Coke vs. Pepsi

Coke Bottle Lighting!

2011-11-04T13:38:00.000-07:00

Who would have thought?
Something as simple as a 2 liter Coke bottle...some water...and some chlorine.

What do you get?
No, not a carbonation fountain.
No, not a new way to play Spin-the-Bottle.

What you get is a creative, low cost way to put lighting in third world homes that are otherwise dealing with darkness almost all day!

It's green, it's safe, it's ecologically friendly, it brings work to small towns.

In all, it's really worth checking out!

See here.

In fact, the e-mail I received about it said:
This is really interesting and very exciting for these poor people! The simplicity of this concept is fantastic!Used plastic bottles filled with water + a tablespoon of bleach,
Will light up people's lives.

Thanks, Dad.

I don’t really ‘hate’ Root beer.

2011-10-25T10:29:00.000-07:00

You might recall in a previous post that I mentioned how I got my son to drink root beer. Well, I didn’t ‘get’ him to drink it, I opened a can of it thinking it was Cream soda, and I understand the look on my face was a hysterical picture of horror when I learned I had grabbed the wrong can off the shelf. (Damn store-brand soda!)

My exact words, if I recall, was “Root beer! I HATE Root beer!” Followed by my son’s first gulp of the beverage.

In truth, I don’t “HATE” root beer. I just don’t like it. It takes a lot to get me to HATE something. But I DO hate some things. Let me see if I can think of any:

1 –Rudeness – this is a major pet peeve of mine. It takes virtually NO effort to be pleasant. You don’t have to be an award winning cheermeister…but I smile or a kind word is SO easy to do. Do you have any idea how much effort goes into being nasty? You can’t possibly be a jerk and not know you are doing it. If you don’t know you are doing it, you are a BIGGER jerk…and it’s still inexcusable.

2 – Bullies – Ok, this is NOT because I was always the smallest, ugliest kid in the classroom. No, really. But in general, I think Bullying is “1a” to #1 above. Using your position of strength (physical or otherwise) to humble those who literately cannot stand up to you is unconscionable. I’d like to think for every bully there is a Big Guy waiting to kick his ass. This is only true 50% of the true…

3 – Traffic – Not the band, but rather the long line of cars that are not moving. (If you were born before 1975 you likely never heard of Traffic, and probably WOULD hate them…) Here is my beef with traffic: I understand that accidents ‘happen’. It’s the long line of people NOT in the accident that have to stop and stare at it. GET OUT OF MY WAY! I don’t care who got hurt, or why. Odds are, they are ok. If they are not, odds are there is a nice policeman handling it. If you are rubbernecking at something on the other side of the highway, you should be dragged out of your car and beaten. Sorry, I’m in a bit of a rush…

4 – the Commercialization of X-mas – In and of itself, Christmas is a nice idea. As a kid, it was about peace and love and harmony. Today, it’s about the long, long line of people I am obligated to buy presents for. *sigh*. Please, for the love of Baby Jesus, do not buy me a gift. And in return, I won’t feel obligated to buy YOU a gift. And now we can be friends without that awkward “what kind of present do I have to hope they will like that is not expensive or hard to get?” Don’t get me wrong, I LIKE to buy presents for my friends…but I don’t want to feel like I HAVE to because it’s late December. I don’t want YOU to feel that way, either.

5 – Crowds - yeah, I need some room, please. I don’t know you well enough to have your hands anywhere near my butt, nor do I want to smell your breath or have you step on my new sneakers. Again. If I can’t turn around without head-butting a stranger, then I am likely NOT somewhere I am normally comfortable being.

6 – Parades – I know, I know…Really, I’m a nice fun-loving guy. I really am! But standing around watching people dressed up as…as…geez what ARE these gals dressed up as? And why are they waving to me? Hi, hello, yes…move on. Ok, so I stand here and just watch these giant balloons walk by? But that would put me in a CROWD (see above). And I have to stand still for this long line of dressed up people and large balloons? Oh MAN. How long IS this line anyway…?

7 – Cold Weather - as a New Jersey resident, you would think that I would be used to the changing seasons. You would think that I would welcome the change every 3 months. I don’t. I don’t like to be cold. I’d rather be too warm than even a LITTLE cold. I don’t ski, I don’t snow board, I don’t watch Live Football. I don’t like to shovel snow, I don’t like to fall down in snow. I don’t like to go sledding. Why not sledding? BECAUSE THERE IS SNOW! My take on Winter has become very general over the years: If I can’t take off my shirt, catch a tan and enjoy this cold beer, I’m disappointed. If I can see my breath and have to dress in layers, I’m angry. In fact, that’s the REAL sticking point: Jacket = no problem. Gloves, scarves, boots, ear muffs and/or a hat? DONE. Heading to Florida…

8 – Reality shows about rich, stupid people – this may have become my biggest pet peeve as of late. First off, there are many more Hot Women on this planet that TV will ever show you. Just because your daddy is rich, does NOT mean you are ‘celebrity’ material. Kim Kardashian – tell me again what your skill set is? Right, I thought so. Paris Hilton – tell me again what your skill set is? Right you are sister! These 2 ‘daughters of the rich’…along with the 10,000 other wanna bees that MTV has churned out…are embarrassing. And they are too stupid to BE embarrassed, which is MORE embarrassing. Please Please Please just shut up and try on some perfume over THERE….
But wait, that’s not all! Now, if you are a wealthy ‘house wife’ you get on TV, too! Hey, if you have 8 kids at once…if you are a washed up B-level actress and/or if you were married to anyone who was wealthy and then went to jail…you get a TV show! YAY YOU!!! Now you get to PROVE that Americans will watch anything that features a size 2 girl wearing mascara!

BLEAUGHGHGH! I'll wash you reality tv twits with a nice cold Root Beer.

Nothing to do with Soda

2011-05-10T12:57:00.000-07:00

My friend Ashley has a hilarious Blog. I suppose it's even MORE hilarious to people who know her well. But it cracks me up. It's here.

On the blog is a list of 90 really random facts about her.
Today I told her I was going to copy the list and re-write it to me really random facts about ME.

Expecting her to tell me how immature that would be, I was instead given the 'go ahead'.
So I went ahead.

Without any further ado, here are "90 really random facts about me" :
1. I've been cooking since I was 10 when I deemed my father’s cooking God Awful at best.
2. I love to wear Black. And no, I’m not Gothic. I’m not Johnny Cash either.
3. I’ve only been a “best man” in one wedding, and I had to share the honor with another ‘best friend’. So I guess I was the ‘Second Best Man’. .
4. My kids are gorgeous. No, really…
5. I only have a handful of people I call ‘Good Friends’. But I like everyone else all the same.
6. I'm not big on talking on the phone. I’d rather text or e-mail so I can multi-task.
7. I am not a single parent, although my kids try hard to make my wife and I consider it.
8. I have little patience for stupid people.
9. If I could live right off of a million dollar trust fund and eat Taco Bell twice a week, my life would be perfect.
10. I like my job but hate the shit pay. I'm still here because I can’t decide what I want to be when I grow up.
11. I am not a manly man
12. I've always lived in NJ
13. I do not take pictures. I’ve got a pretty good memory. Pictures make me sad.
14. If it breaks, there's a 90% chance I will break it
15. I'm not allergic to anything.
16. I sing when I drive, and when I play in bands I insist on getting some mic time.
17. I drive my kid crazy because I know all the words to almost all the songs on the radio, and take great pleasure in re-writing them to something silly or offensive.
18. I like to kid around... it sometimes gets me in trouble
19. If I don't like you, you won’t know it because I will ignore you. In fact, I will make you invisible.
20. I am terrified of pain.
21. I’m REALLY terrified of growing so old and feeble that I’ll drool and have to be taken care of 24/7.
22. I absolutely hate sitting in traffic.
23. 1/3 of the people who graduate college aren't using their major. I’m a management major, so I guess I win.
24. I hate going to see family on the holidays.
25. I am the voice of reason.
26. I will not eat anything that someone offers me if the sentence is prefaced by “Taste this. Does this taste spoiled to you?”
27. My favorite color is black. Next is dark blue. Pretty chipper, huh?
28. I have a phobia about eating the ‘last’ or ‘first’ of anything. (lets thank my ex-step mother for that one)
29. I am an very good speller … but I prefer to rush thru my assignments and therefore typos abound
30. my kids are somewhat picky eaters…but they are improving each year
31. I like raw tomatoes
32. I can take or leave dogs, and I don’t ever want to own one.
33. I don’t mind getting flowers … it just never happened because I’m “the guy” in the relationship.
34. I've been to Florida many, many times.
35. I like to learn new things...if I can right away apply them to something.
36. I am pretty good at math, and prefer to NOT use a calculator if I can get away with it.
37. Deep down, I'm a 4 year old boy named “Jody”
38. I’ll take rain on a hot summer day over snow on ANY given day….any given day.
39. If there's something I want to buy I go ahead and buy it. I don’t “shop”. I also don’t buy myself much.
40. There is not a natural blonde anywhere in my family.
41. I would love to have a vegetable garden one day
42. I rarely read instruction manuals
43. I don't mind change AND I adapt well
44. I have never owned a turtle. Or a lizard.
45. I love the smell of laundry soap
46. I'm right handed, but my favorite relative of all time was lefty
47. I hate to wear sandals or flip-flops, and won’t. No matter how hot it is outside.
48. I listen to heavy metal, rock, rap and soft rock... often in the same ride.
49. I think having 2 kids is enough. Really.
50. I still bite my nails
51. I don't smoke, and cannot see the point in doing it.
52. Between my kids and myself we can go through 2 gallons of Apple Juice a week
53. When I'm overtired I get a headache. Then I get very cranky.
54. If there's nothing good on TV, I shut the TV off. I’m also very critical about what constitutes “good”.
55. I read. A lot
56. I tell my family that I love them. I tired that with my friends, but it felt awkward and the reception was lukewarm at best.
57. I wanted to dye my hair midnight blue when I was 20, but chickened out.
58. I can take or leave when girls wear lipstick
59. I will go fishing, but only for the beer, sun and wind in my face.
60. I have a comic book collection
61. I like melted peanut butter on my pancakes…especially when mixed with syrup
62. I could eat Taco Bell or Chinese Food every single day
63. I am very organized
64. I love the book The Stand
65. When I'm in a bad mood I dont want to be cheered up until I'm good & ready.
66. I am really bad at wrapping gifts and prefer to just not do it.
67. I don't like to drink milk
68. My brother and I both insist that our parents favored the other one growing up.
69. I can whistle
70. I had a song I wrote played on college radio for a while back in 1989
71. I miss my grandparents like crazy
72. I don't like strawberry flavored milk
73. I never had a pet lamb, pet cat or pet hamster
74. I only tasted Guacamole about a year ago.
75. Still hate it
76. My desk at work is pretty organized, but could be more so
77. After the house key and the car key, everything else on a key chain is crap
78. I love sushi and wish my kids would try it
79. I don't wear deodorant every day, because I never sweat. I’m not a pig…just weird glands.
80. I'm not a perfectionist, and I know it bites me in the ass sometimes
81. I wear jeans & sneakers as often as I can
82. Obama & Clinton rank very high on the list of ‘Presidents I really don’t like’
83. When I write, my imagination is very vivid. Like I already saw the movie in my head…
84. I think Nutella is DEEEEE-licious
85. I miss my spice rack
86. I am terribly lazy, but I do try.
87. I am nothing like I appear to be
88. I can be painfully insecure
89. I dont think I blush very easily...but I'm very modest
90. I wish I put my creativity to better use.

How opening a can of Whoopass can mean Free Shipping

2011-04-30T11:11:00.001-07:00

http://tinyurl.com/3nfmfsg

Ok, so kick the above link and FREE Ground shipping on Whoopass.

Man, I just love to say that word: Whoopass.

LOL! Say it with me: Whoopass

TOO MUCH FUN!

Diet Pepsi's Skinny Can

2011-03-11T16:52:00.000-08:00

Look! Diet Pepsi makes a can and calls it "skinny". How clever! Unfortunately, there are many in the fashion world that aren't pleased or humoured.

Jill Beraud, chief marketing officer for PepsiCo said in a statement, "Our slim, attractive new can is the perfect complement to today's most stylish looks..."

Jonathan Asher, senior vice president at Perception Research Services International has a different take: It feels like a cheap shot to get publicity and it would be a shame if that’s what it was. I don’t think calling this can the skinny can and associating it with Fashion Week is going to do much to contribute to the very serious problem of eating disorders...”

I ask you to take the can in context. Pepsi isn't saying that the thin can will make you thin. Diet Pepsi has been around for 40 years...we KNOW it wont be a suitable substitute for fruit and vegetables or water. It's a sexy looking can, and EVERY company worth it's salt tries to package their product in a way that is appealing!

Of course, choosing to use 'Fashion Week' as the time and place to make it's debut is clever/not clever. If you are going to make a statement in front of a group that takes eating disorders seriously...you have to brace yourself for the backlash. Sure, it's a media coup...but it looks like some non-fans were made!

Remember - the soda INSIDE tastes the same. So judge the can in stride and remember to drink wisely...especially if you are dieting.

Cola that isn't Soda

2010-11-27T19:46:00.000-08:00

I like all kinds of Soda, but I seem to gravitate towards 'cola' when I order one.

Not necessarily "coca" cola....but a cola nonetheless.

But COLA stands for other things and has interests outside of soda.
(Why anyone would have interests outside of Soda is beyond me...)

COLA also stands for Cost of Living Adjustment.
Yeah, you used to get a raise every year just to keep up with the cost of living.
(Can you believe it?! Where I can I get me one of those?!)
The military still honors this yearly increase.
See the table here.

COLA also stands for the Center for Ocean-Land-Atmosphere.
No, I don't see the point, either.
They coulda' just called it the 'Center About Studying Earth" (CASE).
Or how about the "Center Underscoring Studies of Stuff." (CUSS).
COLAS's website is here, if you are interested.

Seattle has non-profit website built around COLA.
But not soda...and not for grunge music either!
This one is for Dogs. Yeah, really.
It's the Citizens for Off Leash Areas.

Further research shows that you can find all KINDS of definitions for COLA.

But I say we stick to Soda.
That's what I'm about...

Who's Drinking them Energy Drinks?!?!

2010-11-17T13:27:00.000-08:00

"FDA Expected to Ban Caffeinated Alcohol Drinks" was the headline I read. It's for an article on MSN's website, and you can read it here.

The comment itself didnt really shock or offend me. In fact, I read the article hoping to see a LIST of such drinks, but they only talked up one...a product called "Four Loko". (although they did mention Joose without really talking about them in any detail.)

If you do a little research, you'll see the names of colleges banning Four Loko due to the ill effects it had on students.

But what DID catch my eye was a quote in the article that says, "The drinks are regularly consumed by 31 percent of 12-to-17-year olds."

That means one out of every three twelve year old...and one out of every three 13 year old...drinks an alcohol and caffeine fueled energy drink.

Here is my question: Where Are the Parents?!
I was 12 once, and I have 12 year olds in my yard every weekend. I know what they do all day long...and I'd like to know why they need a beverage that has alcohol and caffeine in it.
Of COURSE a 12 year old is going to want to try one...and of COURSE if the marketing is good (and the can is cool) they are going to keep drinking them.

But where the hell is the parenting?!
Would you let your 13 year old smoke?
Would you let them drink a glass of wine?
Would you let them take pills that keep them 'up'?

Alcohol and Caffeine-laced energy drinks are NOT the same as juice or soda.
Hell, I know a LOT of parents that don't let their kids drink Soda.
To think that 1/3 of the nation's parents let their kids drink energy drinks is amazing.

Don't tell me that the kids run out to the store and the parents don't know.
I know for a FACT that 12 and 13 year olds leave their junk all over the place...including soda cans. (and a shout out to my neighbors who have NOT taught their kids to pick up after themselves! Thanks for all the extra trash...jerks!)

I'm not "capping" my rant at 13 years old.
14 and 15 year olds dont need to drink this stuff, either.
And at 17 you might just be working and buying whatever you want.

But 12 and 13 is very, very young.
Too young, I would think, to pollute a body with caffeine and alcohol.

Just my 2 cents.

and remember to visit Coke vs. Pepsi, where no page of the site was injected with Alcohol to create what you see there...

Coke, Pepsi and Cholesterol

2010-10-20T09:40:00.001-07:00

I had my Cholesterol checked today.
Yeah, I do that every 10 years or so.
Good to stay on top of it. ;)

It's almost exactly where is was 10 years ago.
Only a few points above 200...and I have MUCH more 'good' Cholesterol than 'bad'.
(I always mix up HDL and LDL, but I know I'm doing well.)

I guess all that Taco Bell hasn't killed me yet.
And Being an authority on soda hasn't ruined me either.
At least not yet.

But while it's fun to snub my nose at the health nuts and say 'look at ME. I'm FINE!' I suppose it's fair to give them a fair say. After all, I'm NOT in the majority. My good health is an anomaly. (Maybe I'm an alien. Not like the yellow sun gives me powers or anything but...)

SO...since it's 'Check your Health' day, I bring you:
1) What Soda Does to your Body - personally, I think the article is a cross between 'Scanners' and mass-scare-tactic...but her intentions are good.

2) 1 Daily Soda may boost Heart Disease - what?!?! Don't let this medical journal scare you off! Everything in moderation, right?!

3) Can Diet Soda increase Cholesterol Levels - ok, well you can blame DIET soda...I don't drink diet soda. But still, stop blaming the can of pop, will ya?!

4) Coke vs. Pepsi - still the best Squidoo lens chronicling the cola wars! Bad Health be Damned!

Drink Soda, Enjoy Life.
It's not like we're Jimmy Dean or something...

You Can't get a Pepsi at McDonald's

2010-10-12T09:11:00.001-07:00

Really, you can't.

McDonald's carries Coca Cola products, so the idea of the 'other' brand showing up within the Golden arches is nil.

The Minnesota Twins only serve Pepsi in their Target Stadium.
No Coke to be found there.

But certainly no one chooses their Fast Food restaurant or favorite ball team by the soda they serve, or don't serve.

Cola, despite millions of dollars on branding, is unfortunately indistinguishable amongst the masses. Sure, when they are side-by-side you can tell the difference in a taste test, but the difference is NOT so drastic that it would ruin your meal.

A waitress at a diner I frequent recently insisted that she has had customers walk out of the establishment because they wanted a Coke and was served a Pepsi.

Even my favorite China Buffet serves soda in tall red glasses that have the Pepsi logo on them.
(surely you can see the irony...why not Blue glasses?!)

In fact, when I order a 'Coke with no ice, lemon' with my meal, the waitress will ask me if Pepsi is "OK" if that's all they serve. (Surely they are concerned that I'll make a fuss like the before-mentioned senior citizen did...). No need to worry. I can tell the difference, but it wont ruin my meal.

Do folks in Atlanta feel pretty strong about the flavor differences? I understand they do more so there than elsewhere. Atlanta prides itself on being the home to Coca Cola, and has been drinking the product for over a century. Those taste buds are pretty well tuned in.

But when Average Joe makes a stink in a New Jersey restaurant because he wants a Coca Cola and not a Pepsi, I'm confused.

Or maybe I'm just so in love with soda that it's made me more accepting?
Hell, don't we always accept the flaws and short comings of those we love?
I'm a huge fan of contact sports, even though I know it's violent and sometimes bloody.

But alas, I digress...

