During the strategic marketing management process, there are many external forces that any company must be aware of in order to be profitable. These very important factors to be considered come in the form of technology trends, economic and government trends, consumer trends and innovations. It is very important to become aware of all of the potential opportunities and threats that may arise from these trends. I believe that for Coca-Cola, there are external forces in all of these areas that they must be aware of and incorporate into their planning if they are to continue to be successful. When it comes to technology, in recent years there are many emerging trends that I feel that Coca-Cola could use to their advantage. The popularity of services such as Twitter and Facebook may give Coca-Cola the opportunity to spread the word about their products to territories that haven’t yet been reached by their competitors. Since the majority of people use these services all over the world, we feel that it is a great place for them to advertise. While it is still very important to have advertisements on television, more and more people are using the internet, and we feel that by collaborating with internet companies, they would be able to increase their profits.
In addition to the increased use of the internet, another technology trend that Coca-Cola should be aware of is the production of bio-degradable bottles. Today’s plastic bottles are very bad for the environment and people are aware of this. Until recently, there was only technology to produce plastic that was made from petroleum. Now though, in the year 2010, there is technology to produce plastic that is made from plants. This plastic, also known as PLA or polylactide, emits fewer greenhouse gases, uses less energy than other plastic bottles and is also recyclable and compostable. We believe that since the environment is such a high priority in everyone’s minds, they should