. P A G E 1 2
In 2022, 45% of Millennials and 39% of Gen Zs who went back to theaters
since the start of the pandemic.

13. P A G E 1 3

14. P A G E 1 4

15. P A G E 1 5
WHATARETHEYWATCHING?

16. P A G E 1 6

17. White Noise
IDEA
Biggie’s Arizona Ron
Character Could Be A
Movie On The Level Of
‘Scarface’
MOVIETITLE:

18. P A G E 1 8
WHOSHOULDLEADTHE
CONVERSATION?

19. And an amplifier of Black
culture since the early
days of Hip Hop.
Sprite has been an
Early Investor
P A G E
1 9

20. P A G E 2 0
How did sprite became the
unofficial Drink of hip-hop

21. They leaned
on
Authenticity
In the beginning it was about embracing the
music, culture and community of Hip-Hop by
authentically championing the genre’s top
names and underground artists alike. The
relationship grew into a partnership based
on the idea: authenticity.
P A G E
C L I E N T N A M E
2 1

22. Sprite was first on
Back in 1986, Sprite became one of the first mainstream brands to
greet rappers with open arms by featuring Kurtis Blow—one of Hip
Hop’s founding fathers—in national campaigns.
The scene
P A G E 2 2

23. By the early 1990s
Sprite deepened the exploration of their
relationship with hip-hop by tapping artists not
based on their popularity, but those that had an
underground following and were seen as
respected.
And were early
pioneers
P A G E 2 3

24. Obey
At the time, the prevailing cultural product in mainstream television that
appealed to American youths had prototypical archetypes that represented
young teens. All that changed when Sprite decided to focus on the
nuances of the culture.
We wanted to pay respect to the music and the culture. What’s important is
the value of hip-hop culture, not only as an image, but as a method of
communication.” - Brand Manager Darryl Cobbin
With Cobbin at the reins, Sprite enlisted hip-hop artists who may not have
been big in popularity, but possessed the kind of cultural capital that gave
Sprite social proof in ways other strategies could not.
Hip hop continued to evolve over the next 30 years and is now a ubiquitous
part of today’s global musical landscape.
Your thirst
P A G E 2 4

25. P A G E 2 5
Why Now?
2023 is the golden anniversary
of hip-hop. (The genre dates
back to 1973.
Hip-Hop is the number 1 music
genre in the world
People across demographics
have an appetite for episodic
drama

26. ARIZONA RON
Idea media ecosystem
INTERNAL
SITE
YOUTUBE
OOH
App
Download
YouTube
Playlist
Ones To Watch PAGE
Emerging Artist
concert series
TikTok
YouTube
Peacock
Fan
Stadiums
Instagram
App
Download
YOUTUBE
Theatre

27. P A G E 2 7
WHO’STHEAUDIENCE

28. P A G E 2 8
BLACKZ-LENNIALS

29. P A G E
They’re Black and …
Honored to be Black
72% say they’re proud of their heritage
2 9
Source: America's Black Gen Z: Proud, driven, and changing the narrative

30. P A G E 3 0
DETERMINED TO THRIVE
DRIVEN, BUT ANXIOUS
They’re determined to succeed and
nervous about the future all at once, so
69% seek life’s blue print by way of
family
42% are inspired by social media
success stories of people with familiar
backgrounds
They’re resilient, but believe it’s time
to go from “survive” to “thrive.” They
want narratives of Black excellence that
celebrate Black achievements and
promote Black culture
More than half say social media makes
them feel more connected to global
ideas, people, culture and communities
FUTURE FOCUSED
GLOBAL CITIZENS, LOCAL FOCUS
Are complex and …
Black Z-lennials

31. P A G E 3 1
This generation of Black Americans is expanding their horizon to include
a global perspective. They should be celebrated for their current
achievements and applauded for their complexity.
TAKEAWAY

32. P A G E 3 2
The Opportunity
Hip-Hop Turning 50

33. Continue the legacy
Sprite continues its legacy of
championing, investing and celebrating
Black culture
P A G E 3 3

34. White Noise
… a representation of Black culture and
influence centering the lives and expressions of
Black z-lennials and what they love.
The Activation
P A G E 3 4

35. P A G E
P
R
E
S
E
N
T
A
T
I
O
N
T
I
T
L
E
F
E
B
R
U
A
R
Y
2
0
2
2
C L I E N T N A M E
KPIs
Awareness (Sprite), Consideration,
Conversion, Trial, Repeat Purchase
Social: Positive Social Mentions,
Consideration, Engagement
3 5

36. What’s at Stake
V
M
L
Y
&
R
2
0
2
2
Between May 25 and the end of October, about one-
third of Fortune 1000 companies made a public
statement on racial equity. More than three-
fi
fths of
external
fi
nancial commitments explicitly extend over
multiple years.
S&P 500 companies that invest in diversity
initiatives have generated a higher operating pro
fi
t
margin (12%) than those that did not (8%).
12%
Today 40% of the US population is non-white
(Black/AA, Hispanic/Latinx, or Asian), with
a spending power of $3.2 trillion.
The combined buying power of Blacks,
Hispanics, Asian-Americans and Native
Americans is estimated to be $3.9 trillion,—
larger than the GDP of Australia.
40%
$3.9T
Source: McKinsey & Company, Harvard Business Review
Cultural movements affect companies, their people and
their products.
Not tuning into them means confronting unexpected
roadblocks and blind spots.
Intentional investment in a breadth of cultural
understanding, will lead to increased sales.
Diversity is authentically embedded in creative
problem-solving and new product development.
Newly developed strategic pathways towards a higher
expectation of cultural literacy, leads to new
innovations.

37. Proximity to Culture: It's a relationship that
brands and their intermediaries need to foster
and continuously re-negotiate.
Let’s schedule some time and we can figure out
how your brand can connect to culture.
Let’s connect
P A G E 3 7