Coca Cola and Pepsi are smart to form agreements with fast food chains and other establishments, but I don't think it's an issue of 'conversion'. If you can only get Pepsi at Taco Bell, and you eat at Taco Bell once a week, it doesn't mean you'll in short time stop drinking Coca Cola because you are 'conditioned' to.

No, in fact the smartest part of the exclusivity arrangements is that it ensures you 'x' cases of soda will be sold each week...because a LOT of people order a soda with the meal! So why give the customer a chance to NOT buy YOUR soda? Keep the competition the hell outta there!

Soda exclusivity in fast food restaurants.
Score one for good business, score none of cornering the market of one's mouth.

Footnote - my thanks to Seth Godin for the title. His recent blog post inspired me to write the article, even though it wasn't the basis of HIS thesis.

Third Anniversary Coke vs. Pepsi Top 7 Stories

2010-09-07T06:47:00.000-07:00

Happy Belated Birthday!

Coke vs. Pepsi turned '3' last week...and like any bad Father I completely missed it's birthday because I was preoccupied with other things.

But like any GOOD Father, I acknowledged it as soon as I noticed it, drank a cold glass of cola and sat down to research the Top 7 Coke Versus Pepsi stories.

The Top 7 Stories is based on the number of times each page has been visited.
I can confirm fro first-hand experience that a few spammers have found 2 specific blog entries that they like to comment more than others...but a win is a win. There must be a reason why they picked THOSE entries (I'd like to think it was the great writing, gripping stories, fascinating content and witty catch-phrases I use. But who knows...?)

So, Happy Birthday Coke vs. Pepsi!
The Top 7 Stories this blog hosts are:

#7) Coke or Pepsi? Smart or Silly? (5/3/08) - this quick entry talked up 2 other websites that debate the Coke versus Pepsi preference we all have...but we found to be somewhat 'girlie'. I was quite pleased to receive a comment from the site's publisher explaining WHY It was girlie.

#6) History of Coca Cola and Pepsi...and Google! (8/21/07) - this article quantifies and explains the differences of 'Coca Cola' information and 'Pepsi' information when making searches on Google.

#5) Coca Cola Prices Going Up. Pepsi Next? (7/18/08) - and the heels of a price increase, we discuss the options and the consequences of a Cola pricing increase.

#4) 7 Most Relevant Coke vs. Pepsi Stories of the Last Year? (8/20/08) - The debut of our 'Top Stories' list. (yeah, I remembered our FIRST Birthday...every Good Father does!).

#3) Andy Warhol Coca Cola (9/12/08) - Would-be SPAMmers love this entry, which makes me happy and sad. I'd happy that whatever content I shared here gets enough public visibility that SPAMmers think it's worth commenting on. But I was hoping for a higher-brow audience.

#2) Pepsi and Coca Cola Sales Drop Drastically (4/08/09) - There seems to be a correlation between Cola blog traffic and articles about Cola Pricing. Which would speak to the higher-brow audience I alluded to in the above comment.

And the #1 most Relevant Coke vs. Pepsi blog entry as of this writing is.....

#1) The History of Coca Cola Prices (9/29/08) - High-brow audience wins again!!! Glad to see the most visited blog entry was something that didn't have the word 'MILF' or 'Dude' in the title!

I always enjoy compiling this list each year and looking back on how much traffic this blog gets.
Sure, it would have been nice for some '2010' posts to get on the list, but it's been a busy year and perhaps I just need to put more thought into future posts this year.

Next post should be titled "The History of Coca Cola Pricing Increases and the Google Searches about Pepsi Sales Decreasing that are equally Relevant"

...or something...!

No one cares about Concrete Resurfacing

2010-09-03T05:41:00.000-07:00

I understand that some people will spam the 'comments' section of a blog in order to promote their own products and interests. It's just a fact of life that bloggers have to deal with.

I'm fortunate that no one can comment my blog unless I approve the comments first. As a result, you'll find SodaIsGood to be spam-free.

I is happy. :)

Usually a spammer will try once...maybe twice...and then give up.
Good for "learning"!
If once you don't succeed...go pester someone else.

HOWEVER...some dufus who runs a Concrete Resurfacing site has been trying ENDLESSLY to get his comments on this blog!

Want to know his website URL?
No Chance.
But I can tell you it's doesn't end with a "dot com" or a "dot net" if that helps.

AAAAAANYway....I was thinking about how I could have him contribute to THIS blog without giving him any credit or any publicity. And then it dawned on me.

(drum roll please....)

Go to Google...look up "Concrete Resurfacing + Cola"...and what do you get?

Today's blog entry will talk about Cola Stains on concrete!

www.ConcreteNetwork.com is a great site and shows the Cola-colored stain made by Kemiko here.

www.RockinJConcrete.com shows the Kemiko colors (including Cola!) here.

www.CompleteStoneServices.com is a very thorough site...and if you scroll halfway down the page you can see all of their stain colors. Cola IS shows, and while it's not listed as a Kemiko brand it seems to me that the colors shown with it are also Kemiko. Check it out here.

Just who IS Kemiko?! Check out www.Kemiko.com!

www.ConcretePolishing.com has great information on how to CLEAN concrete that has been stained. Let's assume you spill a can of Pepsi on your concrete patio, or a can of Coca-Cola on your sidewalk. These are the guys to go see.

So what is today's lesson?
Today's lesson is that if you continually spam this blog I will heavily promote your competitors!
LOL!!

Drink soda and enjoy the Labor Day weekend!!!

Taco Bell puts 16 sodas in 1 Machine

2010-08-23T13:33:00.000-07:00

Occasionally I blog about Coca-Cola's attempt to offer a machine that produces almost 100 flavors of soda in 1 concise place. It's called the Freestyle, and I've last written about it here.

Today I wandered into my local Taco Bell, and what do you know?
The soda machine, featuring Pepsi products, has SIXTEEN soda buttons!

It's true.
There are 4 'spouts' in the machine, and each spout has 4 buttons above it.

Now, in fairness, there were 2 opportunities to select "Pepsi"...but Water, Iced Tea, Mountain Dew, Cherry Pepsi, Diet Pepsi and Mug Root Beer made an appearance, also. (I'm sure there was a Pink Lemonade button, too. I'm doing this from memory because I left my cellphone-with-camera in the car when I went in to buy lunch).

I can tell you that I eat in a LOT of Taco Bells, and this is the first time I've seen said machine.

So one has to ask...is this Pepsi's subtle way of getting a multi-soda machine on the market before Coca Cola does...or just a short-scale coincidence?

Learn more about the Coke versus Pepsi battle of the ages at www.Squidoo.com/CokevsPepsi

A can of Sandwich to go with your can of Soda

2010-07-22T06:41:00.000-07:00

I was looking at the home page of one of the news-sites that I read when I saw a story about what I THOUGHT was 'sandwich-flavored soda'. Of course it immediately grabbed my eye.

But at second look I noticed it was a sandwich INSIDE of a soda can!

Amazingly eerie and cool at the same time!

The article is here.

The sandwiches will come in cans that resemble soda cans, and will keep it's contents fresh for up to a year. From Peanut Butter sandwiches to BBQ Chicken sandwiches...the plan is to make it easier for busy mommies to feed the kids when they are on the go.

(Scroll down the article and read the 'comments'. A great debate brewed over whether it was nutritiously better to eat these 'Canwhiches' or go to McDonald's.)

Sandwich in a can sounds weird?
What about the goofy flavours that Jones Soda provides?
In fact, remember their Holiday Ham flavour?!

Listen...the astronauts have been eating packaged food for YEARS, and they are healthier than a marathon runner! Sandwhich in a Can will definately catch on. Afterall, people still eat Spam. ;)

Coca Cola accused of using Porn in marketing campaign

2010-07-19T13:59:00.000-07:00

MAN! All you need is one small person to make 1 small mistake and you have 1 BIIIG problem on your hands.

Unless you are Coca-Cola.

A recent marketing campaign in England combined Facebook and some naughty little minds.
Apparently, a mommy was none-too-pleased by a passing comment and went into a rage.
And now it's news.

You can read the story here.
I WILL forewarn you that this is another case of a small instance getting blown up into a big issue.

And remember...there is no 'bad' press when you are a multi-million dollar company envoking marketing ideas!

Mello Yello and the Seasick Fisherman

2010-06-28T13:15:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, my 9 year old son was invited to go fishing with his best buddy. His father has a small boat that we've been on once before, and I while I'm not much of a fishing fanatic I thought it would be nice for the boys.

All I had to do was wake up at 6 in the morning, buy lunch for me and my son, and arrive at Bob's house for 7:00. Simple right?

Ughghg. I HATE waking up early.
But it's for my son...

So I find out that none of the grocery stores are open before 7:00AM.
This is bad because I want to be at his HOUSE at 7:00am.
So instead I'm off to Wawa to buy some sandwiches and sodas.

First, the good news: Despite being a 'convenience store', they had a well stocked deli and I was treated to 2 sandwiches for under $5.00 TOTAL.

Next, the SODA news: while my son was treated to a Coca Cola, I found a bottle of MELLO YELLO on the shelf. AND...it was 'marked down' from $1.59 to .99! SODA ON SALE! Who'da thought?! I took it!

Last, the bad news: for the first time in my life, I got sea sick.
I appears that fishing on the ocean is MUCH different than crabbing in the bay!

So once again, I could not enjoy my Mello Yello to the fullest.
In fact, I barely made it through my sandwich!

You'll recall from earlier posts that Mello Yello became a bane of my existence in the past. I was REALLY hoping this time it would be different. It wasn't. Sorry, Mello Yello...I don't think we can be friends anymore! :(

3 Soda's for Executed Man's last meal

2010-06-18T05:29:00.000-07:00

Ronnie Lee Gardner was executed in Utah last night via firing squad. Ever notice how most of the infamous murderers in history had 3 names? Lee Harvey Oswald. John Wayne Gacy. Spooky, right?

When Gardner consumed his last meal on Tuesday night, he washed it down with a 7UP.
(wow...I haven't had a 7Up in AGES. No disrespect to 7UP...I just find that the soda machines in fast food restaurants don't normally offer it in these parts...)

Gardner did not plan to eat on Thursday, but wound up consuming a Coke and a Mountain Dew before the day's end.

Not sure I would want an intake of caffeine before I Was to be executed. Doesn't your heart pound hard and fast enough just knowing you are about to be shot to death?! Maybe the extra racing and pounding takes the edge off?

I wonder how these beverages feel about unwittingly sponsoring a convicted killer's execution? "Today's firing squad was brought to you by Coca Cola! Choice of a New Generation...and a few from this Generation who are leaving us today...!"

Ok, that was crude.

Update on Coke's most interesting soda machine

2010-05-11T10:50:00.000-07:00

Are you familiar with the Freestyle?

Not freestyle rapping.
Not freestyle swimming.
I'm talking about the Freestyle soda machine from Coca Cola.

Almost a year ago I wrote a blog post about this new technology. While inventive and potentially a sales-increaser, it appears to have had a slow start.

Today's article in Newsmax accentuates the point.
The machine costs 30% more than a traditional soda fountain machine...and has only debuted in a handful of stores.

Coca Cola CEO Muhtar Kent is undeterred.
His experience has been that anyone who has used the machine has been completely satisfied...and has come back for more!

Clearly the machine makes it easier for the consumer to try new (or obscure) flavors without investing in a 12-pack of the goods...and clearly it makes it easier for Coca Cola to test market flavours and track the results.

But the question becomes how much more soda will it sell...and will the fast food restaurants that employ the technology be able to sell enough soda to easily cover the cost?

Soda stock prices...Invest in Coke, Invest in Pepsi

2010-04-19T11:26:00.001-07:00

The Cola War is as deeply rooted as the rivalries between Republicans and Democrats, Wrestling Fans and people who hate pro wrestling, Rock Musicians and the PRMC...ok, maybe I digress...

But the Cola Wars seems to have no end in sight. Perhaps you can profit form the profits!

My understanding what is happening, financially, with both product lines you can make an educated opinion.

(The views expressed in this article do not express my personal views. In fact, I dont own stock in either company, but I drink a LOT of their products!)

Read a great, recent article (4/19/2010) evaluating current stock prices here.

Coca Cola's recent stock price and company information on Morningstar here.

Morningstar's review of Pepsi's Q4 performance here.

Morningstar's evaluation of Jones Soda here.
JONES SODA?!?!? Well...yeah! They are a creative little bunch and deserved some finanical press!

Of course, LAST year Motley Fool was down on Jones Soda.
See here.

Well look...we cant base our lives around Coke and Pepsi, people!

The bottom line is that you have a lot of options, but you have to do oyour homework.
The stock market looks like a fun place to gamble, but you can actually beat the house better than any poker player if you research carefully and invest on things you understand.

Like soda.

Harry Potter indeed...Dungeons & Dragons soda!

2010-04-16T12:37:00.000-07:00

It's true! Jones Soda has a limited edition Dungeons and Dragons collection!

I played a bit of D&D in my time.
Aw who am I kidding?! I used to play ALL the time!
(That might explain why I didn't DATE much in High School!)

If you are familiar with the game, then you will appreciate the flavors Jones is bringing out:
• • Potion of Healing
• • Illthid Brain Juice
• • Sneak Attack
• • Eldritch Blast
• • Dwarven Draught
• • Bigby's Crushing Thirst Destroyer

Jones has a history of offering interesting flavors, especially around the holidays. This line of flavors will get all of the Harry Potter fans, as well as the How to Train a Dragon fans, and perhaps a few Lighting Thief fans off their butts and into the fridge for a nice cold one!

OK Soda from Coca Cola...not really OK, but kinda cool!

2010-04-09T11:50:00.000-07:00

How I came across OK Soda, I don't' remember.
But reading about it I learned it was a really interesting concept that just didn't get off the ground.

Wikipedia defines the endeavor as - OK Soda was a soft drink created by The Coca-Cola Company in 1993 that aggressively courted the Generation X demographic with unusual advertising tactics, including endorsements and even outright negative publicity.

Any good? Well, the Time website called it #1 on the list of Top 10 Bad Beverage Ideas.

But I think the marketing needs to be explored.
The entire idea behind OK Soda was to come up with something for the Gen X crowd, and marketing to them in a way that ACKNOWLEDGED that they did not want to be marketed to.
They did not want anything that was part of the corporate-culture machine.

This meant unique cans, unique soda machines and self-depreciating marketing slogans.
In fact, Kayfabe.net writes about their marketing efforts (and shows a great pic of an OK Soda soda machine!) here..

Suck.com writes an interesting piece about OK Soda here.

For a really good, in depth review of the story of OK Soda, you have to check out the article from Cavalcade of Awesome. GREAT coverage. (Editor's Note - Cavalcade of Awesome is a website and not a Rock Band.)

I thought I'd take a second to note that it was Roberto Goizuetta's idea to bring back Sergio Zyman to Coke's marketing group (he was fired after the New Coke debacle)...and Sergio's came up with the entire business model for OK Soda. Why do I share this with you? Because I'm a huge Goizuetta fan! :)

While most soda reviews just KILL a product (See yesterday's post about Chocolate Cherry Dr. Pepper) I found it interesting the OK Soda has a Facebook Fansite! Ok...maybe it IS Ok after all!

Cherry Chocolate Diet Dr. Pepper...really?!

2010-04-08T13:22:00.000-07:00

If you like soda as much as I do...and you like Chocolate as much as I do...and like cherries a bit to boot...then seeing something called Cherry Chocolate Diet Dr. Pepper should catch your eye right away!

It did mine.

I LOVE Dr. Pepper, but I never heard of THIS flavor and had to do a little research to see what I had missed.

According to Wikipedia:

Diet Cherry Chocolate Dr Pepper (2007–2008) was introduced as a limited edition flavor on November 21, 2007. It was discontinued in April 2008. It became available in Canada in early January 2008. A non-diet version was never created. The taste is similar to Canfield's Diet Cherry Chocolate Fudge Soda but with the distinctive Dr Pepper flavor.

Limited Edition all right! It ran for 5 months.

That does not smack of word recognition.

If it WAS world-renoun, it would have gotten a comeback each November, no?

Cherry Chocolate Rain video on You Tube. It's by Tay Zonday, the knucklehead who did the original Chocolate Rain. I don't know how much Dr. Pepper paid him, but...

Junk Food Blog reviews the soda here. (No mention of the video.)

Appropo of Something, which just KILLED Dr. Pepper's Berries and Cream flavor, reviews the Cherry Chocolate flavor here. (you will absolutely have to brush your teeth after reading the Berries and Cream review...)

Associated Content gave a 2-page, thorough review of the drink here. Well, it's 2 pages due to all the click-thru ads! However, while I enjoyed the humor of the above reviews, I give Associated Content big ups for doing a non-biased review.

So the question of "what did I miss" apparently turns out to be "not terribly much!"

I'm disappointed. It sure SOUNDS delicious.

For Cherries and Chocolate, I guess we'll have to stick with the world's favorite: Mrs. Cavanaugh's Chocolate Cherry Cordials. YUM-MEEE!

Soda's ode to Seth Godin

2010-02-11T11:07:00.000-08:00

When I was more involved with Marketing, I was a HYOOGE fan of Seth Godin.

I still am a huge fan, but I read him less often because my current position of work has a slightly different scope of work to it than when I was more actively pursuing his (marketing) ideas.

(By the way, I recently joined the gym so I wouldn't REALLY be huge. Well, hang on. I guess if I work really, really hard I COULD be a huge fan...Ok, we'll address that later.)

Anyway, today I was listening to an interview Seth gave, and it occur ed to me: I used to read Seth's blog all the time, I wonder if he's ever read mine?

And more importantly (because I don't cater to my own Self Importance): Does Seth like Soda? Does he think soda is good?

Jumped over to my friend Google and looked into Seth Godin's ideas about Soda:

Seth Godin Mistakes Custom Soda for a Hybrid Car - an author's critique of Seth comparing Jones Soda's marketing to Toyota's marketing of their hybrid vehicle.

Everyone is Clueless - Seth is impressed with how the owner of Galco's Soda Pop Stop actually TURNED DOWN Pepsi as a vendor. Actually, I'm pretty impressed myself...!

By the way, here is the You Tube video that showcases Galco's.
Even though the typed text around the 'screen' is not in English, the commentary absolutely is.

Our sister blog, Coke vs Pepsi, is shown on a platform called Squidoo. (as opposed to Blogger. Follow?) You cannot find much about Seth at Coke vs. Pepsi...but he IS the person who first conceived the idea of the 'Squidoo' platform that CvP is on, and assembled a team that brought it to life!

Seth Godin is one of the most insightful and thought provoking marketer I've ever read. I highly encourage you to pour yourself a tall glass of Cola and read the first book of his you can find!

A note about Cola Comments

2010-01-28T06:51:00.000-08:00

This blog does NOT get the kind of traffic that BoingBoing or The Onion. It's not as prolific as anything written by Perez Hilton or Seth Godin.

But I'm happy with the daily traffic it gets and that's that. ;)

Now and again, I'm lucky to have a reader drop a comment.
If it's related to the article...or ANYthing about soda, really...it gets published right away.

But very, very, very often I get comments about investments vehicles and porn sites.
Many of them are written in VERY bad English!
(Note to people reading this blog - if you are going to try to SPAM the comments page, PLEASE have someone proofread your work!)

Anyway, this page was not written to complain.
Actually, it's my way of acknowledging all of the people who wrote comments that did not get published and thought I just ignored them.
I did not ignore you...I just didn't publish your comment because it had nothing to do with the topic on hand.

