In 1888, one year after the Coca-Cola Company was founded, a man named Asa Kedler gave the embryonic company an incredible leap. He himself was a successful pharmacist.
Asa suffers from severe headaches. It was from a traffic accident during the Civil War. That time, Asa and his family got into a full carriage. The carriage jolted violently, and then hit a bump in the road. Asa was ejected from the carriage, and a wheel rolled over his head, crushing his skull. Although he saved his life, he lay in bed for more than a week, unable to see or hear, talking nonsense.
Later, he gradually recovered his vision and hearing, but he was still slightly deaf in his left ear. But the car accident left him with terrible migraines that he would never get rid of for the rest of his life. In addition to formulating medicines in the laboratory, he was always looking for medicine to treat headaches, so he wrote to his brother Warren: This damn headache has made me suffer too much, and I can't support it anymore. Others advised him to try the new product Coca-Cola. He tasted it and the pain immediately subsided.
From then on, he was determined to learn more about this new product. He wanted to know who invented Coca-Cola, what ingredients were in it, how to improve it, etc. He was very happy to find that this was Pemberton's work. This was pure good luck, something he had always dreamed of. Of course, he had also heard of Pemberton and knew that he had a reputation as an excellent pharmacist.
He immediately became interested in that formula because he needed it. After trying it out twice, Asa was determined to get it. Within four weeks, he had the formula.
Asa is a shrewd businessman. He has successfully launched several commercial products, including mouthwashes and other medications. He saw the potential and uniqueness of this new product. He believes that investing in this product is definitely profitable. So he set out to invest in this area.
Asa’s ability is also reflected in that he has his own pharmacy and can develop it. In addition to the drug store, he also has a large inventory of everything you want to buy, such as paint, oils, etc. He was an excellent salesman, and he really excelled at that. As long as it is a product he can trust, he can sell it.
To get this company, you must first separate Pemberton and his partners; these people did not realize the potential of the new product until Asa took over the company. Interestingly, he did not take office immediately, but worked with other investors to buy shares in the company. This is his typical way of doing business. Once he sees that the company is going in the direction he envisions, he will buy out all the shares from others, even if they are reluctant.
Unfortunately, Pemberton did not wait until the day when the product became a big success. He died in 1888, just a year and a half after the product came out. A few years later, in 1892, Asa purchased all the shares from his partners and became the full owner of the company. He only spent 2,300 US dollars to have the formula of Coca-Cola. Now, it’s time to make it profitable.
Asa is full of confidence and motivation. He invested all the funds accumulated through so many years of hard work into the production of Coca-Cola. His first order of business was to make a few tweaks to the recipe. He kept the secret so tight that the product's formula could only be concocted by himself and his son and was never published in writing. If any employee wanted to know what those seven mysterious ingredients were, they could only guess like everyone else because Asa removed the labels from all Coca-Cola bottles in the factory. Adjusting the formula gives their products better prospects.
In order to obtain coca extract to produce Coca-Cola, the caffeine in the coca leaves must first be removed. Asa and his son process both the coca leaf and its by-product, a white powder. He sold the powder to other pharmacists because he had no need for it, he just needed coca leaves for spices.
This creates two potential profits. You can sell Coca-Cola and you can sell by-products, so you kill two birds with one stone. The content of kola nut, which provides caffeine and is the source of pleasure, has also been reduced. In the early days, this drink did contain a limited amount of caffeine, which may be the reason for the many rumors.
Then, the various ingredients are balanced in the way he envisioned, resulting in a desirable taste.
Next, Asa Kedler launched a marketing war. Because no matter how great your product is, it doesn’t matter if it’s not known. Asa's unwavering belief in this product never wavered, and he took huge risks to challenge the public in a completely new way. He is very good at understanding consumer psychology. As early as the 1890s, he came up with the idea of ??giving out coupons, a promotional method that is still used today, with the supplements of Sunday editions filled with such ads. But it was indeed very novel and rare at that time.
Asa Kedler had people stand on the streets of Atlanta handing out coupons to pedestrians, who could use the coupons to get a free Coca-Cola at local soda outlets. After you try it and like the taste, you will pay for it next time.
In the earliest days of Coca-Cola sales, they were prepared over the counter in drugstores. There was an elaborate preparation ritual to accompany the sale, which was completely different from today's martinis. First, stir the ingredients, then shake, pour, and then give a demonstration.
Asa Kedler's nephews also learned this ritual, and they traveled around the South in wagons with barrels of syrup behind them. Go to a completely unfamiliar town to do sales, go to a drugstore to train employees to prepare drinks, and then put on a serious show.
The young man brings the lady he likes to the place where Coca-Cola is sold to sit and have a drink. Then the staff comes over to offer Coca-Cola and completes an elaborate ceremony to make the customer feel that the trip is worthwhile.
In order to advertise the product, Asa Kedler also used a variety of promotional items. He invented a tray with an image of a pretty lady drinking Coca-Cola on it. He distributed these trays to soda fountains, and no matter what you bought, you got a promotional item with the Coca-Cola logo. He invented a variety of promotional items that were easily distributed, such as bookmarks, stamp albums, travel bags, and small wallets, which were distributed to thousands of people. He also invented calendars, posters with the Coca-Cola logo, and the curtain that hung at the entrance to drugstores. In this way, at the beginning of the 20th century, Coca-Cola's advertising messages had a very wide coverage, far exceeding that of any other consumer product.
The company also uses the reputation of celebrities to promote "Coca-Cola". They once invited an opera star named Louis Iannadika from the Metropolitan Opera; they also hired a female acrobat named Hilda Clark; their images appeared on plates, posters and various promotions products to attract customers’ attention; even baseball star athletes advertise Coca-Cola products.
Asa is very insightful when it comes to advertising. He discovered that people liked to be associated with people who were wealthy and famous and with their advertising, so Coca-Cola became a product that everyone could have. As a businessman with firm beliefs, Asa has always believed that the Coca-Cola he sells is a recreational product, and the price must be considered reasonable and moderate by ordinary consumers. He believes in the advertising slogan: "The rich drink champagne, the poor drink beer." , Coca-Cola is their unique choice."