It’s been 25 years since apartheid was dismantled. Our country now recognises 11 official languages. But the truth is: We still can’t say each other’s names.

The original ‘Share A Coke’ campaign that put people’s names on cans was a global success. We were asked to reignite the campaign. Because of our past, we knew that a campaign about names should aim to bring South Africans together. We wanted to open up conversations about identity that we’ve always swept under the rug. With a budget of $4 million, we needed to make this countrywide summer campaign one of the most successful to date and steady brand love in a rapidly declining market.

In 2018, Coca-Cola added the phonetics of each name from all the different cultures and languages to our cans - teaching South Africans to greet each other, by name, correctly.

The big idea: Coca-Cola introduces South Africa to South Africa.

To ensure total inclusivity, we consulted with The Department of Home Affairs to gather data on South Africa’s most popular names per region based on all 11 languages. Working with linguistic professors and writers, we developed a simple, non-academic phonetic system.

We made sure that wherever there was a Coke can, there was an opportunity to learn. With the message, “Share a Coke with Me”, everyday South Africans shared their name pronunciations and invited others to do the same.

A Coca-Cola can became a way to bridge language divides, an education tool and a symbol of cultural pride.

Understanding the International phonetic system requires a degree in Linguistics. It also doesn’t include our unique African ‘click’ sounds. So, we worked with linguistic professors and writers from all our different languages, to develop a simple, non-academic Coke Colloquial phonetic. This was applied just under the names on each can.

The ‘click’ sounds were indicated on our cans with the icon of two Coke bottles clinking. This was a very important part of the design language because without it, Xhosa names like “Xolisa” which have a click on the ‘X’ would be pronounced ‘Ex-Oh-Lee-Sah’ or “Zoh-Lee-Sah” which is incorrect.

Essentially, a simple design language inspired respect, cultural pride and the chance to introduce South Africa to South Africa.

With only $4m total spend over 3 months we did the impossible:

-158% increase in brand love (during 3-month campaign period), in a context of declining love in the soda category.

-27% increase in consumption of Coke Zero (which was the hero pack during our campaign).

-5.4% overall Coca-Cola volume growth, compared with the same period in the previous year. This, in a country with over 90% penetration.

-3.2 billion impressions – engagement up by 195% compared to same period in previous year where a global-adapt campaign was flighted.

(For a deeper dive into results, kindly consult the section marked “Confidential Info for Jury”)

AmaCreatives – an organisation that highlights African Creativity in all mediums and platforms - had this to say about the campaign, “Coca-Cola gives power back to the people of South Africa.” “This is what we call a CREATIVE MZABALAZO!!” (creative revolution).