SO...to be a good sport...let me ensure that this page has something soda-related on it:
The Soda Pop Blog ran from 2006 to 2009. Pretty good stuff. I wish I saw it last year or I'd have given it some free press.

The Orange Soda Blog has NOTHING to do with soda...but man they take GREAT wedding pictures! REALLY interesting shots, and high quality!

The Soda Spectrum Series ran from 2005 to 2008. We must have just missed each other. I think I should steal some of his old material and re-vamp it for 2010. Saves me having to come up with original ideas. LOL! I'm kidding of course...

So., the morale of our story is:
1) you cannot get SPAM comments on this blog, so please stop trying
2) if you write a unique and interesting blog about soda, odds are you are ME, as the other interesting and unique blogs seem to have stopped writing
3) it doesn't matter if you like Coke or if you like Pepsi. Soda is for everyone. So is this blog.

See you at Coke vs. Pepsi!

Five Guys Burgers and Fries...and Sodas

2010-01-21T11:52:00.000-08:00

I'm a late bloomer. It takes me FOREVER to get to the Next Big Thing.

Today was the Very First Time I've eaten at Five Guys Burger and Fries.
And I feel a little foolish because there were posters and signs all over the place showing that they have been the Zagat rated and raved about FOREVER.

Where have I been?!?!?

So I started with the basics: a double burger with mushrooms and A1 sauce.
(MAN I like A1 sauce. Kicks the crap outta ketchup!)

I have to be honest, I didn't KNOW I was ordering a double burger, and coulda' saved a dollar if I went with what they call a 'small burger'.

I mean, no grown adult wants to order a small...but I only needed 1 patty.
I'm not complaining. The pricing was GREAT. Well worth the money.

So I took my cup over to the soda machine...and for a guy who says that Soda is Good, I was in Soda Heaven!!!

If you know anything about this blog you know I was stoped to see both Mello Yello AND Mister Pibb!

AWESOME! All the great flavors you cannot get at McDonald's or Taco Bell!

So I filled my cup with Mello Yello, ignoring the overkill from last year's trip to South Carolina, and added 2 shots of Sprite just for good measure.

Oooops...my mistake.
Sprite actually DE-flavored it.
Bummer.

But the Burger?
DELICIOUS!

Go to Five Guys, and take a second to stare at the soda machine and see AAAAALLLLLL the great sodas they offer.

I do not work for Five Guys and I do not get any money for talking about them.
But I DO strongly support Coke vs. Pepsi.
Great site! :)

Seeking Proof that Soda is Good

2010-01-15T07:17:00.000-08:00

Gosh I love this blog! I love writing it, I love reading it.
I love when others read it...

Pepsi, Coca-Cola, Mountain Dew, Dr. Pepper and many more...

Of course, we know that Soda is not good 'for' you...but it's GOOD!
It tastes good; and that's good.
We share laughs over a soda or two, and that's good.
It goes great with whatever you are eating; and THAT's good!

So today I went to Google and looked to see what would happen if I sought out 'Soda is Good'.

(Disclaimer - I had to ignore any post that talked about BAKING Soda is good for you. I don't care if BAKING soda is good for you! It doesn't taste good, it doesn't go great with whatever you are eating and it's not exactly a medium for sharing laughs and good times!)

So the top pieces of Google Evidence to prove that Soda is Good:
1) Soda is Good on Hub Pages
2) DIET Soda is NOT good for you. Bummer :(
3) Jones Soda is the coolest, but NOT a great investment per Motley Fool. Another Bummer. Dang...
4) CHEAP Soda is good for you. YAAAAAAAY!!!!
5) New York Times says Soda: It's Good for You.
6) Soda is Good For You on Flickr!
7) VIDEO: Grape Soda is good s--t

Decided to add #7 for TWO reasons.
1 - always leave on a high note.
2 - because my ORIGINAL idea for this post was my periodic update on the Purple Beverage company. (You may think that I am unfairly hard on Purple, but I try to be objective.) Anyway, I nixed the idea, but when I saw a PURPLE Beverage (Grape Soda) I could not resist. It's like Kharma. Really.

For MORE evidence that Soda is Good, visit our friends at www.Squidoo.com/CokevsPepsi

Pepsi not advertising at SuperBowl this year

2009-12-17T13:24:00.000-08:00

Pepsi will end it's 23 year streak of advertising during the SuperBowl and instead conserve it's funds so it can put more strength into it's online efforts.

See the whole article here.

How expensive is it to advertise during the biggest football game of the year?
Last year it cost an average of 3 million dollars for a 30 second spot.

That's a lot of Pepsi to sell to cover that bill!

There is no reason to 'doubt' Pepsi's reasons for pulling out of SuperBowl this year, but one has to wonder if they are just being polite. In other words, are they selling 6 or 8 million Pepsi's per ad? Have they finally decided that they are not getting enough bang for the buck?

It's incredibly hard to gauge. If they were offering an entirely new product/brand, then you could count sales for 10 days following SuperBowl and estimate a majority came from the ad. But to spend 3 million dollars for 30 seconds to show off an already globally-recognized product...how do you know if the marketing is WORKING?!

Last year, FedEx sat out the SuperBowl...and they plan to do so again this year.
Maybe Corporate America is finding that the price tag is just too high, and not worth it.

I once worked for a company that participated in a big trade show each year.
We got very little business from the show itself...but it was a 'status symbol' to be there.

So if you were NOT there, it looked bad. People would talk. Rumours would start.

Maybe Pepsi (and many others) has been hanging in just so no one speculates that they can't afford to be there?

By sticking their neck and their press release out NOW to announce the parting of ways...and to use an excuse that will draw attention and get people looking for new marketing...Pepsi has squashed any rumours. Personally, I say let Coke spend the millions of millions just to say they were there. It's a very costly venture.

(and watch them fight it out on www.Squidoo.com/CokevsPepsi!)

We all know that marketing endeavors are only valuable if you can measure them.
If you don't know how many Pepsis your 30 second spot sells, then 3 million dollars is 2.9 million dollars too many!

Social Butterfly talks up ColaLife

2009-12-10T06:37:00.000-08:00

Now and again I talk up Simon Berry's ColaLife project.
It's simple and brilliant at the same time!

ColaLife is a non-profit organization that strives to get CocaCola to leverage it's distribution strength to bring aid to the malnourished Third World nations in Africa.

In other words, if they can bring Coca Cola into Africa, then they should be able to easily bring water and medicine as well.

While I pride myself on keeping the world updated on Simon's work, I found a GREAT article about ColaLife in a recent Social Butterfly post here. (Be sure to click on the video. It's very cute, despite the grave message).

Social marketing is being used to get the public on board with products. But it's just as powerful a tool for sharing valuable 'non profit' ideas...like saving lives!

Alexandra's blog is fabulous, and the ColaLife article is concise and thorough at the same time!
Be sure to check it out...and then read further into ColaLife's efforts and see if and where you can help!

And for something less "political", don't forget our friends at Coke versus Pepsi!

Coke versus Costco - Greed is not so Good!

2009-11-20T06:48:00.000-08:00

It's all over the news. Well, the 'Soda' news.
Costco isn't getting the pricing it wants from Coca Cola, so they've decided to no longer carry their products.

Well...they'll sell out what they have and THEN stop carrying it. The quote in the Associated Press article reads like this:

The wholesale club operator, based in Issaquah, Wash., is not removing products like Coke and Diet Coke from store shelves, but it does not plan to restock them "until the matter is resolved,".

The Chicago Tribune, Huffington Post and Walletpop reported the story also...but both sides of the argument are being rather tight lipped about it all so there isn't much for them to share.

Which products? Apparently ALL of them: Coke, Cherry Coke (Jay-Z's favorite!), Classic Coke, Black Cherry Vanilla Coke (yes, really!), Diet Coke, Coke Zero and Sprite. And Disani water! and Vitamin Water! And Energy Drinks!

But who is really being the price bully here? Have you ever bought soda in a price club? I have NEVER seen brand-name soda at a reasonable price at ANY price club. I don't care if it's Costco, Sam's, BJ's...they all have been consistently higher in price than the grocery chain stores.

How big a discount does the #1 soda distributor have to give a retailer? Soda is like soap...people are going to keep buying it no matter WHAT it costs. This is not to say that it's reasonable to 'price gouge'...but my point is that if the national Grocery Chains can sell soda at a given price, then the wholesale stores should be able to sell 'competitively' as well.

These 'price clubs' have made a career of asking the public to pay a membership fee so that they can buy products in bulk. Sure, you get a good price on Mayonaise...it's because you're buying a 2-gallon jug of it! Less plastic, less glass, less paper labels...lower price.

But maybe Joe Blow doesn't WANT to buy 300 cans of Coca Cola in order to get a good price. He wants to go where he buys his chopped meat and chicken and buy everything for dinner in 1 place. If Costco can't make money selling Coca Cola then they should stick to selling no-name brands at a profit.

Costco is a huge chain, but will Coca Cola suffer dramatically from the loss?
I'm inclined to say 'no'.

Sure, you want every sale you can get...but this might open Coca Cola up to finding some markets they have NOT yet exploited...and tell Costco to get back in line with everyone else and pay what everyone else is paying.

And do you think Costco can find enough no-name substitutes for the brands they are discontinuing? How many people are going to say "Oh look! It's Cola Zero! Sure, it's not COKE Zero, but I'll drink it! And LOOK! They have Dish-ani! Sure, it's not Disani..but I'm sure it's similar!"

Almost none.

Much of the feedback I've seen has been based around "glad to see Costco telling Coke to shove it." As a business man and a Costco customer I say "tough noogies, Costco."

In the land of Mr. Pibb

2009-11-06T07:06:00.000-08:00

I flew from Newark, New Jersey to Phoenix, Arizona earlier this week.
When the airline stewardess (I can't remember the Politically Correct term, so I'm going with the ol' standard...) came by with the Soda Cart, I noticed that someone 2 rows up had gotten a can of Pibb Xtra.

Pibb Xtra? That's the revised name for Mr. Pibb!
I like Mr. Pibb!
(I like Dr. Pepper better, I think, but I haven't had a Mr. Pibb in some time.)

So I had one.

Ever notice that these young ladies give you a cup FILLED with ice, and then pour in whatever soda will fit? BLEAUGHGH. I had to use the back of my fork to pull out all of the ice and pour IN more soda. Of course, after 3 pours I was left with WARM soda...but at least it wasn't FLAT watered down cold soda....

That afternoon, after a very good client visit, we went to lunch.
The Soda Fountain had a few standards (Coke, Lipton Iced Tea...)...and Pibb Xtra!
YEAH! I'll have another Pibb!
Can't get them in New Jersey!

I'm still calling it Mr. Pibb, by the way.
There didn't seem to be anything 'extra' about Pibb Xtra.
Extra colors on the can, maybe.
Maybe it costs extra these days...but what doesn't?

(Actually, according to Wikipedia:

In 2001, a new flavor called Pibb Xtra has 23 flavors and was introduced with added cinnamon flavor, replacing the original flavor in many parts of the US.)

Ok, all definitions aside, this time it was already cold and it had NO ice in the cup.
MUUUUUCH better!

So now I've got a few Mr. Pibbs in me and I realize...as much as I want to like this soda I really DO like Dr. Pepper better.
In fact, the public in general seems to like Dr. Pepper better...some are even Bootlegging it!

Sorry, Pibb. You're a nice guy and all but a Doctor trumps a Mister every time.
An no one needs an Extra Mister.

Strange Little Sodas Kept Alive

2009-10-24T13:10:00.000-07:00

I found a GREAT article in Fortune magazine that I wanted to share/summarize for you.
It talked about 5 'niche' sodas that have not lived up to their owner's expectations, but will not die due to their cult following.

Which 5 sodas?

1) Moxie - in the 1900's this cola outsold Coke and Pepsi! Now, it's a cult favorite in the NorthEast and a virtual unknown elsewhere in the States.

2) Mr. Pibb - forget the 'MILF' articles I've written about Mr. Pibb, the bigger story is that the Coke-owned answer to "Dr. Pepper' sold 57 million cases last year. Of course, Dr. Pepper sold 586 million. And it has it's own museum.

3) Slice - strongly endorsed by Roger Enrico when he ran PepsiCo, it never achieved the 10% of market that he envisioned.

4) TAB - Owned by Coke, this diet beverage never surpassed competitor Diet Coke. But last year 3 million cases were bought..some dieters SOMEWHERE are drinking it!

5) Fanta - In the U.S., Coke sold 175 million cases of this tasty little beverage. That's about 7 times more than it's 2000 sales.

You can read the Fortune article in it's entirety here.

5 more sodas that deserve to be showcased on Coke vs. Pepsi!

Soda Prices Going Up when New Taxes Kick In?

2009-10-13T11:12:00.000-07:00

And now for something political...

I'm doin' the Google Search for a clever soda-term today, and in my travels I come across a few (recent) articles that debate and discuss the idea of a surcharge/tax on Soda!

Some claim it will help in the fight against obesity.
Others see it as just another way to fill the political coffers.
Others see it as an infrigement of their rights and freedoms!
(Ok, settle down there Thomas Jefferson...)

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom likens soda to Tobacco, and wants to tax the retailers who sell it! The American Beverage Association seems to share my view on politics and food. They released a statement that read in part, "If our goal is to address obesity, then educating consumers about the importance of balancing calories consumed from all foods and beverages with the calories expended through physical activity is what matters - not demonizing any one particular food."

CollegeNET Forum further discusses the act here.

A New York Times online article discusses taxing soda in an effort to fight obesity and other health-issues here. It's a very thorough article, and the author does a nice job of showing both sides of the equation.

It opens with an interesting quote. It's attributed to Adam Smith, the economist, and dates back to “The Wealth of Nations,” (1776) where he wrote: “Sugar, rum and tobacco are commodities which are nowhere necessaries of life, which are become objects of almost universal consumption, and which are therefore extremely proper subjects of taxation.”

Thanks, Adam. I like Rum AND Soda. In fact, I think it's called a "Captain and Coke" if I'm not mistaken....

Again, I am opposed hurting people who CAN manage their weight by making them pay (no pun intended) for the follies of those who cannot. But maybe that's just me? I'm not so sure. In fact, I found an interesting on-line article in the Delaware Libertarian where the author does a very nice job of showing the flaw in people's thinking when it comes to accepting such a tax. Very clever article here.

Lastly, when you want information quickly and not with all the New York Times stuffiness, there is always USA Today! Here is there on-line article on the subject of taxing sodas. Sorry, no pie charts in this article!

Remember, when it comes to taxes, you are essentially giving money to the government to do with what they will. It's important that no matter how you vote on such a topic, that you 100% understand the issue from all sides. It's equally important that your Senator/Representative is voting with your best interests in mind...regardless of what you weight, what you earn and what you drink.

MILF + Soda is NOT a good mix!

2009-09-17T10:04:00.000-07:00

Several months ago I wrote a blog entry called This MILF likes Mr. Pibb. I thought I was doing a nice thing...giving a stranger some free traffic to her blog...and I have to admit I was interested to see if the 'MILF" term was going to bring additional traffic to MY blog.

Today I was studying some stats and wondered if it was worth trying the MILF tag again in the title. So I visited our friends at Google and searched "MILF" + "Soda".

In my heart I HONESTLY believed that I would find pages of articles, blogs and photos of MILFs discussing or showing off their favorite sodas. I mean, after all, many women believe they are a MILF...some are even told so. And MANY of them drink soda! So since Google can find almost ANYthing (and quickly!) I thought this was going to be a home run and my work would be done in minutes.

Boy was I wrong!

All I got was a handful of links of women doing some pretty graphic stuff with soda cans and soda bottles.

YIKES!!

I like beautiful women as much as the next (straight) guy...but if you can get an entire soda can (or bottle!) up there then we have nothing to talk about. Really. But thanks for sharing...!

Pretty funny "MILF + Soda" quote = When you go to Yahoo Answers you see that someone posts the question "Would you consider yourself as a MILF" and one of the answers was "I think I'm an attractive mother. Women who think they are MILFs usually give their babies soda in a bottle."

Good one, Rachel...whoever and wherever you are!!!

(BTW - I had a female friend who told me, in the same conversation, that a) she has low self esteem about her looks and b) she had been called a MILF a few times before. So you know what? She is either lying about 'a' or she is lying about 'b' because never the twain should meet!)

By the way...I know many of you refer to Soda as 'pop'.
(Don't believe me? Check the poll results here.)

When you search "MILF + Pop" the results aren't any better (as you might have guessed!). In fact, the first 10 items on Google are all about a video that Lexi Stone made. No, there is no soda involved and no you should not let your children watch it!!!!!!

So here is what I have learned today:
1 - using "MILF" in your blog title may raise your hit count...but not so much in a Soda blog
2 - giving a MILF free press often goes un-appreciated
3 - tyring to find MILF articles that do not include soda or a penis insertion is near impossible

That's all for today!

Coke vs. Pepsi Second Anniversary Top Stories

2009-08-24T09:25:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe, but Last Thursday (August 20th) marked the second anniversary of this blog. For 2 years I have been chronicling the soda wars, and everything else "soda" to go with it.

Hit rates have risen steadily until earlier this Summer (apparently swimmers and sun soakers have less time to read blogs) but the Top Stories remain the top stories. In fact, of the Top 7 most read blog entries from August 2008 to August 2009, more than half of them were written in 2008.

The #7 most read story this year was "This MILF likes Mr. Pibb" (March 2009)
Sure, it embarrassing to kick off this blog with a MILF reference...it's the only MILF reference in 2 years of blogging. But I put it out there to see what kind of response it got...and it's make it to #7 out of HUNDREDS of entries, so I guess sex DOES sell!

The #6 most read story this year was "Energy Drinks...Kicking Soda's Ass" (June 2008)
Certainly any story about an ass kicking is good reading! A year later, this one is still relevant and action packed! Energy drinks are taking over the beverage market with rapidity, so of course this was an article about the relevance of the industry and not a way to snare the UFC fan base. Really.

The #5 most read story this year was "Cola Please -No More Mello Yello" (September 2008)
This one had it all...irony, tragedy, sacrifice, friendship...and the tasty yellow beverage that you can't get 'just anywhere'! A great story 11 months later!

The #4 most read story this year was "Coca Cola Prices Going Up. Pepsi prices going up Next?"
(July 2008) Finally readers move away from MILFs, ass-kickings and sarcastic humour to read about something relevant and economical. Well, I mean it has to do with Economics. You know what I mean.

The #3 most read story this year was "Andy Warhol Coca Cola" (September 2008).
A great month for Top Stories! It used to really amaze me how popular this entry was, but the more I read it the more I can see it. Pop art, pop icons and Coca Cola are cornerstones of American culture, and this article covers all three. Maybe a pile of Coca Cola does not look like are to some (to ME, especially!), but it seems to ring true with a good portion of the audience.

The #2 most read story this year was "The History of Coca Cola Prices" (September 2008)
Trifecta! My birthday month yields my most creative work! Again, soda and pricing in the same story makes for a heavily read topic. Americans like their soda, and don't want to pay a lot. Any news about soda pricing is relevant.

The #1 most read story this year was "Pepsi and Coca Cola Sales Drop Drastically" (April 2009)
The most relevant story was also a recent one! Not so much a 'pricing' issue, but a story of economics and cultural tastes. (Literately!) Why are soda sales plummeting? Is it due to Energy Drinks (as mentioned above)? The current Health Kick? Pricing? If you drink beverages, this article speaks to you and your pallet.

