The Coca Cola Company (NYSE:KO)’s growth despite changing trends

Customers are becoming more and more health conscious and aware of their health condition; that is why they are developing an aversion to carbonated drinks and preferring natural beverages. As a result of this trend sales of carbonated drinks have gone down for 9 years straight in the U.S. Carbonated beverages make 43 percent of the country’s liquid refreshment market.

The leader in sales, The Coca Cola Company (NYSE:KO), also suffered a dip last year by 2.2 percent. The Coca Cola Company (NYSE:KO) makes almost 20 percent from the U.S market, which is its domestic market. Despite the dwindling numbers, The Coca Cola Company (NYSE:KO) has managed to make moves offshore to make expansion and put their money in other beverage segments such as disposable water, ready to drink tea and energy drinks.

The Coca Cola Company (NYSE:KO) has gone up only by 3 percent, owing this slow growth to the social trend of avoiding carbonated beverages. Investors also see that The Coca Cola Company (NYSE:KO) can remain stable but may not experience rapid growth like it used to a decade back. Also the competition from PepsiCo, Inc (NYSE:PEP) is closing catching up to the company too.

However despite all these odds, the company has been able to maintain its stock value to some extent. By evolving and introducing new products, such as mineral water, The Coca Cola Company (NYSE:KO) has made its name dominant again. Opting for water and energy drinks, it has created a new niche for itself in the market by attracting health buffs.

The Coca Cola Company (NYSE:KO) is also trying its hand to bring its flagship Coke back into the limelight through aggressive advertising; the company is trying to make an emotional contact with the consumer through family and friends oriented ads in many parts of the world.

The Share a Coke campaign has done well for the company in terms of its share value and sales across the world. The idea of personalization or the name of their loved ones on the bottle and the concept of sharing has been effective in attracting customers.

As a result of its successful campaigning, Coca Cola Company (NYSE:KO) saw an increase by 4% along with a 2.5% YoY in just 12 weeks that ended in August. On the other hand its competitors Dr. Pepper Snapple and Pepsi suffered losses in revenue in volumes. Despite lower popularity of carbonated drinks, Coca Cola Company (NYSE:KO) had revenue worth $11 billion last year, which increased by 1% in its last quarter; this revenue was generated by its flagship drink Coca Cola alone. It is expected that Coca Cola will experience a good volume growth this year too.

A smart business and marketing strategy by Coca Cola Company (NYSE:KO), which involves new products and increased marketing, along with more sales through smaller packages, could keep the company strong against all odds; in fact at this rate it promises to grow within the US market – a market that is resistant to carbonated drinks.