Coca-Cola takes on PepsiCo with influencer marketing in Pakistan

A new campaign by The Coca-Cola Company in Pakistan is tapping into the creativity of digital artists, such as Shehzil Malik, to generate unsupervised user-generated content for a co-branding campaign.

Coca-Cola has initiated a co-branded awareness drive that clubs its Fanta beverage brand with Oye Hoye, a snack brand of United Snacks, which has been giving PepsiCo's snack brands a hard time in Pakistan.

 

Inspiration can come from anywhere and I often find it outdoors. I'm in my zone between flowers, drawing concepts that are later digitally brought to life when I'm cocooned by myself. Nature drives me to create art... it's the yin to my yang, the #FantaToMyOyeHoye ������That's what inspires me, what makes you create? #sponsored #illustration

A post shared by shehzil malik (@shehzilm) on Dec 30, 2017 at 6:14am PST

Executed by Ishtehari via its artist influencer platform, the campaign has attracted influential digital artists, musicians, painters, and poets to express themselves while including the Fanta and Oye Hoye brands in their artwork.

Primarily deployed across Instagram with the #FantaToMyOyeHoye hashtag, the week-old campaign is a sign of the times, with The Coca-Cola Company allowing influencers free rein to deviate from the brand book. There are no signs of client-side interference in creative, a problem that often impedes influencer marketing.

According to Umair Kazi, the co-founder of Ishtehari, the social angle is to bring #FantaToMyOyeHoye into the digital lexicon as a replacement for ‘the ying to my yang’ and the ‘bread to my butter’.

“Basically that these two things make the best combination,” said Kazi. “Content creators are asked to suggest what's the Fanta to their Oye Hoye.”

 

It doesn't matter how busy my day gets. Not a day goes by when I don't play my video games or draw. The satisfaction of completing a drawing or winning a battle gives me a sense of victory. A victory I can end the day with. And without it I can't go on. Just like #FantaToMyOyeHoye What is that one thing that defines you, completes You? #FantaChaheOyeHoyeChahe

A post shared by Babrus Khan (@babrus) on Dec 28, 2017 at 7:13am PST

Judging by the creations on Instagram, for some creators, it's their pet, or their guitar, or their mom, or their art.

“We're using these people as artists rather than celebrities, asking them to become an arm of the agency to help create brand love in multiple niches,” added Kazi.

 

I was the first born and then two years later in September a tiny pink faced human came into my life out of nowhere. He ended up being my playtime partner when we'd secretly play in the sand mound we weren't allowed to go near to, or the swings we spent our entire childhood swinging on. We grew up and he became the only person I sing out loud with whenever our favorite song comes up. From being my driver who has to wait for me in the car for hours to being my bodyguard when I have to attend events where I'm too scared to go by myself (I have to bribe him by buying him food tho). I won't be able to list everything he does for me, but if after my parents, there's anyone I owe all that I am to, is him. . @ahmad_jamal96 You're the #FantaToMyOyeHoye bruh. Stay annoying, stay you. P.S: I love you but I still haven't forgiven you for breaking my favorite tricycle. . So who's the Fanta to your Oye Hoye? Tag them in the comments or go post about them! . #FantaToMyOyeHoye #FantaChaheOyeHoyeChahe

A post shared by Mahoor (@mahoor_jamal) on Dec 28, 2017 at 6:32am PST

As for the content lifecycle of the fan art, Kazi says that at some point the sponsor brands will regram the art pieces as fan testimonials.

“Utilizing a diverse set of content creators and asking them to respond in their respective content/art forms, as to what is the Fanta to their Oye Hoye,” Kazi asserted. “The campaign is co-created; the agency crafts a social messaging angle, which is then adopted by the content creators, who in turn create brand-integrated content for their own digital follower base.”

 

this girl - she’s my other half. the zeera biscuit to my shaam ki chai, the aloo pakoras to my monsoon rain, the fanta to my oye hoye. i’m incomplete without her - i almost (read: definitely, 100%) felt betrayed when she moved away. she inspires me everyday to be kinder with my words, to give more to the world than i take and to love fiercely and selflessly. it was so nice to have her around this month, we spent countless hours painting, reflecting, listening to music and eating excessive amounts of oye hoye chips with fanta (green chaska oye hoye + red anaar fanta = magic!) tag the fanta to your oye hoye in the comments below and tell me one thing you love doing with them! ����‍♀️ #FantaToMyOyeHoye

A post shared by amenah jafarey (@47giraffes) on Dec 28, 2017 at 6:28am PST

As of this writing, the average engagement rate as a percentage of followers for creator content is 10%, while the brand-owned Instagram accounts have barely a 0.5% per post engagement. While the sample size is small, this outcome shows that natural creativity outperforms micromanaged output.