So there are your Top 7, and as always I appreciate your readership!
Be sure to check out the Cola Wars on Squidoo: www.Squidoo.com/Cokevspepsi

Returning to the Valley of Mello Yello

2009-07-15T06:18:00.000-07:00

Last year I helped a friend move to South Carolina, and lamented over how much Mello Yello they tried to pour down my throat.

Last WEEK I returned to see my friends in South Carolina, and I'm pleased to report that they did not offer me a single glass of Mello Yello. In fact, we shared a chuckle over the experience and I drank a Coke-with-no-ice with dinner.

During the trip, we went to visit the Freestyle Music amusement park. This was formerly the Hard Rock amusement park, but it went bankrupt and was bought and re-named a year later.

When you have a brand as world recognized as Hard Rock, and you can't make money, you are doing something WRONG! An amusement park called Hard Rock should be able to host a concert every Friday in the Summer with a well recognized pop/rock star. Hell, Sun Tan Lake did it for all of those years!

(The park, by the way, STILL has the giant Hard Rock guitar logo on top of a tower at the edge of the park. You would think the Hard Rock people would try to capitalize on SOME part of this...!)

HOWEVER, before I blast the hard Rock for their failure, let me give you some feedback on the Freestyle Music amusement park.

1) It was very clean and had some very cool roller coasters
2) It was practically empty.

INCREDIBLE! Here it was, July 5th. Great weather. Good prices (Four of us got in for $82.00) and the place was empty. It was like back in the day when Michael Jackson would have an amusement park privatized so he and his little friends could play! We felt like special guests or something. (Yeah -something from Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park!)

In all, we had a great time and I DID drink a soda while I was there.
Hey, after all, an empty amusement park can be good (not for the owners, of course)...and Soda is Good!

Cola (life), Twitter (mob) and a Rally!

2009-07-13T13:02:00.000-07:00

My pal Simon Berry is using the power of Twitter (as well as Facebook) to get the message across.

This Friday (17/7/09), 3pm Trafalgar Square, he and his team of ColaLife supporters will be gathering in Trafalgar to celebrate ColaLife and see the giant aidpod take its rightful place on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square!

Simon has been encouraging the use of Twitter to get the message out, and gives some pointers on the best way to go about it here.

Personally, I HATE Twitter and find it to be a garbage app.
HOWEVER, if enough people use it for a common cause...and reach out to a large pool of people...then at least it's being used for something powerful and meaningful.

(as opposed to some recent 'tweets' I've seen like "Beautiful day in Denver!" or "Going to Taco Bell for a Fourthmeal. Yummmm....")

You'll be able to watch them live (pronounced LIE-v, not LIH-v) here: http://www.oneandother.co.uk/

The ColaLife website is awesome!
It's dedicated to getting Coca Cola to use their power of distribution to provide medicine and water to the Third World poor (as opposed to just sending soda....)

It's a powerful message with a lot of good behind it.
Even if you cannot be in Trafalgar Square to lend your support, I hope you'll check out their website.

The Death of Soda, or the Death of Readership

2009-06-29T12:58:00.000-07:00

I know I don't post every day, but I try to post once a week.
And luckily enough, there are enough "soda related" things happening in the world that there is always something to share.

Something serious, like Pepsi Prices Going Up or Protests Against Coca Cola

Something silly, like a video called The Death of Pepsi. Or two.

Even Business news, like the profitability of Making Your Own Soda or this new Purple Soda company.

So here is the concern, if you will...
Readership is down. WAAAAY down.

Content issue? I don't think so. I've been posting the same soda-related drivel for almost 2 years now. It's not like my content has 'gotten worse'.

Frequency issue? Again, I posts once a week, try to keep it fresh, and keep it to relevant topics.

In fact, I'd say the 'tools' I use to promote the blog...from Facebook to choosing the right keywords...is BETTER than it was a year ago.

So why the drop?
Maybe it's not ' this blog' related?

Are people drinking less Coca Cola and Pepsi than a year ago?

Are people looking up soda-related terms less frequently than they were a year ago?

Are people reading blogs (in general) less frequently than a year ago?

Believe me, I'm not going to stare to death if readership drops below 10 a day...but I'm INCREDIBLY curious why it would change.

In the meantime, remember...there's always the Dusty Rhodes Mello Yello video!!!

The smartest Coke machines on the Earth

2009-06-17T09:09:00.000-07:00

Coca Cola is about to debut a self-serve drink dispenser that pours more than 100 varieties of soda, juice and flavoured waters!

The Freestyle drink dispenser will appear in Atlanta (obviously!), Salt Lake City and Orange County , CA by the end of the summer...but the long range plan is to have tens of thousands of them in McDonald's and Burger Kings nationwide.

You can read all about it in the article in InformatioWeek. That's what caught my eye and I was super impressed with it! (so much so that I called there and asked about serving as a national installer for the line!)

You think you have enough choices when you buy fast food NOW?! Imagine being able to order one of ONE HUNDRED different beverages!

And how clever is Coca Cola?! Instead of putting new flavors in cans and bottles and hoping you'll buy them...you can now try a new flavor for the $1.49 you were going to spend at the burger joint ANYWAY.

Why is this clever?! Because these new machines are smart little computers. Coca Cola can see how many units of 'New Flavor' is selling. And in what cities. And in what quantities. And how many a day.

Maybe Coca Cola can do something clever with Jay-Z's version of Cherry Coke. Or make Coke with Lime more popular. Or suddenly compete with Dr. Brown's Celery Soda!

There's a big world of mini computers out there...and Coca Cola has certainly cornered the technology and put it to work.

Try some new flavours this Summer!
Comment here about them...and at Coke vs. Pepsi!

Adult Cola sites - NOT for kids!

2009-06-11T13:34:00.000-07:00

Ok, so a few months ago I 'sold out' and wrote a cola article that had a 'MILF' theme to it.
I feel bad. A little bad. A tiny, tiny bit bad. Whatever.

So today I noticed that I hadn't posted in a bit and traffic is down.
So, what better way to get a hot post back on than to use the MILF theme again?

Yeah, but who knew what I'd FIND?
You type "MILF" and "Cola" in Google and find all KINDS of stuff, like.

www.HellCola.com - no clue what his 'theme' is. There WAS a post about the porn industry and someone way down commented something about MILF...but in all the site seems to just reach out at topics.

www.MatureCola.com - PORN SITE! Do not click unless you are willing to explain to the people around you why you are looking at naked women. Period. Hell, you think 'I' sold out?! He even has a coca cola bottle in his logo!!!!!

...and the rest is 'either or' stuff. Like 'MILF" is in one article on a blog posts and 30 articles earlier was an article on the 50th Anniversary of the Coca Cola 600 (car race. As in NASCAR).

When you think about it, and innocent correlation between a young lady in the MidWest and Mr. Pibb soda is NOTHING compared to HellCola and MatureCola.

Leading me to ask...what have YOU been drinking?!??!

neither Hell Cola or Mature Cola appears at Coke vs. Pepsi....

Readers Prefer Andy Warhol Coca Cola

2009-05-26T07:29:00.000-07:00

There has been an overwhelming response to our Andy Warhol Coca Cola article.
It's often our most-visited page.
(Some weeks it battles back and forth with our article on Coca Cola prices rising).

What is so pleasantly surprising is that I did not think Warhol would still be in such demand in this decade. His art, while popular at it's time, today seems simplistic to the point of nonsense.
100 Coca Cola bottles? Campbell's Soup cans?

The age of Grunge Music worked hard to "un-do" much of the love and simplicity that came out of the 60's...and while the grunge movement collapsed under it's own morbidity and lack of structure (when you stand against everything, you stand for nothing) a lot of the 60's influence suffered.

It's sort of like revealing the man behind the curtain. (a Wizard of Oz reference, of course). Sure, he's a nice enough guy...but now the magic is gone.

And yet, here we are in 2009 with people still REGULARLY searching information on Andy Warhol. And Coca Cola! And his Coke bottle art.

So...is art timeless? Are 3 Coke Bottles as interesting today as they were 30 years ago?

Or is it SODA that's timeless? Are people intrigued by this 'art' from the flower generation...or are they intrigued that Coca Cola was considered 'art' at all?

And who ELSE has made art from Coca Cola bottles and cans?
And why has it not reached the level of prominence that Warhol's work has?

Soda is Good.
Is Soda 'art'?
The majority so far seems to think so!

Leave your comments and share your thoughts!

Then visit our friends at www.Squidoo.com/CokevsPepsi

Tell Coca Cola that American Idol is dead

2009-05-07T14:19:00.000-07:00

Coca Cola ought to pull the plug on those red cups sitting on the American Idol judging panel. This show has completely gone to hell.
They ought to instead invest in something a little more worthwhile.

But I'm not here today to talk about how or where Coke should advertise.
I'm here to tell you why I stopped watching American Idol.

In fairness, you should know that it's not like I stopped watching 2 weeks ago.
In fact, I stopped watching about 2 weeks into this season.
So if you want to debate why I hate Adam or why I think the cute girl with the pink streaks in her hair should still be on the show...I've only got a limited amount of ammo.

But it's the Big Picture that I hate, not the specific effeminate boys or badly tuned chicks.

I hate the first 5 weeks of Auditions.
Really...who cares?! It's just 5 weeks of watching nameless, faceless people smile, cry and occasionally act like Special Ed students.
You want to make Audition week/month compelling? How about we do AWAY with the retard scenes and spend more time on the back stories of the people WORTH seeing? Make me interested in them so I CARE if they make it to Hollywood and I CARE about voting...

I hate the addition of a 4th Judge.
Don't get me wrong; she's nice and she's personable and she knows what she is talking about.
But the math stinks.
4 judges means a tie is always possible. And if there is a tie, Simon breaks it.
But Simon already VOTED, so what sense does THAT make?
In the Senate, the Vice President breaks a tie. He doesn't get 2 votes. He only votes if there is a tie.
Once Simon gives you his opinion, it's as good as made unless all 3 vote against him.
Senseless. It reeks of Ego.
It reeks of Stupidity, too.

I hate the contradictory advice.
If you sing like the original artist they tell you that you need to "make it your own", and if you make it your own, they tell you that you can't out-do a classic and you ought to stay true to the original.
If you sing something you are good at, they tell you to expand your horizons and stretch, and if you go outside of your comfort zone they tell you that you are out of your league and ought to stick with what you are good at.

I hate the introduction of the 'one save' rule, which pretty much says if you get voted off, the judges can say 'well, we know that you will make money for this Record Label so we want you to stay any way...'.

I hate the fact that 90% of the kids on the show excel at Rhythm & Blues...which I hate.

BIG PROPS go to Chris Daughtrey, who got voted off too early and then made the best album to ever come from an American Idol contestant. Big Props go to David Cook, who deserved to win (I can't stand David Archuletta) and made an Awesome Album. Big Props go to Carrie Underwood. I don't like New Country, and I liked Bo Bice better...but I know she's great at it!

But as far as this season goes? I couldn't get past 2 weeks of this season, and I have no intention of trying next season. Please, for God Sake, don't let there BE a next season. 2 Nights per week of this unwatchable nonsense is enough...

antique Dr. Pepper recipe book revealed!

2009-05-04T08:07:00.000-07:00

Dr. Pepper's origin and history may lie in the tattered ledger some lucky dude stumbled over while antique shopping in Texas.

AND, it may come at a profit.
This savvy shopper bought the book for $200, thinking it would sell for 5 times more.
Turns out it could be worth TWENTY FIVE times more!

But don't' let ME take credit for sharing the news!
Read the whole article by clicking here.

Like Dr. Pepper?
Read about the Dr. Pepper Museum here.

Mix Pepsi with Dr. Pepper?! Not bad. Look Here.

And...if you missed the "Axl Rose sues Dr. Pepper" fiasco...look here.

Plenty of Pepper for all!!!!!!

I Like Cola...and Dragon Gate...and...

2009-04-26T19:25:00.000-07:00

This is the most amazing coincidence of the month.
For me, not for you.

As a Pro Wrestling fan, I'm always looking for something 'cool'. Well, a Japanese promotion called "Dragon Gate" will soon have an American branch called Dragon Gate USA.

Why am I telling you this?

Hang on. One of the more charismatic and successful members of the group...and currently the 'face' of this new arm of wrestling...is named 'Cima'.

Sooo....?

Well, for a while Cima's theme music was...'I Like Cola'.
REALLY!

It's an awful tune...but see Cima and listen to 'I Like Cola' here.

Look at the Dragon Gate USA website here.
Cima is on the rolling Home Page under the banner 'Evolve'.

BUT WAIT...!

For MORE Cola-nuttiness, you need to now that when I was researching "I Like Coa" I came across a cola called 'Like'.

Yup, it's true.
See here. The commerical you are viewing is from 1983.

Whether you like Cola or not, you won't like Like Cola.
Apparently, no one did.

For more Cola info, go to Coke vs. Pepsi

For more Wrestling info, go to Full Contact

Pepsi, Beyonce, Pink, Britney Spears - which goes down best?

2009-04-21T11:00:00.000-07:00

What goes down the fastest...Pepsi, Beyonce Pink or Britney Spears?

Sure, I'm not proud of the title...but it's clever and I'm sure everyone has their own opinion as to what the right answer is!

Ok, the truth is I chose this topic today NOT because of my desire to portray 3 pop singers and a can of soda as porn stars, but rather to share the You Tube Video of Beyonce, Pink and Britney Spears in a rather cool Pepsi commercial.

If you like hot girls, cold soda and a good Gladiator-style setting, click here!

For other Gladiator-style battles between sodas, remember to visit our favorite Coke vs. Pepsi site!

Pepsi vs. Mountain Dew...Midieval Stupidity

2009-04-13T20:18:00.000-07:00

And here you thought Coke vs. Pepsi was THE consummate soda war. And you also enjoyed when I showed you the video clip of Coke and Pepsi slugging it out in a fist fight.

But who'da thought Pepsi and Mountain Dew would slug it out Old School?! And by Old, I mean Medieval Times kind of old. Dungeons and Dragons kind of old. Swords and Sorcery kind of old.

You get the point.

Pepsi and Mountain Dew...along with Coca Cola and Dr. Pepper...slug it out at Coke vs. Pepsi.

Easter, Soda and Ham...a recipe for perfection!

2009-04-10T07:14:00.000-07:00

I absolutely love a baked, glazed ham. I only really get to cook one twice a year: Christmas and Easter. (and I'm JEWISH! Who'da thunk?!?!?)

This is the time of year to combine my love for soda and my love for ham into tasty recipes to make the left overs as delicious as possible! Recipes like:

Coca Cola Braised Ham

Ham with Orange Soda Sauce

Soda Shop Ham Glaze

and the disgustingly popular Ham Soda from Jones Soda

So this Easter, glaze your ham (15 minutes per pound at 350 degrees) in something yummy and carbonated...but stay away from any ham flavored beverage!

Pepsi and Coca Cola sales Drop Drastically

2009-04-08T08:16:00.000-07:00

Pepsi and Coca Cola are in for the fight of their lives!

Soda may be Good, but cola sales are dropping at an alarming rate!

In fact, Beverage Digest looked at the top 10 carbonated soft drink brands and saw that only Diet Mountain Dew and Diet Dr Pepper showed any volume growth in 2008. (Diet Dew volume rose 4 percent, while Diet Dr Pepper volume rose 2.3 percent.)

Gad, I HATE diet sodas! I know they're SUPPOSED to taste just like the originals...but they just don't!

You can read all about the rapid decline of soda sales on the CNBC blog, here.

And while it's your job to read the article, there was 1 line that I thought was un-intentionally humorous - "Consumers are continuing to snub carbonated soft drinks, leading to an acceleration in volume declines seen in recent years."

Heh heh heh...he used 'acceleration' and 'volume' and 'decline' all in the same sentence! If this sentence was a roller coaster, it's would have been one helluva ride!

The World's Most Fearsome Soda

2009-04-07T06:10:00.000-07:00

A good friend sent me this pic. I almost forgot what 8-Bit Nintendo action was like! But as a boxing fan (as well as a soda fan) I can tell you that Soda Popinski is one bad dude! (At least back in 1987 he was!)

And $50 for tickets?! (See upper right corner). Today that ticket would cost $500 and you'd be sitting in the upper tier!

Little Mac vs. Soda Popinski deserves to be one of the classic battles discussed on Coke vs. Pepsi: The Cola Wars!

How much would you pay for a Pepsi or Coke T-Shirt?

2009-04-06T07:51:00.000-07:00

The question isn't really so much 'what would you pay to OWN such a shirt'...but rather 'what would you pay to ADVERTISE them?

I went to Google and types 'Pepsi T-Shirt'.
Amongst the 1,470,000 finds were 2 'paid for' links at the very top.

One, called "Pepsi T Shirt on Sale" was a link to AllPosters. It DID have a nice collection of 9 Pepsi T-Shirts. Some were feminine, some were uni-sex. At least the link was honest.

The OTHER paid ad was called "Coca Cola T-Shirt" and it linked to Coca-ColaStore.com
THAT's smart marketing.
You looked up PEPSI T-Shirts, and Coke made sure that THEIR shirts got seen before 1,476,999 other links had a chance to show off!

And Coke didn't stop at 'T-Shirts'! You hit the above link and you see ALL Coca Cola apparel.

OK, so let's try the opposite:
Let's go to Google and see the paid ads tied to 'Coca Cola T-Shirt'

3 paid ads:
the above Coca ColaStore link was #2.

#1 was "Coca Cola T-Shirt" at MyCokeRewards.com
This My Coke Rewards link SUCKS because it takes you to a page that you have to register to see!
This means you are paying top dollar to ensure that when someone is interested in SEEING your Coca Cola T-Shirt, they are going to instead see a sign that pretty much says 'enter your personal information first!'.
I would think it wiser, if you were going to PAY for the spot, to intentionally come in 2nd or 3rd. Let the customer see what they want for free on another site...and then register to use their Coca Cola points after they've gotten a taste (pun intended) of what they can have.

#3 out of 3 was a link called "T-Shirt" from VistaPrint.com.
Not a damn drop of soda anywhere on this page!
Now, on one hand it may be SMART marketing. You said you were looking for a Pepsi or Coca Cola T-shirt...We've got T-Shirts!
But on the other hand...you just paid for a top spot while offering nothing of this specific customer's interest!

Did Pepsi have a paid link on this page?
No.
Maybe they know that if you took the time to type "Coca Cola T-Shirt" then you probably are not looking for a Pepsi shirt?

So...who's the smart marketer here?
How much does it cost to pay for these spots, and does it yield a reasonable ROI?
I'm embarrassed to admit that I don't remember where to find the tool that let's you test Keywords and see what kind of 'budget' you are in for. But I DO recall that "Coca Cola" and "Pepsi" were not "cheap".

So, when you go on line to buy a T-shirt named after your favorite cola, do you look at the paid links first...or do you look for something 'cool' and 'different'?

This MILF likes Mr. Pibb

2009-03-17T08:56:00.001-07:00

Normally I would not use a headline that reads like something you'd see on Hot Horny Moms dot com...but this good looking, married 31 year old woman from Michigan really DOES like Mr. Pibb, and writes about it in her blog. She even titled the entry 'A Soda Story'. *sigh* A girl after my own heart!

(Granted, this young lady is probably about to get 100 hits this week from guys surfing the web and thinking they're gonna see some Large Boobs. Sorry! Look at it this way...I'll get 100 hits from those same guys!)

