MMM: 2Q24 Soft Drink Advertising Trends; Advertising Strategies Employed by Top 10 Box Office Movies

Key Takeaways:

• Though Coca-Cola has yet to report earnings, ST data shows that Coca-Cola has slightly increased its US ad spend in 1H24, up 3% YoY compared to a -12% YoY decline by PepsiCo. In 2Q24, Coke increased its US ad spend by 25% YoY vs flat for PepsiCo

  • Of Coca-Cola’s top brands, the greatest increases in YoY ad spend included Costa Coffee (20x), Topo Chico Mineral Water (10x), and Gold Peak Tea (5x) in 1H24. PepsiCo is also working heavily to compete against Coca-Cola and capture market share in the hydration space as Gatorade and Propel saw some of the highest increases in spend for the brand, up 130% and 120% YoY

• Frito-Lay is the largest subsection of PepsiCo’s ad spend, accounting for 23% of spend in 1H24. As sales volume started to decline, the company pivoted to highlighting value options for consumers by releasing new ads that featured variety packs in mid-March

• ST data shows that Inside Out 2’s promotional strategy could have played a key role in driving excitement for the film, as the movie accounted for ~30% of US ad spend in a cohort of the top ten domestic box office movies through 2024 YTD

• Inside Out 2’s marketing campaign began all the way back in Nov’23, with the release of teaser trailers that highlighted the new emotions joining the squad in 2024. As momentum built for the film, Disney allocated ~60% of its total US digital ad spend to the film in the four weeks leading up to its release

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