Ogilvy China & Coca-Cola Show They've Got Bottle

Coca-Cola has partnered with Ogilvy & Mather Beijing to launch a new activation campaign as part of its global sustainability program. 2nd Lives, which has been rolled out first in Vietnam with select Asian markets to follow, will upscale used Coca-Cola bottles to encourage, consumers to re-use and recycle plastic.

2nd Lives includes a line of 16 innovative caps which can be screwed onto bottles after consumption, transforming them into fun and useful objects, such as a paintbrush, water squirter and pencil sharpener, among others. The bottle caps are gifted to customers upon purchase of a Coke bottle.

“We are always looking for better solutions to reduce the use of plastic and increase recycling around the world,” said Leonardo O’Grady, ASEAN director integrated marketing communications, Coca-Cola. “The variety of our ‘2^nd Lives’ caps shows that there are many creative ways  to re-use plastic simply and practically, and also supports our global sustainability program.”

2^nd Lives was recently piloted in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, with an expected 40,000 bottle caps to be gifted throughout the country this year. The campaign is set to launch in Thailand and Indonesia at a later date.

Below, we talk to Graham Fink, Ogilvy China's CCO, about the campaign, it's roots and the necessity for brands to start evolving.

Where did the idea for this campaign come from?

Asians traditionally never liked throwing things away. Crates, containers, cans, tins, boxes, bottles and jars used to live on and on, playing one ingenious role after another. Because most people made do with little, they were also clever, inventive and resourceful in how they repurposed stuff. They were natural life hackers. 

Sadly, their hacking habits are slowly fading thanks to the abundance of cheap plastic in modern times. But perhaps there is a way to coax it back? These were the observations that got us thinking. 

Has Coca-Cola done anything like this before?

Coca-Cola’s sustainability programs and their goals span across the core areas where our business intersects with society, driving business growth, fostering more innovation and creating shared values and making a difference for our stakeholders well into the future.

We have had sustainability programs support the well-being of the people, the community and environment in Vietnam with programs such as Dance with Coca-Cola, Responsible Marketing Practices, Women’s Economic Empowerment, Educational Supports, Disaster Relief and Clean Water for Community as well as Fresh Water Conservation.

How did you come up with the ideas for the different caps?

We recognised very early on that variety was important, because it opens people's minds to possibilities. You have to give customers a range of options and let them choose how they want to recycle. Besides, Coke appeals to a wide audience, from young to old people, from different cultural, social, and economic backgrounds.

There are so many roles that a used Coke bottle could play. Many of these ideas are about taking on the roles of other bottles (like plant water sprays cans, condiment bottles and soap dispensers). But quite a few are roles that have never been played by bottles before (like night-lights, dumbbells, water squirters, paintbrushes and pencil sharpeners).

Some are playful and some are practical. Some call out to the young, and others to adults. We started with over 30 ideas and narrowed it down to the current set. Sixteen is by no means a magic number. We would love consumers to come forward with their own ideas so we can have more caps in the future. 

You’re planning to roll out the campaign, and the products, across Asia – how many caps will that entail?

We will have 16 caps in this roll out. They are:

Water Squirter

Pencil Sharpener

Whistle

Night Light

Paint Brush

Dumbbell

Rattle

Plant Water-Spray

Salt and Pepper Shaker

Detergent Dispenser

Soy-Sauce Bottle

Oil Bottle

Bubble Blower

Ketchup Bottle

Soap Dispenser

Dishwashing Liquid Bottle 

How important is it for brands to expand the way they approach their advertising and their audience?

It’s an evolutionary necessity. Most people today are approaching their life in a much more expansive and dynamic way than in the past,  so if a brand is not ready to match this ambition, they’re going to be left behind in a hurry.

Consider that the stage for brand/consumer interaction long ago moved beyond just the TV screen or the magazine spread: winning brands today aspire to a meaningful ubiquity, and this forces you to think beyond the old advertising 'sales pitch'.

Sophisticated marketers like Coca-Cola get this; and through initiatives like this one they effect positive change, while weaving the brand further into the fabric of everyday life.

Which of the caps is your favourite?

It’s hard to pick just one, I really love the water squirter because it’s good fun and seeing the kids play with this is a joy to watch. But I also love the pencil sharpener because it’s such a simple design. We are already using them in the office.