And while we're on the topic of Mr. Pibb, let's look closer into this Dr. Pepper competitor!
Mr. Pibb is a Coca Cola brand...but it seems to be MUCH more popular in the South than up here in the North. I only comment because Dr. Pepper, it's direct rival, is nationally recognized. (I often see the same disparity between Mountain Dew and Mello Yello)

Chris Houser has built the on-line shrine to Mr. Pibb here.

Mr. Pibb and Dr. Pepper ought to duke it out at the Coke vs. Pepsi lens!

Topix hosted a poll to let you choose a favorite between the two here.
Another debate, on LetsGoPens, broke out here.
(By the way, is it REALLY offensive to call the color Cherokee Red? I never even heard of the term before today!)

In all, I'd like to thank the little lady from Detroit for reminding me how great Mr. Pibb is!
Time to got to lunch....

Simon Berry and the Coca Cola Facebook Group

2009-03-09T11:18:00.000-07:00

You'd think that I owe Simon Berry money and use my blog to pay him off in face time.
Not true.

But I DO report when he does something that can potentially be powerful...something like talking to Coca Cola about saving the World's children...so here goes:

Simon Berry has put together a Facebook group in an effort to spread the world about his ColaLife project.

Simon says, "Please will you join the ColaLife Group AND consider inviting all of your friends? We were getting nowhere with this idea until this group was formed and now we have the attention of the powers that can make it happen. Thanks.".

The facebook invitation is here: http://www.facebook.com/n/?group.php&gid=18947780476&mid=1dcdcfG2e456e55G1c40b8fG6

Simon believes that there is an opportunity to get ColaLife INSIDE the G20 Summit but, they'd need to be nominated and the group is working on getting that accomplished.

Imagine...using Coca-Cola's power of distribution to send MEDICINE and SUPPLIES to the world's impoverished children! (Like they need soda...!)

Why Coca Cola cannot hear the cheer of "Bravo!"

2009-02-26T11:34:00.001-08:00

In 2001, Bravo Brands formed to offer flavored milk that did not need to be refrigerated.

On the surface, this may sound piddly to you, but within short time, 2 'big' things happened.

1) they signed a distribution deal with Coca Cola Enterprises (CCE).

2) they signed a licensing agreement with Marvel Entertainment (yes, the people who bring you SpiderMan, Iron Man, DareDevil and once upon a time...Captain America) and with Mars (the people who bring you 3 Musketeers and Milky Way candy bars).

Pretty strong relationships to have!

These colored-and-flavoured milks were sold in bottles that features some of the above super heroes or candy bars on the bottles under the brand name 'Slammers'. (pretty appropriate for a Super Hero bottle of milk!)

My brother in Law turned me on to Slammers in late 2005. I thought the taste was really good, and my small children were suddenly motivated to drink milk! The SuperHeroes were PERFECT for my son, and the candy bar flavors appealed to my daughter.

I was so impressed, that I called Bravo Brands and began asking the sales team how I could get involved in serving as a re-seller. The man I spoke with (I've willingly blocked his name out of my memory) was INCREDIBLY rude! He even apologized for his shortness and then attacked me AGAIN! (I guess he really wasn't very sorry...)

Regardless of my lack of experience in the 'beverage' field, I had a successful 20-year career in sales and just wanted to promote a product that I loved. What company wouldn't want that kind of support?! Remember the groundswell of success that Red Bull enjoyed? They sponsored parties on college campuses! How many of those would-be marketing majors had experience selling beverages that week? I'd say roughly 'none'...but I'm just guessing.

Anyway, he completely turned me off of Bravo as a 'company'...and then a month or 2 later I don't see the SuperHero Milk on the shelves anymore! (I swear, I had nothing to do with it. As much as I resented that jerk, I still wanted my kids to drink the milk!) Within a few months after that, the Candy Bar flavours were gone, too! (Just as well. My wife had a hard time willingly serving up a bottle of 'Milky Way flavored milk, just to get my daughter to drink calcium...)

When Shop Rite stopped carrying the products, I stopped thinking about them. But it occurred to me the other day...where did they GO?

Well, my research answered my question, and with no surprise: In September of 2007, Bravo Brands filed for Bankruptcy. (Be sure to click the link...the article may be interesting, but the comments from former employees were AWESOMELY revealing!)

And if that's not bad enough....in May of 2008 a Class Action suit was filed against them!

So while Coca Cola Enterprises still stands strong in it's distribution of beverages...it will not be distributing any milk that has a super hero or a candy bar on it's bottle.

So long, Bravo.

You've proven on many levels that you don't deserve to HAVE fans or customers!

Pepsi can now distribute Rockstars

2009-02-24T10:41:00.000-08:00

PepsiCo has signed a deal with Rockstar Inc., so it can distribute Rockstar Energy Drink.

Remember what happened the LAST time a Rock Star got involved with soda? I'm talking about Axl Rose's war-of-words with Dr. Pepper.

Rockstar has about 14% of the Energy Drink Market Share. Monster Energy Drink leads the pack with about 29% and Red Bull has about 25%. (Some former Pepsi and Red Bull employees have gone to work for the little "Purple" beverage company. They have never been heard from since...)

Back in the Fall, Coca Cola appeared to be speaking with Hansen Natural, looking to distribute the monster-sized Monster...but it does not look like that evolved.

But what does this say about Pepsi's EXISTING energy beverage efforts?
Pepsi owns and distributes Amp Energy Drink...but Amp does not appear in the Top 5. Is Pepsi admitting that they are better served buying into a winner rather than cultivating their own?

ColaLife vs. Coca Cola: March Meeting in London

2009-02-16T06:17:00.001-08:00

Back in July I wrote about Simon Berry and his plan to influence Coca Cola's effect on World Poverty.

Simon and his team have some very strong ideas about how Coca Cola's distribution system can be used to provide water and medicine to impoverished Third World Nations.

The ColaLife ideal: That Coca-Cola use their distribution channels (which are amazing in developing countries) to distribute oral rehydration salts. Maybe by dedicating one compartment in every 10 crates as 'the life saving' compartment?

If you live in/near London (England, that is) you are invited to attend the ColaLife Campaign Planning Meeting on Tuesday March 3rd. (I live in the United States, so I have to pass...). It is here that the team will host a face-to-face meeting to plan the voting campaign for ColaLife''s entry in Google's Project 10^100th ideas competition.

ColaLife's website is here.
Their Facebook Summary is here.

Simon writes: "If we get through to the last 100 in the Google competition on 17 March we will need to mobilise people to vote for us. It's no good waiting until 17/3/09, we need to be ready to roll if we get through."

Simon Cohen of Global Tolerance has agreed to host the event in their offices in north London.

If you have an interest in joining the meeting...or if you'd just like to join the Facebook group and be a part of their activities when they come to YOUR town...please feel free to join up and get involved!

Purple Soda - Music and Costumes

2009-02-11T06:11:00.000-08:00

Back in August I wrote about a new soda company called Purple. Despite it's potentially awesome management, I was skeptical about how it would fare.

In September I blogged with an update on the firm. Sure, it was only a month later, but I wanted to 'check in'.

Today I planned to do yet another update, when I Googled "Purple + Soda" I got MUCH cooler results, so let's talk about those instead!

Here is a You Tube video of Kaptain Krunch and the Purple Soda Band. They're rockin' it at the Hard Rock. Sure, the food is WAY over priced...but the music is good.

Speaking of You Tube, here is a video called Flying Purple Soda. Let me assure you...it's VERY anti-climatic. Anything filmed at night usually is.

If you are like me, you did a double take when you saw a link called Purple Soda Pop Girl Adult Sexy Halloween Costume in Medium Size. No, it's not a purple-colored girl made out of soda pop. It's actually BETTER! (Other links more specifically link the costume to Fanta. Dig it?)

In fact, almost ALL of the 'page two' of my Google search links to a 'sexy purple soda pop adult
costume'. Geez...how badly did the manufacturer want this to show up in the rankings?!

In fairness to the Purple Beverage, a Sept 2008 article in Beverage World capsules them here.

Not as sexy as Purple Soda Pop Costume, and not as entertaining as Kaptain Krunch and his purple soda....but surely more detailed than at attempt at Flying Purple Soda.

Pepsi and SNL Selling Out? CAH MAHN!

2009-02-03T08:08:00.000-08:00

No sooner did I type the praises of the "McGruber" Pepsi commercial during Superbowl did I see a page-long commentary analyzing whether or not fans were 'confused' and if this was 'selling out'.

CAH MAHN!

You can read all the silliness here...but I think you have to be reading FAR to far into it if you think there is any 'content' here.

Do you want me to believe that a Pepsi-inspired McGruber skit is on SNL and the fans cannot figure out if it's a skit or a commercial? And you want me to believe that it MATTERS? How seriously do you think the fans take this stuff?

Saturday Night Live is a comedy show. We tune in to laugh. If a commercial makes us laugh...and it features an SNL star...do we care that it's potentially 'selling out'? We laughed, right?!

And SNL fans know that the show is NOTORIOUS for kicking off the show with a mock-commercial. Sometimes they show 2 or 3 in the course of the 90 minute show! Fans were 'confused'? By what?!

In fact, the whole 'selling out' ideal makes me nauseous. (Warm ginger ale, please.)
If the producers get rich off of your TV show, CD or performance...shouldn't YOU? Are you really lowering the integrity of a song of you allow Cadillac or Apple to use it in an ad? Isn't that commercial giving you MORE exposure?! HEL-LO!

The only people I hear crying about 'selling out' are a select number of fans who aren't musicians, actors or artists. They're often not worrying about paying their bills, either. Some of us have financial obligations...or aspirations!...and the extra cash is valuable. Even enviable.

People - if it was a commercial or if it was a skit, you still giggled.
Get over yourselves. No one sold out...You were just wise enough to check in.
If you were 'confused' then you ought to stick to 'Nickelodeon'.
Those Rugrats are still really funny...

Soda and SuperBowl

2009-02-02T13:58:00.000-08:00

Pepsi's "McGruber" commercial got mixed reviews at our SuperBowl party.

Personally, I LOVED it...and part of the reason is because I know the character and the shtick from Saturday Night Live. I'm even a little embarrassed to admit that I ALWAYS laugh at the McGruber skits.

I also liked the appearance by Richard Dean Anderson in an god-awful 'worst of the 80s' wig in the commercial! Not sure what I liked better, the awful wig or him burying his face in the steel door when he figures out that McGruber is a 'tool'.

A majority of those in my home who didn't laugh at the commercial admitted to having not ever seen the skit on SNL before. Not that it makes it any 'funnier', per se, but at least you get where the commercial is going if you know the routine.

There were also mixed reviews over Coca Cola's "bugs steal a soda" commercial. My daughter and I thought it was 'clever'. My wife altogether didn't get it. I don't know that there was anything to 'get'...but she didn't like it. I don't think she liked the game either, so what does she know...?

Collectively, NONE of us liked the Coca Cola Soda Shop commercial. You know..the one where everyone on the street turns into a video game character. Bleughghg.

If you don't recall that one, you can see it here.

If you want to see the Coke vs. Pepsi website, click here.

If you had a favorite soda commercial during the SuperBowl...leave a comment! :)

Obama Inaugural Soda

2009-01-20T14:31:00.000-08:00

If you did not get a chance to brave the cold winds of change in the Front Row of Washington D.C., you can still toast the new President with a drink made in his own name.!

Obama Soda is still available in 2 great flavors!
Buy both, crack 'em open with your best bud, and drink down the taste of change.

Can we really enjoy a soda with President Obama's face on the bottle?!
YES WE CAN!

So, who IS this great soda manufacturer?
Pepsi? Coca Cola?
No and Nope.
Obama Soda is brought to you EXCLUSIVELY by Jones Soda...the coolest soda ever.

Drink 'em and weep! :)

Will rising Coke and Pepsi prices force alternative sodas?

2009-01-16T07:29:00.001-08:00

Soda prices are rising along with everything else in this economy. When you look at your budget, and try to figure out how you will make ends meet this month, will you have to start cutting out some of your 'vices'?

I have friends who crack open a Pepsi as soon as they get out of bed. By the time they are in the office, they are on their third soda.

With soda prices rising, how important is that soda to you?
If it IS important, does it have to be a Pepsi? Do you insist on Coca Cola in your home? Do you look at store brand soda and sneer?

When I was single, I bought store brand often. The rule was 'all flavors OK except their Cola.'
And no root beer. I just didn't like root beer. But it was a low cost way to keep soda in the house, and it worked for me.

Now, there are other low cost ways to keep soda in the house...and these days you even get control over what the soda tastes like. (As I alluded to above, store brand cola just tasted lousy to me.)

See here:

Make fresh seltzer as fizzy as you like it for just 17 cents a liter with a Soda-Club seltzer maker! No more schlepping, storing and recycling cases of bottles from the store. Soda-Club carbonators make 110 liters before exchanging door-to-door.

You control the taste, you control how much you have, and your costs are controlled with this major cost reduction.

Some people simply will not give up soda. Now you don't have to.

How Much Do You Hate Coca Cola?

2009-01-12T09:32:00.000-08:00

KillerCoke.org may not drive very large rallies...but they sure know they don't like Coca Cola.

Last year I was trying to find results for a rally that Killer Coke was to hold in New York City. There was no news at all, and I was left to assume that their plans went flat. No fizz.

Mind you, Killer Coke is NOT a Pro Wrestler. Nor is Killer Coke a new kind of crack cocaine. Killer Coke is a website dedicated to trying to hold Coca Cola responsible for the henious crimes they commit...especially in Columbia South America.

Their home page boasts some articles you can read, like:
Dietblog, "Diet Coke Plus Faces FDA Warning,"

Associated Press, "FDA warns Coca-Cola over nutritional claims," By Mattew Perrone, December 24, 2008

China.org.cn, "Lawyers, academics praise students' Coca Cola probe," By Gregor Kneussel and John Sexton, December 31, 2008

As a fundraiser, they even sell the 'Unthinkable, Undrinakle' T-shirt!

Don't misunderstand, it's not like they hate Coca Cola because they prefer Pepsi Cola. It's because they think Coke has serious Human Rights issues that aren't being dealt with.

Coca Cola....just bad for your teeth, or altogether bad for human relations?
Your comments matter!

Coke Kills and Pepsi snags LEED Silver Certification

2008-12-17T06:26:00.000-08:00

ReliablePlant.com announced that "PepsiCo's Chicago office announced on December 4 that its downtown corporate plaza has received the prestigious Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC)."

Way to go, Pepsi!
I've been trying to keep track of all the accusations that Coke has had to endure, (maybe you remember the Killer Coke protest? It didn't seem to amount to very much!). And now there is a silver lining as the 'other' Cola giant has been recognized for going green.

And let's keep it the environment. I think if Pepsi decides to go green as in 'a green-colored cola' they will be in for a world of hurt. Bleaughghgh.

That being said, you can read about Sobe's Mr. Green Soda here.

The world is paying more and more attention to preserving the environment.
Thanks for the effort, Pepsi!
Now don't go raising your prices to subsidize the effort!

You can read about the Pepsi's accomplishment here.

You can see MORE differences between Coca Cola and Pepsi here.

New Pepsi logos...a little too late!

2008-12-11T11:00:00.000-08:00

Do you like the new Pepsi logos? What about the new Mountain Dew logo?

I've been meaning to write about this, but kept putting it off. So instead of trying to act like I'm here with breaking news, let me instead give props to everyone who ALREADY talked it up.

"Brand New" has GREAT photos here.

"Kottke" got it here.

"Laughing Lion" not only talks about the new design, but shows the HISTORY of Pepsi Logos! VERY COOL! See here.

Chris Brogan talks about new logos 'in general' and likens Pepsi to Jiffi Lube and AT&T here.

All very good stuff!
Sorry I was late getting here!

See the new Pepsi logo also at www.Squidoo.com/CokevsPepsi

Axl Rose uses a Lawyer to attack a Dr. (Pepper)

2008-11-28T06:17:00.001-08:00

Guns N' Roses' Chinese Democracy is in stores. Did you get a free Dr. Pepper?

Despite an earlier post about Dr. Pepper offering a free soda to every American interested if the new GNR album debuted in 2008, front man Axl Rose is complaining that the give away did not go smoothly...and has sent his lawyer after the soda maker to make good.

You can read about the exchange of words here.
In short, the website that was supposed to fill orders for Free Dr. Peppers was 'down' often, due to the incredible response. Axl would have you believe that he is distressed for all of those who did not receive their free soda.

What a humanitarian, right?

Bogus.
Axl has showed up to his concerts HOURS late in the past, and several times has walked off stage before a show was complete. Did he immediately petition that is ticket-buying fans be compensated for their fraction of a show? No. Did he insist on refunds for all unsatisfied guests? No.

Dr. Pepper's inability to fulfill every American's wish for a free soda is inadvertently giving Axl Rose an opportunity to let his Lawyer do what Lawyer do best - seek out and bring in some cash. (in legalese, that's called 'seeking reparations'.)

It will be interesting to see how far Axl goes with the tirade, and how far Dr. Pepper will cave.

Andy Warhol and Coca Cola revisited

2008-11-26T10:10:00.000-08:00

You may...or may not...be surprised to know how popular my post on Andy Warhol's Coca Cola art has been. When originally posted back in the Summer, I never expected that it would fast become one of my most popular pages.

Do people still dig Any Warhol?

Do people still DIGG Andy Warhol?

The Andy Warhol museum website hosts a 'store'...but any search for Coke, Coca Cola, Soda or Coke bottles turns up nothing. (Well, that's not completely true. Searching "Coca Cola" turns up a BOOK about his artwork. I guess they mention the Coke Bottles somewhere in there.)

You can buy an Outlet Cover of the '3 Coke Bottles' if you click here. Who'da thought?!

Have you seen the Andy Mouse New Coke Banner? It's designed to be a tribute to Warhol and Coke. You can quickly see the Warholism in it...

And, no thanks to any of you (snicker!) I found that if you go to Google and type "Andy Warhol Coke"...but you omit the quotation marks!...you WILL see the '100 Coke Bottles' print. You'll also see a 6 bottle print. SIX bottles?! That's gotta be a fake...

Don't forget to visit Coke vs. Pepsi: www.squidoo.com/cokevspepsi

Sushi Soda Reunion

2008-11-24T10:00:00.000-08:00

Would you like a Coke-with-no-ice or a Sprite?

You might recall that back at the end of April I got together with 2 friends from High school. One of which I hadn't seen in about 20 years. It was a great reunion and a great opportunity to drink so REALLY large Pepsis. Or were they Cokes? Hell, I always order them as a Coke-with-no-ice and I let the waitress (or waiter!) bring whatever they've got.

THAT reunion was held at Bennigan's...but they aren't around anymore.
In fact, I was saddened that they closed down the one we met at only 7 months earlier...

So instead, we met at an AWESOME Sushi buffet.
You read that right...all-you-can-eat fresh Sushi.
(I watched them make it...)

Full of Sushi?
Well, there was a 'hot bar' with all KINDS of cooked food.
All kinds of shrimp...all kinds of chicken...
(and of COURSE, the obligatory bowl of King Crab legs. That stuff is too much work for me to enjoy...)

The conversation was what you'd expect from a group of guys:
Gory Movies
Pro Wrestling
Heavy Metal music (we're almost 40)
the hot girls sitting at table 7...and their dorky girlfriends
Getting Engaged
Getting caught looking at the hot girls at table 7
Buying furniture (or NOT buying furniture, as the case was...)
How good the food was
How uncool it it to put sushi AND dessert on the same plate. (Rudy, please!)
The hot girl at table 9 with the big lips (FAKE!)
Who found the restaurant first, and how, and with who (well, SOMEONE had to find it!)
The really weird hand dyer in the Men's bathroom.

