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Ted McConnell, Procter & Gamble’s head of marketing, has been famous with his exclamation “What in heaven’s name made you think you could monetise the real estate in which somebody is breaking up with their girlfriend?”

Meanwhile, Coca-cola enjoys massive fan base on Facebook, and Honda was reported pleased with its campaign.

Why?

Was it because Coke is the #1 brand in the world? I don’t think so, since P&G is also one of the top brands. The difference in brand awareness between Coke and P&G products should not account for the large gap between the two pages on Facebook.

Was it because a Honda product was more expensive than a P&G product? I don’t think so. A can of Coke and a bottle of shampoo wouldn’t differ much a luxury experience.

So what accounts for the difference?

Because it came down to the core value of Facebook: relationships first, and ego second.

Relationship pressure

People go on Facebook to gain benefits from relationships, and respectively reinforce their connections.

A can of Coke is not simply a bit of beverage. The can of Coke is enjoyed by people when they hang out with friends, have lunch at McDonald’s, indulge in birthday parties. What are these activities but relationship reinforcement?

There is a direct, strong connection their in their behavior.

Meanwhile, a bottle of shampoo might be a little private. People have no need to show off their brands of their convenient goods because, sad but true, the brands do little to make consumers feel ‘cool’ or accepted in their communities.

People show off things to impress their peers on Facebook, that’s why they do with Coke, more than with convenient goods.

(Mild) Ego

A Honda feeds a consumer’s ego. Mostly everywhere, a vehicle is only less important than an apartment in people’s purchasing decision. It is common knowledge that people don’t only buy a car/motorbike, they buy the brand and the culture associated with it. They want something that makes them ‘cool’. A Honda does.

Again, a P&G product, while making people good, clean, safe, and healthy, has little say in a consumer’s inter-personal interactions.

How does it relate to Facebook? Well, as a person shows off his Honda, he feels that his ego is fed. This does not normally occur with showing off something in his private spaces.

Sadly, it all comes to the game of perception.

Conclusion

There’s nothing and no-one to blame here. And I am proud to say I’m a big fan of P&G. But, as a matter of fact, every real estate has its own norms.

I would still love P&G’s conventional messages, so don’t let one campaign hinders any further campaign. P&G is cool no matter what, in very different channels.

6 Responses to “Why Coca-cola and Honda succeeded on Facebook while P&G slipped”

1. thomas wanhoff says:

   May 30, 2009 at 1:01 pm

   welldone i like your thoughts and totally agree.
2. Trong Le says:

   May 30, 2009 at 6:16 pm

   Facebook is definitely not the fertile land for daily convenient goods. Yet does P&G take their campaign on Facebook as their key to customer awareness? Or it is just a additional way to cover all areas of possible customer feedback. If it is, there’s no point to compare and judge whether it slipped or succeed. Coca-cola and Honda are obviously not P&G’s benchmark.
3. Tai says:

   May 31, 2009 at 11:14 am

   @Thomas: thanks

   @Trong:

   Thanks for your input.

   Facebook to P&G had been an additional channel.

   Still, there was evidence that P&G was not happy about their campaign on Facebook and their marketing chief did make a not-so-positive corporate judgment. Kindly click here to read the story.

   I agree that comparing P&G to Coke or Honda sounds a little awkward. However, the purpose was to hi-light what works and what wouldn’t on the rapidly growing media channel called social media which Facebook represents. The analysis I laid out was my consultation rather than judging companies.

   Hope to see more comments from you

   Cheers. TaiTran
4. Nguyen H. Tuan says:

   June 3, 2009 at 7:13 am

   I do agree with your arguments, but I have another way to explain this fact.

   The matter is how often we see or hear the brand.

   Everyday on the road, we see Honda. Every time we order a beverage, we see Coca Cola.

   However, when we use Tide, we don’t see PG. When we use Crest, we don’t see PG. Or even, when we hold a Duracell battery, we don’t see PG. The fact is that, but the power of its name is distributed into its products.

   Imagine that all the products belong to PG suddenly change their name to PG, we will see its number of fans on Facebook soars.
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