Bonin Bough, global director of digital and social media at PepsiCo, announced at Mashable and 92Y’s Social Good Summit that Pepsi’s Refresh Project has been a huge success: In fact, he says that more people have voted for projects pitched to Pepsi Refresh than voted for the last U.S. president.
Last winter, we reported that for the first time in 23 years, Pepsi would not have any ads in the Super Bowl.
Instead, the company would be spending $20 million on a social media campaign called The Pepsi Refresh Project. The Project was launched on January 13, 2010, allowing folks to submit ideas both big and small for ways to refresh their communities over the course of 12 submission periods.
During the Gulf oil spill disaster, the Project even stepped up to lend aid, for one month offering $1.3 million more for ideas on how to refresh the Gulf. (The finalists for this project have already been announced, the winners to be chosen on September 22.)
This whole initiative is what Bough calls being a “corporate citizen” — mingling your business’s goals with a wider goal of social good. “[It's about] delivering sustainable growth in a way that’s investing in a healthier future for people and the planet,” Bough says.
The Pepsi Refresh Project is still going strong. Do you plan on submitting an idea?
Disclosure: Pepsi has been a sponsor at Mashable events.
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