In August of 1990, the Coca-Cola Company opened its doors to the World of Coca-Cola which was an interactive museum-like display of the history of Coca-Cola, thereby paving the way for a decade of Coca-Cola popularity. With the opening of this establishment came further interest in the brand, which demonstrated that Coke truly was the world’s favourite soft drink. At the time of the opening of this establishment, Coca-Cola had already invested 105 years of advertising into shaping the identity of the product, and this establishment proved yet another amazing avenue to market the brand. The 1990s were an essential time for marketing, especially regarding new and innovative ideas. Whether it be television, the radio, or on paper, creators were constantly developing new ways to advertise their products. An examination of a Coca-Cola advertising cookbook provides and excellent glimpse into this branding world of marketing. Through an examination of the 1990's marketing practices and popular culture, as well as exploring the popularity of Coca-Cola during this era, it is evident that Classic Cooking with Coca-Cola provides an excellent example of the typical United States’ advertising strategies present during the brand-focused era of the 1990's.

Throughout the 1990s, marketing was essential to ensure the sales of products. Prevalent in the United States, those who were marketing products often opted to market with brands in the hopes of increasing their sales. Studies conducted in the 1990s examined the relation between consumer choice and brand awareness. The evidence collected supported the idea that consumers will almost always favour brand names when given an array of options. Elizabeth Candler Graham could have kept this in mind when creating her cookbook and chose to include Coca-Cola products as ingredients in the hopes of increasing the sales of her cookbook. She indeed successfully increased her sales by using Coca-Cola as a brand extension of her product. Brand extensions provide an opportunity for producers to use the popularity and trust instilled in the name of one brand in order to enhance the marketing productivity of a separate product. Coca-Cola is an extremely successful company and a popular product of the 1990s, therefore using it in a cookbook would almost guarantee the public interest and success of the book.

Another common marketing tactic used throughout the 1990s was the product’s ability to enhance positive values. A recent study regarding marketing found support for the idea that in order for a brand to maximize extendibility and future success, it should attempt to enhance positive values that would be attractive towards consumers. Other studies have found similar results, stating that neutralized associations can become positive by reminding consumers of the positive associations of the original brand. Classic Cooking with Coca-Cola mentions that it was not endorsed by Coca-Cola, however it was created by the Coke family. By being created by the popular brand’s original ‘family’, there automatically is added value regarding the product. This factor increases the quality and reputation of the cookbook, which are considered to be two of the many important characteristics that are known to enhance the extendibility and success of various products.

Not only did advertising in the 1990s focus on branding, but it also had an essential role in popular culture. Various famous artists, athletes, and even television shows and stars engaged in endorsing specific products, especially Coca-Cola products. As typically accepted, football is a very important sport in the United States and the Super Bowl Commercials are amongst the most popular attractions and therefore most viewed commercials each year. During Super Bowl XXX, there were a series of commercials leading up to and throughout the game depicting various Friends characters acting guilty and showing someone stealing a diet coke. The commercial prompted the audience to look under their Diet Coke bottle caps to see if theirs matched with the character from the popular sitcom who stole the last Diet Coke. This is an excellent example of popular advertising in the 1990s as it demonstrates the use of branding in popular culture. Classic Cooking with Coca-Cola is another prime example of this, however instead of coke being advertised throughout popular culture, it is popular culture being used to advertise for the cookbook. Graham did an excellent job of using Coca-Cola, which was considered to be a part of American popular culture during the 1990s, as a way of marketing her own product, thereby providing yet another example of the typical symbiotic relationship between advertising and pop culture in the 1990s.

By examining the marketing practices, popular culture, and the popularity of Coca-Cola in the 1990s, it is evident that Classic Cooking with Coca-Cola provides an excellent example of the common United States advertising strategies implemented during this time. Coke has always been a part of American Nationalism and will most likely continue to do so.