Tapping Ethnic Teens Key To Pepsi Search
By Kathleen Sampey
Monday, November 25 2002
Monday, November 25 2002
Published on AllBusiness.com
In the past decade, the U.S. teen population has not only grown larger (by 17% from 1990 to 2000), but more ethnically diverse, according to the 2000 Census. Pepsi, which is currently searching for a new agency to handle advertising aimed at African Americans, is seeking a partner that can use the demographic stats to its advantage.
The review began just days after Pepsi said it would not renew the contract of UniWorld, New York, after four years and only weeks after criticism arose over a spot the shop created featuring rap star Ludacris, whose lyrics glorify violence. Pepsi rep Bart Casabona said the decision to part with UniWorld preceded that incident.
What marketers need from an African American-focused agency is, obviously, insight into the African American consumer market "whether they're 80 or 8," said Giuseppe D'Alessandro, PepsiCo director of multicultural marketing.
Those agencies also need to be in touch with youth in a way that isn't so Afro-centric, he said, and they must be able to com-municate a message that recognizes the African American impact on other ethnic teens and can relate that from a more open viewpoint. Comparatively, Latinos are still in the "batting practice" stage, but their impact will mature in the coming years, D'Allesandro added.
Pepsi declined comment on the review, but at least three shops—Chisholm-Mingo and SpikeDDB, both New York, and GlobalHue of Southfield, Mich.—are contenders for the estimated $10 million account, sources said. Omnicom, whose BBDO is Pepsi's lead agency, owns 49% of SpikeDDB.
The review began just days after Pepsi said it would not renew the contract of UniWorld, New York, after four years and only weeks after criticism arose over a spot the shop created featuring rap star Ludacris, whose lyrics glorify violence. Pepsi rep Bart Casabona said the decision to part with UniWorld preceded that incident.
What marketers need from an African American-focused agency is, obviously, insight into the African American consumer market "whether they're 80 or 8," said Giuseppe D'Alessandro, PepsiCo director of multicultural marketing.
Those agencies also need to be in touch with youth in a way that isn't so Afro-centric, he said, and they must be able to com-municate a message that recognizes the African American impact on other ethnic teens and can relate that from a more open viewpoint. Comparatively, Latinos are still in the "batting practice" stage, but their impact will mature in the coming years, D'Allesandro added.
Pepsi declined comment on the review, but at least three shops—Chisholm-Mingo and SpikeDDB, both New York, and GlobalHue of Southfield, Mich.—are contenders for the estimated $10 million account, sources said. Omnicom, whose BBDO is Pepsi's lead agency, owns 49% of SpikeDDB.