Dr. Pepper went out on a limb earlier this year by promising everyone in the U.S. a free can of soda if heavy metal rockers Guns N’ Roses released a new studio album. Since the band has been quiet for 17 years, it seemed like a reasonable possibility that it would not have to pay off on the promise.
Now, it appears that free Dr. Pepper for all is just ahead. The band is scheduled to release a studio album, “Chinese Democracy,” on November 23. Assuming the release occurs as scheduled, Dr. Pepper plans to make available one free can of product per person to anyone who comes to the Dr. Pepper web site and registers for a coupon on November 23.
Will this promotion go down as one of the most expensive in the history of marketing? If all 300 million or so people in the U.S. took advantage of the offer, one estimate is that the promotion would cost Dr. Pepper $165 million dollars. Of course, not everyone has the desire or the means to log on to request a free soda on November 23. So, regardless of the final cost of the promotion, it is likely that Dr. Pepper will enjoy brand publicity that will be much more valuable than the cost of the sales promotion. As long as GNR does not do anything to embarrass Dr. Pepper, this promotion should be a PR success for both the band and Dr. Pepper.
Link: AdAge.com – “Free Dr. Pepper for All as Guns N’ Roses Album Release is Set”
Kudos to DP. I have more respect for them now that they’re actually going to go through with their promise.
As for the coupons, I don’t think that many people are going to log onto the website to get a free can. It’s still going to be a large number compared to the overall population size. I’ve never heard of this except for in AD Weekly (or whatever it’s called). I see ads on TV that offer free samples, but how many people actually log on to get that free sample or coupon? Unless everybody in the US thinks like me (I pray they don’t,lol), not everybody is going to think “FREE!!” when a $.50 can of DP is offered and immediately jump at it.