Here's the BEST part: we ate 3 plate fulls of food...1 plate full of dessert...drank as much soda as we could (JC drinks Iced Team. Excuuuuuuuuse me!)...and it costs us less than $40.00 each.

You read that right.

Soda IS good.
Reunions are just as good.
Reunions at inexpensive, high quality Sushi places are best.

Thanks Fellas!!!

Get a Free Dr. Pepper and thank Guns N' Roses!

2008-11-21T11:11:00.001-08:00

Get a Free Dr. Pepper?! I have to thank Guns N' Roses for the soda?!
What does all of this have to do with the Government of China?!??!

It appears that Dr. Pepper lost a bet (well...made an offer they cannot refuse) and now have to start offering free sodas to the citizens of the USA. This all has to do with GNR's release of their new album "Chinese Democracy".

You can read an article on the soda slinging here.

You can read about the Dr. Pepper Museum here. I wonder if the museum will now carry the new album...?

You read about MORE Dr. Pepper products here. Not all of them are free.

Don't forget to visit Coke vs. Pepsi!
That soda site rocks!

Obama Cola

2008-11-05T06:42:00.000-08:00

I would be remiss, after touting McCain cola and Obama cola for all of these months, to not offer some sort of congradulations to the Obama camp.

I am absolutely not a fan of his party or his politics...but he worked hard and did it with grace and class. It's a helluva lot more than you can say about many other politicians, and I am certain that this election in no way diminishes the great work that John McCain has done for this Nation over the years.

Personally, and contrary to many other's opinions, I think Sarah Palin's stock went up 120% during the last 3 months...and I look forward to seeing how her career evolves. Perhaps she and Elizabeth Hasselbeck can offer a conservative-sided, easy-on-the-ears, easy-on-the-eyes alternative to Barbara Walter's 'The View'.

So, go out and pour yourself a Coke or a Pepsi, a Dr. Pepper or a Mountian Dew...and either drink a toast to your new president or pour some out in the gutter for your fallen party.

Shaolin Pepsi Commercials

2008-10-24T16:33:00.000-07:00

Pretty funny...you have to watch it to the very end to 'get it'.
See here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcOZAyj4w94&feature=related

And a particularly violent-but-silly one here. Check out the ratehr sexy ending.

Lasltly, the classic Jay Mohr + Jackie Chan Pepsi Commercial here.

All good stuff.
All on You Tube.

Don't forget to see more of these at Coke vs. Pepsi

Superheroes, Story Telling and Soda

2008-10-13T08:37:00.000-07:00

The Avengers are getting their own movie. So is the Justice League.
In fact, SupeHero movies are all the rave.
(I saw some cool 'fan made' trailers on You Tube for a Justice League movie...but as cool as they were, they were just speculations...)

I’ve been collecting comics since I was 14 or so. (actually, I got my first subscription to Amazing SpiderMan when I was 9. I remember it because my parents were still married.). I don’t avidly collect any more (Alternate Mutant realities and DC reboots have ruined it for me) but I have friends that do and I keep my eye on what is going on out there.

What does this have to do with Pepsi or Coca Cola? Keep reading…

One of the fun things about loving comics books and super heroes is creating your own teams. Who’s the best guy to have in ‘this’ situation. Or that one? Who’s the smartest? The toughest?

One year…maybe 3 or 4 years ago…I was part of a group that each created a team and then each week wrote an issue of a comic book based on the team. You were allowed to change the cannon fodder any way you wanted. So, to be clever, I created a team that combined DC and Marvel heroes. I based the team in Los Angeles and I chose heroes that were considered either ‘good looking with an ego to match’ or otherwise Hollywood Fabulous material.

The team turned out to be:
Green Arrow
Changeling
WonderMan
She Hulk
Paladin
Northstar and
Human Torch

I even called upon the name of a defunct Marvel team from the late Seventies and called them the Champions of Los Angeles.

What does this have to do with Pepsi or Coca Cola? I’m getting to it! Hang on …

It occurred to me…today…3 years after the fact….that if I wanted to abbreviate the name of the team into letters (the way that Saturday Night Live is referred to as ‘SNL’) then my Champions of Los Angeles would be C.O.L.A.

COLA! What are the odds…?!?!?!?!?

Not only did I intentionally write the stories as a team of clumsy, inner fighting, not-accepted-by-the-public heroes…but in HINDSIGHT, who could take them seriously if they were referred to as COLA?!

Crazy, right?!

Could Pepsi be a team of Super VILLAINS??
“Powerful Enemies Perpetrating Severe Indecencies”

Coca Cola could stand for:
“Concerned Octogenarians Clamoring About the Champions Of Los Angeles”

Dr. Pepper could be a dangerous Mega Villain.
Mountain Dew could be his hidden lair in the mountains (obviously)

Soda and SuperHeroes…the possibilities are endless.

Share your acronyms in the ‘comments’…

Brought to you by Coke vs. Pepsi (the greatest battle of 'em ALL!) and John McCain Campaign Cola...

Obama is running away with election and Soda Sales

2008-10-09T06:53:00.000-07:00

Barak Obama is making John McCain look like a doddering old man. Not only are his presentations in the presidential debate more inspiring and motivating, but sales of Obama Campaign Cola are beating down sales of John McCain's cola.

If soda sales were as reliable a poll as Gallup's post debate polls, Obama would be up 2-to-1.

Of course, that's based only on the sales reports that come from this blog.

Historically, the 'soda buying market' is NOT a demographic used to measure political power...and Campaign Cola may be too small a niche' to be a reliable measure. In fact, it may beg the question: are Liberals simply bigger soda drinkers? Perhaps Scotch or Whiskey market speaks to the Conservative crowd?

Which political party sponsors Whoopass?
The Democrats, who support the 'modern-ness' of energy drinks, or the Republicans, who support 'finishing the job' the Iraq?

The election is not until November 4th, but you can tilt the tide in your favor by drinking your vote! Perhaps Gallup Polls will turn their attention to the oft-ignored 'Campaign Cola' movement!

Brought to you by our Friends at Coke vs. Pepsi!

If you've read this far and want to drink your vote for the oft-ignored Ron Paul...click here!

The History of Coca Cola Prices

2008-09-29T07:51:00.001-07:00

There really IS a written History of Coca Cola Prices! I thought Grandpa was just bluffing when he said he was able to buy a Hot Dog and a Coke for a Quarter...but he wasn't! (he WAS bluffing about killing a Kodiak Bear with his bear hands, mind you...)

FoodTimeline.org covers the pricing of Coca Cola and Pepsi HERE.
They also give you some other sources for reading up on the 'Cola Wars'.
While they mention many sources that we have quoted here, they do NOT list the very famous Coke vs. Pepsi lens! The nerve!

Based on advertisements in the Daily Record (a Morristown, NJ newspaper) over the years, Pepsi and Coca Cola prices look like this:

[1942] Pepsi .05/bottle
[1944] Coca Cola, .05/bottle
[1945] Pepsi, .23/six 12 ounce bottles
[1972] Pepsi, .69/six-pack 12 oz cans
[1974] Pepsi Cola, .88/6 12oz cans
[1982] Coke, .99/1 litre bottle
[1985] Pepsi, .89/2 litre bottle
[1992] Coke, 6.98/two 12-packs 12 oz cans
[1994] Coca Cola, 3.99/two "12" packs
[1995] Coca Cola, .59-.99/2 litre bottle
[2002] Coca Cola .99/2 litre bottle
[2005] Coca Cola, 1.09/2 litre bottle

Wild stuff, huh?

I'd like all of you Grandma's and Grandpa's to comment this blog with your earliest memory of the cost of a Coca Cola. Or a Pepsi.

Good Drinking!

Obama, McCain, Pocket Knives and Drinking Your Vote

2008-09-23T10:49:00.001-07:00

Do Obama and McCain carry pocket knives? A friend sent me a really funny article he had written comparing Obama and McCain to these mini weapons. You can read it here.

It reminded me that you can still combine your love of drinking soda and your love of discussing politics to Drink Your Vote between now and November 4th.

The more cans of Barak Obama Cola and John McCain Cola you discreetly leave lying around, the more you are spreading the word in a unique way. (Try to do it without polluting this blue marble we live on!)

Can't decide? You can read up on the two great tastes of campaign cola here.

Want something that doesn't coincide with the taste of most Americans? How about Hillary Clinton Cola?! Perfect for the Feminists who don't like Sara Palin!

Or the very obscure flavor of Ron Paul Cola! Like the candidate himself, most Americans don't even know that this flavor exists!

Jones Soda and I invite you to drink the Cola that supports the Presidential Candidate that you think will WhoopAss this November.

Show your support! Drink a toast to your Presidential Candidate with Jones Campaign Colas!

(and remember to watch Coke and Pepsi fight it out at www.Squidoo.com/CokevsPepsi!)

And now, a break from Coca Cola and Pepsi

2008-09-22T11:28:00.000-07:00

ZizZazz - 4 Great Tasting Flavors! Pomegranate Mango, Tangerine, Cherry Lime and Lemon Raspberry! Get ZizZazz NOW!

Click the above link to learn about Zizzazz!

ZizZazZ claims to be the leader in the "vitamin and energy powder mix sectors of the global stick pack industry"! Sounds exciting, huh?! I bet you can't get Coca Cola in 'stick' form! Ever buy a 'stick' of Dr. Pepper?! Of COURSE you haven't!

ZizZazZ has many new and innovative products to choose from. The flagship product, ZizZazZ Explosive Energy Mix, comes in four great tasting fruit flavors and is a low calorie, vitamin fortified energy powder which can be eaten straight from the stick like candy or mixed with water to make a great tasting energy drink.

As ZizZazZ Explosive Energy Mix has less than one gram of sugar, there is no crash that is associated with typical energy drinks. (Kinda like that little bottle of 5 hour energy. Crazy, eh?)

Other ZizZazZ innovative powder mix products include new the ZizZazZ Workout Mix, (for sports and fitness enthusiasts), a children’s mix called Kidz Zazz (which is a vitamin version that comes in five flavors that children love and contains the daily requirement of vitamins for children), a Weight Loss Mix for weight conscious consumers (drink more, eat less!) and an adult Non-Caffeinated Energy Mix for consumers who are wary or sensitive of caffeine!

All ZizZazZ products include superior ingredients, come in "stick packs". They are great tasting, healthy and above all convenient!

Buy ZizZazz HERE!

So what are you waiting for?!?
Find out what all the hoopla over Zizzazz is about!!!!!!

Cola Please - No More Mello Yello

2008-09-16T20:29:00.000-07:00

Pepsi, No Ice, Lemon.
I never wanted one so badly.

I helped a friend and his family move out of state last weekend. We left at eight in the morning and drove 14 hours to the Carolinas.

After traveling almost 10 hours we stopped for gas and sodas. When I saw that the soda machine offered Mello Yello I threw my $1.25 in the machine and ordered one up.

"Mello Yello?!" my friends ask.
"Yes." I told them confidently. "I bought this Mello Yello because I can't get them in New Jersey."

That was the ah-ha moment of the 10 hour ride.
4 hours to go...

2 hours later, the puppy needed an emergency break and we stopped at a gas station.
My pal comes out with an Iced Tea for himself...and a Mello Yello for me.

"Ah...thanks!" I say. After all, it WAS hot outside.

We get to the hotel and crash.
In the morning we get breakfast.
Next to the juice machine is a soda machine.

"Hey!" his wife says. "Mello Yello! Go ahead! Have some!"
"It's ten in the monring!" I reply. "I'll have the Orange Juice."
Bad move. The juice is too thick. So what can I cut it with?

Mello Yello.
Now the heartburn is in kicking in.

We get to the house, start to unload the trucks.
The wife and daughter go out for groceries.
Little Shannon comes home with a bag behind her back and big smile for me.

"We bought you something!" she coos.

Oh God Damn...
It's a warm, 2-liter bottle of Mello Yello.
"Go on! Drink some!" she exclaims.

I'm still trying to be polite.
"Ah no. It's warm. I'll drink this cold Spri - "
"Why don't you just pour it over ice?"
"Ah...because...I don't..."
So I pour out some of my ice cold Sprite and I pour the Mello Yello into it.

I'm r-e-a-l-l-y trying to be polite.

We unload the trucks....shower...and go to dinner.
As we enter the restraunt, my phone rings. It's the wife.
I tell my friends to get us a table and I'll catch up.

As I hang up the phone, the fear over comes me.

I rush to the table, where the waiter is writing something on his pad.

"OH!" my friends's wife exclaims. "I just ordered you a Mello Yello!"

"NO!" I tell the waiter. "NO. I want a Pepsi. No Ice. Lemon. Please."

My friend's wife is quite shocked.
I just can't be polite anymore.
"I'm sorry." I gasp, settling into my chair. "I've been drinking Mello Yello for 3 days now. I need a cola."

Mmmm....Coke No Ice Lemon or Pepsi No Ice Lemon...eiother way, I am done with my infatuation with Mello Yello.

Went to lunch today. Friend ordered a Mountain Dew.
Hell with that. I got a Pepsi...
I'm not over it yet.

See the Dusty Rhodes Mello Yello Commercial on You Tube!

Andy Warhol Coca Cola

2008-09-12T07:31:00.001-07:00

3 Coke Bottles or 100 Coke bottles?
I was looking up some information on Andy Warhol, and it turns out that his '3 Coke Bottles' silk screen was rather popular back in the day. You can buy it here at Art.com

But Wikipedia's entry on Warhol talks about a project he did called "100 Coke Bottles." The quote is/was:
Andy Warhol's first New York solo Pop exhibit was hosted at Eleanor Ward's Stable Gallery November 6-24th, 1962. The exhibit included the works "Marilyn Diptych," "100 Soup Cans," "100 Coke Bottles" and "100 Dollar Bills." At the Stable Gallery exhibit the artist met for the first time John Giorno who would star in Warhol's first film, "Sleep," in 1963.

I've tried to dig around the web-o-sphere to find the image, but cannot.
Can YOU?
If you can, please comment the blog with a link to WHERE.

I DID find a quote credited to Warhol that says:
"What's great about this country is that America started the tradition where the richest consumers buy essentially the same things as the poorest. You can be watching TV and see Coca Cola, and you know that the President drinks Coca Cola, Liz Taylor drinks Coca Cola, and just think, you can drink Coca Cola, too. A coke is a coke and no amount of money can get you a better coke than the one the bum on the corner is drinking. All the cokes are the same and all the cokes are good. Liz Taylor knows it, the President knows it, the bum knows it, and you know it."

He makes a good point, even though I am not a fan of his art.

Kiss Pepsi Commercial on You Tube

2008-09-11T08:28:00.000-07:00

You've got to click and view the Kiss Pepsi Commercial! It even features that little girl that shows up in the OTHER Pepsi comercials...like that really good Godfather one...but this time she's got the Kiss face paint on.

She kinda' looks like a tiny Ace Frehley.

I intentionally did not say a Midget Ace Frehley. That would show a lack of class.

If you like Jammin' Guitar Heores (not the video game) go to RockGuitars on Squidoo and vote for your favorite! Then be sure to comment this post with your favorite as well!

Rock On and Drink Soda!

Go ahead...make yourself a Soda

2008-09-04T11:33:00.000-07:00

Today at lunch I poured myself a Coca Cola...but then threw in a touch of Root Beer.
Ah hell. Why not? Sure, it's no Pepsi...

Strange result, really:
9 parts Coca Cola and 1 part Root Beer...and the drink tasted like Root Beer.

You ever wonder How to make soda?

Burger King has all kinds of stickers on it's Soda Machines, encouraging patrons to mix-and-match flavours. (There is no way I'm mixing Pepsi with Sprite. YOU say it's like putting a lemon in your Coke. I say it's nuts. And it makes the cola look like a Stewart's Cream Soda.)

So as long as you are standing in front of the soda machine, mixing and matching your favorite concoctions...why not do it in the luxury of your own home? Wouldn't it be great to make fresh, great-tasting soda in just seconds, with no clean-up?!No more carrying, storing or recycling bottles and cans!

And I don't mean that you're stuck with some syrupy 'cola'. You can make 8 delicious diet flavors (sweetened with Splenda®) as well as a variety of regular flavors that STILL have two-thirds less sugar than store bought brands! (Sorry, Jolt. Move over, Mountain Dew.)

There are 27 flavours en total.
That's a LOT of soda to choose from!

I used to think you'd need a 50 gallon drum and a giant hose to make your own soda.
(Come on! EVERY kid dreams of making his own soda!)
But I'm wrong. This little machine sits right on your counter top!

In the right hand margin of this blog is a video that demonstrates the Soda Club Soda Maker.
Don't take MY word for it! Click the video and see for yourself.
(Cah MAHN! It's 30 seconds. You don't have 30 more seconds to kill?!)

You've always wondered how to make soda.
Now click the link below and see how EASY and DELICIOUS it would be...

Go ahead. Make yourself a soda!

Love soda? Get a Soda-Club soda maker! About the size of a coffeemaker and even easier to use, you’ll make fresh seltzer and soda at the touch of a button, with no clean-up. No more lugging, storing and recycling. Over 25 great-tasting flavors.

The Color of Money is not Purple

2008-09-03T10:48:00.001-07:00

Last month I wrote about a new beverage company called Purple. It features Marketing Executives and other Brain Powers from Coca Cola, Pepsi and Red Bull.

The paperwork I had received on Purple touted it as the next super beverage company, and insisted I buy the stock now while it was still affordable.

At the time of my post, the stock was trading at about $1.25 a share.

Unfortunately, the marketing they did to promote the stock didn't pay off.
As of today, the stock trades at roughly 50 cents a share.
In fact, looking at a historical chart, the stock peaked in April at a little over $3.00 a share...and has been steadily declining ever since.

This is not to say that SALES have been tanking. In fact, last week Try-It distributing took on the Purple beverage as it's latest ware to offer. WHO?! "Try-It", the Coca Cola rival who distributes such lines as AriZona Teas, Jolt Cola, and Jones Soda...as well as others...exclusively in the Buffalo, NY region.

And 1 week prior to THAT, Purple got Mesa Beverage to offer the line in Northern California.
WHO?! "Mesa Beverage", the Northern California distributor for MillerCoors, Corona and Heineken...as well as several other lines that are NOT tasty beers!

According to a recent press release, Purple's revenue this quarter is up 5 fold over last quarter.
However, they are talking about how happy they are that their quarterly losses have DROPPED...not how great their profits have increased.

Sure, all beverage companies need a chance to get National and get loved to death.
Pepsi Cola didn't light the world on fire overnight.
But they also have to be careful how they push their P.R.

When I think about Purple, I don't think about this great beverage that will make you healthier and smarter. I think of a company that said their stock will explode...but so far hasn't.

The lesson here?
Drink soda that you enjoy...don't worry about the stock price.

There are no stock prices at www.Squidoo.com/CokevsPepsi

Roy Rogers: No Free Refills and No Honey Mustard Sauce

2008-08-25T11:25:00.000-07:00

I really don’t like to go to Roy Rogers. There is only 1 within a 10 mile radius of me…which tells me something…but my wife likes their Roast Beef. So, once in a while when we don’t’ want a McBurger we go to Roy Rogers.

It annoys me that Roy Rogers does not offer free refills on their Soda. I’ve talked about this before in an earlier blog post, but I just can’t get on board with it. Anyone over the age of 22 knows that fountain soda costs the company about .25 a cup. And since I’ve already PAID for the cup...how much are you losing by taking 5 seconds out of your day to put more soda IN my cup?

And since Roy Rogers has 7 teenagers behind their counter giggling and gossiping amongst each other…ONE of them can take 7 seconds from their busy night to give me a refill. It’s not like I asked them to hand me 2 more chicken breasts!

Ok, speaking of chicken breasts, the wife and I went to Roy Rogers for dinner over the weekend. (The segue here is to Roy Rogers…not to my wife’s breasts. Pay attention.)

We each ordered some kind of Roast Beef value meal (#4 on the menu…her’s with a Baked Potato, mine with Fries…) and a chicken breast that we were going to split. (now you see where the ‘breasts’ come in, right?)

The manager took my order and he’s putting the food on my plate as wife goes and gets napkins and straws and what have you. He says ‘Ok, that’s everything’ and then something occurs to me.
The conversation he and I had is so rediculous that I have to play it out for you so you can see the stupidity of it yourself.

Me: Ah, you know what? Can I trouble you for a Honey Mustard Sauce for the chicken.

He: Sure. Oh, wait. I’m sorry, that’s only for the chicken tenders.

Me: (Sure that he’s kidding): Ha ha. Right.

He: No, I’m serious. The dipping sauce is only for the chicken tenders, not the chicken breasts.

Me: You’re kidding.

He: No.

Me: You’re serious?!

He: Yes. Sorry. I can sell you one. They’re cheap. But I can only ‘give’ them to the customers who buy chicken tenders.

Me: (looking down at the chicken breast): Well…why don’t we ‘pretend’ I ordered chicken FINGERS instead of a chicken BREAST?

He (Smiling): Sorry. (then, very condescendingly) Then I’d have to do that for everyone.

(Editor’s note here - the place was empty. If there were 4 people behind me listening in on the conversation I MIGHT understand his perspective, but…)

Me: You’re serious.

He: Yeah. They’re only 27 cents if you’d like to buy one.

Me: I get FOUR free ones when I go to McDonald’s. I can’t bring myself to pay you .27 cents for one.

At this point, he shrugged and smiled, as if to say “Well, that’s your problem I guess. Sorry.”

Now, let me ask you….which is MORE ridiculous about this story:
a) Roy Rogers won’t give me a Honey Mustard sauce for my chicken or
b) the guy who is supposed to be the MANAGER has risked losing a customer (and by that I mean the whole family, not just me) over a 27 cent Honey Mustard sauce?!

Ludicrous, right?

Here’s the kicker – when I took my napkins from the Fixins Bar, I took MANY more than I needed…and I threw out what I didn’t use. Then I took 3 more ketchups than I needed and guess what? Trash. I also took 3 tomato slices but only used one.

Sure it’s silly…but the bigger picture is this: there is a LOT of money wasted on the Roy Rogers salad bar, which goes ungoverned. The STORE MANAGER potentially lost a customer over one honey mustard sauce. By saving 27 cents he potentially lost a LOT of business.

I’m picturing something like the movie ‘Airplane’. I’m picturing this dim bulb and I having the same conversation, only if you look over my shoulder you see a food fight breaking out with the Free Fixins Bar being used as the weaponry arsenal.

Maybe monkeys having the food fight...really LOUD monkeys that everyone seems to be ignoring.

Silly, right?
The whole thing is silly.
And bad business.

No free refills on soda is a bad policy.
No free honey mustard sauce an embarrassingly AWFUL policy.

I don’t think the Singing Cowboy would have made that decision. Do you…?

enjoy the Cola Wars on Squidoo!

128 cans of Coca Cola and Pepsi and $10 to Charity

2008-08-22T07:24:00.000-07:00

What if you loved Pepsi and Coke so much that you went out and bought CASES of the stuff? How would you keep it nice and cold? Fill up the fridge? Where would you keep your eggs and milk then?!

What if you were having a party and you knew all of your friends liked Dr. Pepper and Mountain Dew...and you wanted to have the coldest sodas available at a moment's notice?

My friends at www.FundsForUs.com sell the 128 Can Danby Beverage Center.
(Sure, you can keep Jones Soda in it, too. But I don't think anyone buys 128 cans of Jones Soda at once...)

The Danby Beverage Center has 3 'full' shelves and 1 'half' shelf...and it's only 3.3 Cubic Feet in size. You can hold a LOT of soda here, in a small space.

But why buy it at Funds for Us?
Two reasons why:

1) Because they sell the item at $89.00 less than suggested retail, so you get it on sale and save almost $90.00
2) Because every time they sell one, they donate $10.47 to YOUR favorite charity. That's right, not a charity of THEIR choice. A Charity of YOUR choice.

So you throw your party, and you have lots of guests who are all very happy because their Diet Coke and A&W Root Beer is nice and cold. YOU are happy because they all showed up...and because you saved $90.00 on the Danby Beverage Center...and because you donated more than $10.00 to a worthwhile cause...

So now the Pepsi vs. Coke war can be waged at your party, by your favorite friends.

As we always say: Soda is Good...but an ICE COLD soda is REALLY Good!

7 Most Relevant Coke and Pepsi stories of the Last Year?

2008-08-20T07:21:00.001-07:00

Today marks the 1 year anniversary of Coke vs. Pepsi: Soda is Good. Thank you for indulging my desire to use Coca Cola and Pepsi as an analogy for stories about Politics, Business, Charity, Home Life and Pro Wrestling!

Using Google Analytics as a measuring tool, I surveyed the most read stories in the past year, and crossed them with the pages that readers spent the most time on. (So that if a page got 400 hits, but readers only spent 1 second on the page, it would not automatically top the charts.) This creates the ‘Coke vs. Pepsi Top 7 Most Relevant’ list for the last 12 months.

Why Top Seven? Because everyone else does a Top 5 or Top 10.
I’m an average guy with an average intelligence. So I chose the Average.

Let’s make something very clear: I have no skills in “making money with blogging” or “doubling readership through SEO techniques”. In other words, maybe G.A. is not the best tool and maybe some of the articles here from the last year should rank higher or lower in readership...but it is what it is. I'm not here to win any SEO awards. I'm just here to drink soda and then write about it.

So, let's look at the list...

The #7 Most Relevant Soda is Good story was Coca Cola to Hydrate the Poor Children. Written at the end of July this year, it talked about the work of Simon Berry, who’s vision is to see Coca Cola using it’s world wide distribution muscle to send more water and medicine to the sick and poor children in Third World Countries.

The #6 Most Relevant story was Killer Coke: A Strike and a Protest. Also written in July, it talked up KillerCoke.org's plan to stage a strike in New York City to protest the unfair and violent working conditions of Coca Cola's bottling plant in Columbia, South America.

I learned about the strike on their website and shared what I could find. Oddly, despite all of the updates and photos on their website's home page ... there is NO discussion about the strike! NONE! I have to guess that only 6 people showed up. This does not, of course, take away from how important KillerCoke's message is...

The #5 most relevant Coke vs. Pepsi story was called Coke or Pepsi...Smart or Silly? dating back to early May of this year, this quick little entry pointed out 2 websites that also discuss the "Pepsi vs. Coke" debate...although from 2 very different perspectives. One reads like a Science Journal, the other like a High School Freshman's attempt at journalism. Much love to High School Freshmen and Journalists alike...

The #4 most relevant Soda Story on this blog was called History of Coke and Pepsi...and Google. This one was written in August of LAST year, so I'm glad to see that not only the entries from the last 2 months are being read! This hard hitting, bone crunching, in depth analysis of which soda (Coca Cola or Pepsi) has more Google listing under the heading 'History of...' almost won me a Pulitzer.

Not!

The #3 most relevant Soda Story on this blog was called RAW: Pepsi versus Pro Wrestling. Next to soda, Pro Wrestling is my true love, and this article talked about how the WWE has a show called 'Raw' and Pepsi has a soda called 'Raw'. Suffice to say that one outsells the other one hundred fold!

The #2 most relevant Soda is Good story for the last 12 months was ALSO a Pro Wrestling story! No, I do not market exclusively to Pro Wrestling Fans, but apparently Pro Wrestling fans like Soda as much as I do! The story is called Pepsi and Pro Wrestling - Perfect for a Punk, and it discusses current WWE Champion C.M. Punk and his love for Pepsi.

This story was written back in March, and Punk was not heavyweight champion yet. I cannot say that Pepsi endorses C.M. Punk or the WWE...but if not then they are getting some free publicity whenever Punk goes shirtless! (Big Pepsi Symbol tatoo on his shoulder!)

The #1 Most Relevant Coke vs. Pepsi: Soda is Good story for the last 12 months...according to the in depth analysis I took about 15 minutes to gather...is called Coca Cola Prices Going Up, Pepsi Prices Going Up Next? No, I was not able to think up a LONGER title so I went with that one. Apparently, this one really IS relevant, since it talks about:
1) Coca Cola
2) Pepsi
3) The Economy
4) Your Wallet.

So suffice to say that even if you are not a Pro Wrestling fan, you still found some relevant and important stories here to indulge yourself in.

You might also see, looking at the Top 7, that neither Coke nor Pepsi are the 'True Victory' in the war of the words, much less the war of the worlds. Both brands have plenty interesting information to offer.

2 quick honorable mentions:

1) obviously, as you add more content to a blog, the most read pages get spread out further. For the longest time, one of the top 5 most read stories was Coke Zero adds Big Boobs to their Latin Advertising. I am going to guess that the majority of the readers were males between the ages of 16 and 36. Ladies, you might be pleased to know that Coke and their Big Boobs fell out of the Top 7 last month.

2) One story that I thought was really clever was not my story at all...but rather some intimation on an essay I read and was really entertained by. The entry was called The Difference Between Pepsi and the Pope, and I want to thank author Denise Duhamel and her book Queen for a Day for the great essay!

There is a lot going on in the world, as far as Coke and Pepsi is concerned. Do feel free to leave your comments and share with me the Soda Stories you'd like to see top the list in the months to come!

Which Soda (entry) is Best?

2008-08-18T09:19:00.001-07:00

I wanted to let you know that this Wedensday, August 20th, marks the 1 year anniversary of Coke vs. Pepsi: the Soda is Good blog.

You may recall all the way back at the beginning that the hardest part of getting this blog off the ground was finding an available domain name! LOL!

On Wednesday, I plan to share with you a 'Best of' from the Coke vs. Pepsi archives.

In the meantime...and all Coke and Pepsi aside...let me share with you why some consider Jones Soda the Best Soda Ever.

Coke, Pepsi, Your Teeth and a Dentist

2008-08-13T13:23:00.000-07:00

When I was a kid (stop me if you heard this one already...) we poured a cup of soda and dropped a nail into it. We left the cup of soda on top of the friedge where it wouldn't spill.

1 week later, we took the cup down and pulled out the nail. Oh MAN how corroded it looked!

My friend turned to me and said "If soda can do this to a nail...imagine what it does to your stomach lining!"

So of course, it deterred me from drinking soda.

NOT! I was a teenager! I only drank soda when it was made available to me, anyway!

Well, a trip to the dentist and I'm getting a lecture on how bad soda is for your teeth.

(Disclaimer: I have decent teeth. Bad gums, but decent teeth).

Then I got the bill for services rendered (scraping and scaling...told you I had bad gums!) and had to take out a seecond mortage to pay the bill.

A month later, it turns out my 7 year old has a cavity.

(How the hell did he get a cavity?! I got my first cavity when I was 25!!!)

They filled that little bastard and charged me $169.00!

So today, I want to draw the connection between how drinking soda will remind you that you need affordable Dental Care.

You see, I don't have dental insurance. Yes, my wife is constantly after me about how I should hav a job that has dental insurance. But I don't. SO, when someone needs their teeth worked on...we cry.

Today, more and more companies are cutting out Dental and Optical plans and making employees pay into their medical plans. This small piece of information at LEAST allows me the satisfaction of knowing that I am not the ONLY person without dental care.

That's why I need affordable dental care. So do you. If you drink soda, you REALLY do!

If you drink Soda as much as I do...you really, really do!

I have been told by my dentist (who, odly enough, went to college with someone I knew in High School! Small world, huh?!) that not all dental plans are equal, and some are not worth the expense.

Now, I'm a soda guy...not a dental insurance guy....so I can't tell you which firm to go with.

I CAN tell you that I looked at a firm called DentalPlans.com.

Why? Well because they had a website that was easy to remember.

It looked pretyt thorough, too.

So, in recapping, let's agree that:

1) if you like soda you should read this blog becasue it's all I talk about

2) if you like soda you should have a good gastro-internist...given what can happen to your stomach lining.

3) if you like soda you should have a good dentist.

4) if you have a good dentist you should have an affordable Dental Plan.

5) if you like Cherry Coke you'll probably like Dr. Pepper.

Ok, I just winged it on that last one.

See? Who said I couldn't throw together a well thought out post in only 10 minutes? :)

Win a Free XBox 360

2008-08-08T09:32:00.000-07:00

I wasn't going to blog today, as I have a lot to get done in a short period of time, but I found a soda-related website that is advertising that through buying their product you can win a free Xbox 360! (and some other stuff, too!)

It's the Mountain Dew Instant Win Game...and you can read all about it here.

(Just last night, after offering a friend a Miller Chill, he told me that his favorite beverage is Mountain Dew. I replied that I was big on the Dew until this past Easter, when I drank so much of it I could taste it in my mouth for days to follow. Need a break. Started shopping at the Jones Soda Store. Then switched to Cherry Pepsi.)

In a non-soda related story, you can also win a free Xbox 360 here.
This site looks AWFULLY simple...I'm too busy (as I said) to check it out, so if YOU check it out please let me know what it entails.

(Actually, if you type "Free XBox 360" in Google you'll get 1,230,000 matches. I don't know what cave I was sleeping in, but I have NO idea what kind of promotion every last person is offering on Xbox's behalf. Of course, I'm still rockin' the GameCube.)

Lastly...look gradually to your right for a second. See that Orange-Blue-and-White banner offering a 30 second video on how to make your own soda? Check it out. It's very cool, and if you drink as much soda as I do it's a great tool to consider owning!

Coke + Pepsi + Red Bull = Purple

2008-08-06T09:56:00.001-07:00

Years ago, I used to invest periodically in Mutual Funds and individual stocks. about twice a year the Investor's Daily Business Journal would offer me a free 10-day subscription...which I would always accept and then at the end of the 10 days I'd tell them I had no interest in subscribing.

The down side is that now once a week I get mail from someone's Penny Stock newsletter, alerting me to some new stock that's about to make everyone a Jagillionaire.

Yeah, right.

99% of them I throw into the garbage without even opening it. However, last night I got one and the envelope intrigued me. It said, in so many words, that Coke was a once a Big Money stock, and Pepsi was once a Big Money stock...and now 'Purple' is a Big Money stock.

Yeah, right.

But this was about SODA, and you know I like soda...so I opened it up and read a little.

I don't believe in penny stocks and I'm not going to suggest you buy this stock. I'm not going to give you the stock symbol or tell you why this stock is poised to go thru the roof. In fact, 'Purple' is NOT a soda...it's a beverage, like Grape Juice or Yoo Hoo...so I'm probably not going to think twice about it after I get done typing this.

HOWEVER, there WAS a soda-related fact that makes Purple a little interesting: A good portion of Purple's management comes from Pepsi, Coca Cola and/or Red Bull!

According to the newsletter I received:

Michael Lorelli, who is credited with building PepsiCola East, is Purple's new Strategic Marketing Advisor.

Michael McKee - who played a big part in building Coca Cola's Fuze Beverage brand, has joined Purple.

Dan Morelli, Keith Reilly, Marc de Grandpre and Lou Aceto...all former Red Bull marketing executives...have joined Purple.

You are probably asking 'what IS this Purple??!? Has Prince started a beverage franchise?!'

Purple is a juice that combines the acai berry with 6 other antioxidant-rich juices. You've heard of the acai berry, right? Oprah has singing it's praises a while back and then everyone went out and either bought some or started a beverage line based on it's juice.

Sure, acai and other anti-oxidant berry are the rave now, so Purple has a good-enough chance to survive it's use of first-round funding. Will it's stock make you rich? Time will tell. In fairness, I'll check the ticker price again in 6 months and give you an update.

Obama Cola. Presidential RockStar?

2008-08-04T08:26:00.000-07:00

John McCain is positioning Barack Obama as too celebrity to be taken seriously as a Presidential Candidate. Like he's a rock star of some kind.

This makes for great segue, as far as Coke vs. Pepsi is concerned.
Why?

Because:
You can buy the John McCain campaign cola here.

You can buy Barack Obama campaign cola here.

Obama, being regarded to as a Rock Star, is not affiliated with RockStar Energy Drink...which you can buy here.

Obama wants to pull out of Iraq, McCain wants to stay and Whup Ass. You can buy WhoopAss Energy Drink here.

If there is one person who should get their ass whooped, it's Ron Paul. However, you can still buy HIS campaign cola here.

I would have been clever, in hindsight, to tell you that the McCain beverage tastes like it's 70 years old and the Ron Paul beverage comes in a can that's empty...but that would be political humour and this Homey don't Play Dat.

Eat, Drink and Enjoy Politics.
In fact, Eat, Drink and Enjoy this You Tube video called "Soda and Politics"
(this is not my video...this is not me IN the video....I just found it and thought it was relevant.)

Coca Cola to Hydrate the Poor Children

2008-07-31T07:43:00.000-07:00

Simon Berry has an interesting idea.

He suggests that Coca Cola use a small portion of their distribution muscle to help deliver medicine and nutrients to the poor children of the world. His epiphany was that you can by a Coca Cola virtually anywhere in the world, yet children are dying of dehydration in these same corners of the world.

Simon Berry is not confrontational and he is not picketing Coca Cola's offices with an angry mob.
(By the way...I still can't find an update on KillerCoke's efforts from earlier in the month!)

His idea has caught fire, as you can easily 'Google' other blogs talking about his efforts.
Here are a few that I caught right away:

On Kate Andrews, here.

On Groves Media, here.

Simon's own Blog, here.

Personally, I've never been one of these people who thinks that Big Business is/should be responsible for healing the ills of the world...yet this does not mean that I don't like his suggestion. In fact, I DO like the suggestion...I'm just not joining any coalitions or the like and I'm not going to protest Coca Cola (neither is Simon).

Just yesterday, over a '2-parts Dr. Pepper and 1-part Coke' I was discussing an interview I read with Jim Skinner, the CEO of McDonald's. His view was 'we provide choices for the world, and they are adult enough to make those choices.' You know...he offers French Fries and he offers Apples. It's up to you which you want to eat.

Obviously, this has nothing to do with Simon Berry and his idea to have Coca Cola help distribute medicine...I was just drawing the parallel that Big Business is often asked by the public to solve social issues, and each company/CEO has their own way(s) of reacting to the request.

(Simon's blog details the replies he has gotten when contacting Coca Cola with his idea. Here is an example.)

If my conversation about Jim Skinner is not a big enough example, how about the fact that a good friend of mine runs a company that works very hard to raise money for the poor children of Uganda? You can read about 1Shop's efforts here. They are not a Big Business...in fact they are a Small Business...but I think Simon would be pleased!

The bottom line is this: whether you think Big Business has a social responsibility or not, it's encouraging to know that we citizens are THINKING about these things. We're SHARING these ideas. We're TALKING about them and PUTTING THEM INTO MOTION. No one likes a whiner or a complainer. But people who can articulate good ideas and try to make hay out of them are local heroes.

Thanks you, Simon Berry, for thinking about helping the sick and the poor.

Coca Cola and some advice on Bouncing Back

2008-07-30T12:57:00.000-07:00

I read a lot. I read a lot abot management and leadership. I read self-help stuff. Not the 'talk you down from the ledge' type of stuff...but the stuff that makes you more successful and more productive.

What does this have to do with Soda?

I was reading Steve Farber's Extreme Leadership blog today, and he was reviewing a book called Bounce Back by Karen Salmansohn. Karen allowed Steve to print an excerpt from her book about how to deal with failure and career adversity.

Early in the exceerpt, she quotes Roberto Goizuetta. Who is Roberto Goizuetta? Why, he was Coca Cola's most successful CEO, that's who! (and readers of the blog would know that because I sing his praises any chance I get!)

Anyway, Karen Salmansohn talks about Goizueta stating:
Roberto Goizueta, Coca-Cola's CEO, says the risk-taker mentality is the very reason he hired back the guy who launched New Coke--a huge marketing failure. Goizueta recognized how you can become uncompetitive if you're not tolerant of mistakes. In fact, if you let 'avoiding failure' become your motivator, you¹re going dangerously down the path of inactivity.
"You can stumble only if you're moving," he says. So if you recently stumbled and fell in your career, re-focus on how your risky thinking makes you more knowledgeable. Own the positive lesson learned --as proof you are an outside-the-box valuable thinker. See work failure as 'fullure'--full of many lessons.

SEE?!?!? This is why Goizueta was my hero. (Although smoking 3 packs of day and dying of Cancer before the age of 60 is not exactly what I want my legacy to be....).

You can read the entire article about Karen's book here.

You can read more about Steve Farber here.

And remember...you can find the Coke vs. Pepsi Cola Wars lens here.

Bad Dog! Pepsi Commercial (Video)

2008-07-29T10:37:00.000-07:00

My friend Rosella found a cute Pepsi commercial that she wanted to share.

I hadn't seen this one before...it's very clever, and not very long.

Enjoy!

www.Squidoo.com/CokevsPepsi

Killer Coke 0, Killer Pepsi 2

2008-07-24T06:44:00.000-07:00

I've checked all over Google and all over the Killer Coke website, and I have yet to find an update on the New York City protest. Maybe 3 people showed up, maybe 30...but I am guessing there were not enough people to garner any kind of reaction from the press.

Speaking of the press, It's my personal opinion that Barach Obama gets MUCH more press coverage than John McCain...but I've always found the press to be incredibly liberal. Both offer a pretty good Soda.

Ok, back to Cola and Killers.
(Great band, by the way, but not relevant to this discussion...)

Despite not being able get much information on the recent endeavor by KillerCoke, I did find two YouTube videos featuring Killer PEPSI!

You can find Killer Pepsi...the revenge story, here.

You can find Killer Pepsi Clown here.
(Damn Clowns. They're scary even when they aren't trying to be scary! In fact, Wikipedia has a listing for 'Evil Clowns'. What does THAT tell you?!)

I'm going to try to reach out to Killer Coke to see what transpired on Tuesday, but if you see a CLown coming after you with a Pepsi bottle...you really oughta run!

Killer Coke - a Strike and a Protest

2008-07-22T10:52:00.000-07:00

AURGHGH!
I was supposed to blog about this LAST week but I got caught up!
SORRY!
If you live in New York, you still have an hour to do your part.

What am I talking about?

*Gasp* *Pant* Ok, let me slow down.

There is a website called KillerCoke.
This site is dedicated to stopping the murders and kipnappings...along with other violence, mind you...of Union Leaders involved with the Coca Cola bottling plants in Columbia, South America.

If you check out the website, you'll see there is some serious isht going on there!

Well, at 3:00 today, Teusday July 22nd, the folks at KillerCoke are organizing a protest at at 711 5th Avenue, New York City. The protest begins at Coca-Cola and will later march to Oxy Petroleum, which is located 1230 Avenue of the Americas, Suite 800, New York City (between 48th & 49th Streets).

I couldn't find any information on why they are not down with Oxy...but if you are a large Oil concern in South America you're probably doing something uncool...

In talking about the effort to get the attention of two of Coca-Cola's top policymakers and serve on Coke's board of directors, the website mimsspells the last name of Coke's former Preident and COO . I don't know how badly this will affect their credibility. I mean, if you've got the address right you're off to a good start.

(Of course, if you think you have a clever sign that says "Die Donald Deough!" your clever alliteration will be less than humorous. In fact, the people INSIDE the building will be saying 'Donald WHO?!?!?'. The correct spelling of his last name is here.)

I will certainly monitor the KillerCoke website and report back tomorrow with any results they share...but if you attend the rally (or has a friend that does) please leave comments and let us know what transpires!

This blog is often brought to you by Coke vs. Pepsi....but it seems today Coke has a biger fight on it's hands than Pepsi!

Coca Cola prices going up. Pepsi Prices Going up next?

2008-07-18T06:57:00.000-07:00

I was SURE I read yesterday that Coca Cola was raising their prices this Fall.

Maybe it was on Comcast?

I checked into it on Google today, and there are only a handful of articles, and they are all pretty vauge. In a nutshell, HeadQuarters say they are down about 20%, the bottlers claim that they are losing money, and so we are all going to see the prices go up.

The Moms at FrugalVillage.com were talking about it here.

They also discuss some great USES for Coca Cola...other than drinking...here.

(How come there is not a list for 10 great uses for PEPSI? Isn't it still COLA??!?!)

When are Prices going up? - After Labor Day.

How much? - No one is saying yet.

So what does Pepsi do?

They can:

a) keep their prices where they are, and hope to capture market share. OR

b) raisee their prices TOO, much like the way Gas Prices all go up in unison in your town.

But is strategy 'A' a viable one? Would it 'matter'?

In 99% of the restraunts you go in, you don't get a 'choice'. They serve Coke or Pepsi, and you take a tall cold glass of whatever they've got.

In the grocery stores, you DO have a choice...but so much of the public has already made up their mind as to what they prefer. Will people pay a little more for Coca Cola? Sure they will.

Will they pay a LOT more for Coca Cola before switching to Pepsi?

Well, that remains to be seen, right?

What is the 'walk away' price on Coca Cola? Coke fans, especially in the South, have been incredibly loyal. At what point do they say 'AH, hell. It's just a cola!" and switch to Pepsi.

And to the earlier point, if Coke and Pepsi drinkers are both brand Loyal, couldn't the Blue Brand raise THEIR prices too...enough to be less expensive than Coca Cola but enough to squeeze out some more profit points?

Afterall, if Pepsi can win the profit margin war, they can reclaim their greatness in the Coca War, like Roger Enrico did in his book from 1986. Has it really been more than 20 years since the Cola Wars got personal?!

Both teams have been pretty demure as of late as far as the 'war' is concerned...but an opportunity for Pepsi to announce that they've become more profitable could not only reignite the fires, it could reignite the marketing campaigns.

What is YOUR walk-away price on Coca Cola?

Is there a price that would make you loyal COke drinkers switch to Pepsi?

(Coke and Pepsi continue to fight it out at www.Squidoo.com/CokevsPepsi)

Indiana Jones and Dr. Pepper and an Excellent Adventure

2008-07-16T11:02:00.000-07:00

A friend sends me an e-mail that touts the Mega Promotion that Dr. Pepper is doing in conjunction with Indiana Jones.

Actually, webmaster@DrPepper.com sent it to me. Rudy was just nice enough to reccomend me.

(I mean, what are friends for, right? I last talked up Dr. Pepper here, and I last saw Rudy here.)

So now, it's not enough that I drink Dr. Pepper when I go to Burger King. (I even follow their advice and add 1 part Coke to 3 parts Dr. Pepper. They call it a Gold Rush or some such). Now I have to buy CANS of the stuff and drink it...copy down the code...head over to the website...

Well, if I win, I'll let you all know.

*sigh* I wish Grandma was here.

Drink a Soda with John McCain!

2008-07-14T19:23:00.000-07:00

Last month, here on Soda is Good, I announced that
Jones Soda was offering soda cans adorned with the likenesses of Barach Obama, John McCain, and Hillary Clinton.

I didn't put any real 'push' behind any particular candidate, but it seemed that Mr. Obama led the league in "sodas consumed by supporters".

(The original blog post, which has gotten a lot of traffic at this blog, can he seen here.)

But what does this say about Cola drinkers? Are they particularly supportive of the Democrat Change Agent? Or maybe die hard Republicans are just too busy to order a cola online?

Maybe John McCain supporters perfer Coca Cola? Or Pepsi?

Perhaps McCain supporters just prefer to open up a can of Whupass?!

Perhaps the McCain versus Obama debate is not much different than the age old 'Coke versus Pepsi' battle?

McCain supporters, prove me wrong! Grab yourself a can of McCain Cola from Jones Soda and show your support! Don't be one of a million uncounted votes!

This campaign cola message was brought to you by Coke versus Pepsi, and we approve of this message. By contrast, we do NOT approve of you who purchased Ron Paul campaign cola. Yes, I'm serious. Ron Paul campaign cola...

Socially Responsible China Cola

2008-07-14T06:36:00.000-07:00

I've found a new "hobby" of sorts. Ok, maybe it's an 'interest' as opposed to a 'hobby'.

I'm 'interested' in companies that spend a portion of their profits on charities and other socially-responsible issues.

I tried to find a cola that fit this model. I have to admit, it took a little time.
(one book I read just KILLED Coca Cola for being Socially IRRESPONSIBLE...but it gave mid-to-high marks to Pepsi. This isn't gloating. I was actually SURPRISED. I won't publish the name of the book or the author until I get some more information for you.)

So let me tell you about China Cola.
It's put our by a company called Reed's Ginger Brew.

It first glance, it looks like a socially responsible tea company...since they 'brew' their beverages. A particular Socially Responsible Tea company is Honest Tea. We'll cover them another day, since today we're talking about Cola.

Hmmm...maybe it sounds more like a BEER company!

But read closer. Their website says: "Long before modern soft drinks existed, people brewed their own beverages. In the Caribbean, home brewed ginger beverages are a part of life. Reed’s brews six carbonated and four non-carbonated juice and ginger combinations using only the finest ingredients. The six carbonated flavors are: Original Ginger, Extra Ginger, Premium Ginger, Raspberry Ginger, Cherry Ginger and Spiced Apple."

So far, that Ginger sound quite Yummy...!

By the way, you can read about Ginger here, and you can read about Ginger Rogers here.

Ok, but I dug a little deeper and found their China Cola.
(did I mention that I REALLY like Chinese Food? I really do. This is an unrelated point, but I wanted to share it anyway.)
Since it's a Cola and not a Citrus Beverage, it gets it's own page on the Reed's website.

I figured, I'd have to dig REALLY far to FIND China Cola...but if you click on their Store Locator you'll see that it's offered all OVER the place!!!
(Which means I am off to buy some this week and write a review on it!)

But let's get back to being Socially Responsible.

Now, I don't want to lie or even exaggerate.
Reed's does not donate profits to Cancer Research, nor do they nurse homeless people back to health and then employ them.

But, on their site they mention "Reed’s Ginger Brew is dedicated to supporting non-profits and community based organizations that are noted for their contributions to the community and unique events. Below is a partial listing of some of the events that Reed’s Ginger Brew has supported in the past."

You can read that list here.

Socially Responsible Cola!
Just what I was looking for!

So go to your local health food store, grab yourself a pack of China Cola (and maybe some Roast Pork Lo Mein...!) and know that you're drinking something that does something good!

Brought to you by Reed's Ginger Brew, and our friends at Coke vs. Pepsi

Beverages Direct Super List bats .500

2008-07-03T06:45:00.000-07:00

I was looking for a list of 'Eneergy Drinks', since they have been the rave as of late. (Do you know I have not tried a single one? It's true. I'm already pretty wound up. I don't think extra caffeine and/or sugar is going to do me any good.)

In my studies, I came across a website called Beverages Direct.

I don't think I've ever seen a longer list of non-major-brand-beverages all on one page!

HOWEVER...I did some spot checking and I found a little less than half of the items on the list are 'Out of Stock' (like Jeff's New York Egg Cream...which sounded especially yummy) or even had a blurb that said 'No Products Available' (Like Jolt Cola. They still make Jolt, right?!)

So it's a pretty impressive list...and will give you a great opportunity to check into some brand names you might not have heard of before. (Did you know there is a Big Red soda?! It tastes like Bubble Gum, not Cinnamon gum...but Beverages Direct has it. I found out there is a '!' soda too, but they don't have any products listed under the heading...)

So think of Beverages Direct as a trip to the arcade. Some games work, some don't. But you'll find some classics and some all-new things you didn't know existed!

Remember to go to Coke vs. Pepsi to read up on the more 'traditional' Colas...

Pepsi Claims the World's Heavyweight Title

2008-07-01T11:49:00.000-07:00

Sure, you hate it when I talk Pro Wrestling...but this one was too obvious to pass up.

Last night on WWE's "Monday Night RAW", CM Punk won the Heavyweight Title. Why sis this soda-worthy? Because those who know Punk know he is an avid Pepsi drinker.
(as evidenced in my previous blog post, here.)

Pro Wrestling fans - if you have only learned about CM Punk through watching the WWE, you missed out on his best work to day! Find all the work he did with Ring of Honor and you'll see that he was a SUPER star there.

Soda drinkers - the Pepsi Challenge lives on! Is this a tounge-in-cheek way of saying Pepsi is the king of sodas? Has Pepsi toppled Coca Cola? Is the traditional soda still more lovable than the current rash of energy drinks?

Coke and Pepsi continue to slug it out at www.Squidoo.com/CokevsPepsi

Coke vs. Pepsi will Teach You to be Rich

2008-06-27T06:25:00.000-07:00

When I'm not reading about soda...or Pro Wrestling (what did you think about the Draft? Not the NBA draft...the WWE draft.) I'm reading blogs about Leadership and Marketing.

OH! You didn't know I had a Day Job?!

So of course, I took great interest in a blog post that began like this:
"Do you think you could tell the difference between a Coke and Pepsi?

Of course you do.

When I was an RA in college, my residents insisted they could, so I bought Cokes, Diet Cokes, Pepsis, Diet Pepsis, and a generic soda to test them. Of those who tested, every one insisted they could tell the difference.

Only 3 out of 47 could."

The blog is written by Ramit Sethi, and his blog is called I will Teach You to be Rich. You can read the entire post here.

Actually, the post goes on to describe a very interesting book about Psychology and how it relates to Business Decisions.

Did I mention that when I was 15 I took the Pepsi Challenge...and chose Coca Cola?!
I did not go to college with Ramit; this was in front of a Shop Rite in my town.

So, what did we learn today?
1) a college student got the same result at his local college as some Marketing Firms did in their multi-million dollar studies.

2) I was more interested in the WWE 'draft' than I was in the NBA draft

3) Ramit Sethi is an interesting guy...and he can teach you to be Rich!

...and remember - you can read about all things Soda at the Coke vs. Pepsi lens:
www.Squidoo.com/CokeVsPepsi

Energy Drinks...Kicking Soda's Ass

2008-06-25T08:48:00.000-07:00

I'm still drinking Soda and loving every moment of it.

Energy drinks are still taking the market by storm...the market is up over 35% based on some reports I've read recently.

However, I'm too cheap and too hyper to begin with to drink Energy drinks. If you've met me, you know i have a bundle of all-natural energy. If they can can me, I'd be the highest caffinated, highest sugar-content product on the market. (I'd probably taste lousy, though). Don't misunderstand me...I don't take in much caffeine and sugar other than my Soda and Chocolate fixes...I'm just naturally wound up.

What really amazed me today is that there are HUNDREDS of energy drinks out there, and more coming out each week! So other than drinking a Red Bull because your co-worker does (or because it tasted good mixed with Vodka at that last Frat Part you went to...!) how do you know which ones to drink?

Today, I'll share with you some websites I've found that rate Energy Drinks.
Take their advice with your own discretion. Remember, I haven't drunk one yet...

Screaming Energy has a VERY cool web page. The number of cans they show is almost scary!

Energy Drinks Rating has been around since April of 2006, and it's also a Blogger.com supported site.

Energy Drinks Review was last updated LAST month, and they seem to be in a state of transition...but they are worth checking out just so you get a well rounded opinion.

Here's another blog called Energy Drink Reviews. You EDR-ers are gonna have to fight it out on your own for ownership of the name. Personally, I'm diggin' the black background on this blog.

OK, if these 4 sites can't help you wade through the ocean of Energy Drinks out there, then you need to go the route I go and suck down a Mountain Dew for sugar (See it glow in the dark HERE), a Pepsi for contemporary taste, or a Coca Cola for a dose of nostalgia.

Also remember to visit www.Squidoo.com/CokevsPepsi for all things soda.

Obama Cola! Drink your Vote of Support!

2008-06-05T14:21:00.001-07:00

Jones Soda is AWESOME! Whenever I think they've run out of cool things to promote...they find something ELSE to slap on their label!

Are you pleased that Barack Obama won the Democratic Nomination? Do you think he can win the Presidency? Do you think people would buy a bottle of COla if his name and face was on the label?!

Now you can buy OBAMA COLA from Jones Soda!

OR...and I didn't write this in the headline...maybe you are a McCAIN fan?
How about an Ice Cold Republican Soda with Johnny's face on it??!?!

I kid you not!
Click here and drink your vote!

Your purchase is a vote.
Drink your Vote.

Disclaimer - those of you buying Hilary Colas will not neccesarily get her elected...but it's nice to see that you won't give up...!

Brought to you by Coke vs Pepsi

A Tiny Soda Gallery in Texas

2008-05-28T08:13:00.000-07:00

Today I surfed around, looking for something to write about, and I came across a blog called The Soda Gallery - All Things Soda.

Well! THAT took me by suprise!
Did they rip me off my idea?
Did I rip THEM off?!
How did THIS happen?!??!

But then I read a bit and I really liked what I saw. The soda gallery is a store in Texas that sells All Things Soda...and what a colelction of flavors they have! Their blog is a nice way to update everyone about what they are doing that's new each day/week.

Some cool things I saw on thier site, by way of example, include Zen Master Lemon Lime (I'm a big fan of all things Zen and Middle Eastern) and Moxie Cream Soda.

I like this Soda Gallery, and I'm excited about showing some support. They are, as they write in their in blog, "...a tiny company with under 10 employees." so they've got to be a nice bunch. They also happily snub their nose at Proposition 65...a silly little law that I would not have known anything about if I hadn't stubled across their website!

They are also regularly looking for returnable deposit bottles of Dr. Pepper. YOu know how I like Dr. Pepper! (Normally, I'd use this next sentence to plulg my love and admiration for my GrandMa. Not today. That would be self-serving and redundant. Giving props to my GrandMa, that is. Gone 3 years now and not a day passes that i don't miss her. But I'm not going to mention her today. Nor will I mention that I am looking at a picture of her on my desk as I write this. Not today.)

So, if you live in the Dallas area of Texas, please make your way over to the Soda Gallery on North Bishop Ave and buy a case or two of something cool and refreshing.
And tell them that SodaIsGood sent you!

Disclaimer - I have no financial ties to the Soda Gallery. They never heard of me.
I'm just a guy who started out chronicling the Coke vs. Pepsi war, after all!
They probably think I'm not even worthy of acknowledging. Like some centipede. Gosh, that's low. And hurtful. *sob*. I'm gonna drink a soda now and sulk...