When Taste Meets Branding 

We were incredibly fortunate to be part of this iconic campaign in 2023. We still remember back in the day in our marketing class studying the branding topic, where we read the research people about this experiment. You can read it here Cola Wars Continue: Coke and Pepsi in the 21st Century.

Even though OTINGA is a small UK-based marketing agency focusing on helping SMEs grow, we had the opportunity to indirectly join on the Pepsi Max Taste Challenge one of the boldest experiential campaigns ever brought to the UK. We participated in activations across several cities Newcastle, Northampton and Oxford and we couldn’t be prouder to share the insights behind this case study. For us, it was more than just another activation. It was an exploration of perception, psychology, and the power of brand memory. Because sometimes, what we think we taste… isn’t what we actually taste.

The Origin of the Cola Wars

To understand why the Pepsi Max campaign works, we have to rewind to the 1970s, the era of the original Cola Wars. Back then, Coca-Cola dominated the soft-drink industry. But Pepsi took a bold, data-driven risk the Pepsi Challenge. Between 1975 and 1984, Pepsi set up blind taste experiment in shopping centres and public spaces across the US. When participants sipped both drinks without seeing the brands, most chose Pepsi.

“Brand image usually is a more powerful sales stimulant than mere taste preference.”
(Wiley, Cola Wars Case Study, 1975–1984)

According to the historical analysis (Wiley, 2005):

• • Coca-Cola’s growth rate fell from 13 % annually to just 2 % between 1976–78.

• • Pepsi’s market share grew from 17.9 % to 21.8 % by 1984, narrowing the Coca-Cola’s company lead to only 2.9 %.

• • The campaign became legendary, Pepsi positioned itself as the people’s cola.

But here’s the fascinating part: even though Pepsi often won the blind tests, the Coca-Cola company continued to dominate overall sales.

Why? Because branding literally changed how people’s brains experienced taste.

When the red can appear, Coca-Cola “tasted better.”

That insight the psychology of perception would later inspire modern experiential campaigns like the Pepsi Max Taste Challenge.

Reigniting the Battle: Pepsi Max Taste Challenge 2019–2023

Starting to bring back this experiment to modern day, Pepsi started the massive campaign in 2019-2020. With the success of the previous campaign, after 2 years pandemic hiatus, the challenge returned in 2022–2023, bringing an interactive twist across the UK and Europe live booths, pop-up taste tests, and social activations under the new tagline: “Prove your tongue never lies.”

The campaign toured major UK and Europe turning high-street spaces into live tasting booths which giving consumers a chance to taste both drinks blindly, vote purely based on flavour, and shared their reactions on social media.

The Results: Taste Wins, Branding Dominates

Across multiple location, over 70% of participants preferred Pepsi Max over Coca-Cola in blind tests. But here’s the twist ask those same people in a store which cola they’d buy, and most still picked Coke. That’s not a failure for Pepsi. It’s a branding case study goldmine. For that, you can read next Case Study: How Coca-Cola Lost the Taste Test but Won the World. Read more here How Coca-Cola Lost the Taste Test but Won the World.

The results:

• • 70 % of participants preferred Pepsi Max in blind tests.

• • The campaign generated millions of social impressions across YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram.

• • Hashtags #PepsiMaxTasteChallenge and #ProveYourTongue trended for weeks in the UK.

• • Pepsi achieved a 10 % brand recall lift among 18–34-year-olds (Marketing Week, 2023).

But perhaps the most powerful result was intangible: Pepsi reframed the conversation.

No longer “Coke vs Pepsi.” It became “Taste vs Perception.”

This experiment reveals isn’t just consumer preference — it exposes how powerful brand associations override even physical senses. When people see Coke’s red, its nostalgic Christmas ads, or its cultural dominance in films and sports sponsorships, the brand memory activates. The taste becomes secondary.

This is where Pepsi’s marketing psychology plays its strongest card:

 “If people can’t tell the difference with their eyes closed, what are they really buying taste or perception?” Pepsi

The Strategy: Turning Data into a Brand Weapon

Pepsi Max transformed this experiment into an experience marketing campaign. This time, though, Pepsi wasn’t just collecting taste data — it was creating content, community, and conversation.

By merging live experience with digital virality, soft drink like Pepsi turned a 1970s experiment into a 2020s experiential case study.

Pepsi Max turned this psychology into a marketing masterstroke.

1. Physical Activation → Digital Amplification

• • Street-level taste booths created genuine engagement.

• • Content was instantly shared on social platforms talking about Pepsi news and showing Pepsi logo.

• • TikTok & Instagram reels captured spontaneous human reactions.

2. Across platforms, Pepsi leveraged the experiment into a social movement:

• • YouTube: 20-second teaser videos showing people’s shocked faces as they picked Pepsi.

• • Instagram & TikTok: Real reactions under hashtags #PepsiMaxTasteChallenge and #ProveYourTongue.

• • User-generated content: Consumers becoming part of the narrative.

3. The Science of “Truth Revelation”

• • The tagline “Prove your tongue never lies” positioned Pepsi as the truth-teller — implying that Coca-Cola’s dominance relies on illusion.

4. Data Storytelling

• • Instead of boasting, Pepsi showed evidence: 70 % preferred Pepsi in blind tests.

• • Data turned from a statistic into a story consumers wanted to share.

5. Challenger Brand Confidence

• • Pepsi knows it’s #2 in market share.

• • But it owns the narrative of rebellion and independence — appealing to consumers who pride themselves on choosing differently.

OTINGA Insight: “Big brands defend; challenger brands disrupt.”

The Role of Neuromarketing

The neuromarketing perspective (Steidl, 2018; Morin & Renvoise, 2018) explains why the campaign works so well. Our decisions are driven 95 % by the non-conscious mind (System 1). This part of the brain reacts instinctively to stimuli colour, emotion, familiarity rather than logic. When Coca-Cola activates emotional memory (System 1), it overpowers Pepsi’s logical argument (System 2). Pepsi’s campaign cleverly flipped this bias: by removing branding from the equation, it silenced System 1’s bias and gave sensory truth (System 2) a moment to shine. That’s neuromarketing in action, turning a psychological truth into a marketing moment.

The Neuromarketing Link: Brand Memory & Behaviour

Neuromarketing research shows that brands live inside our long-term emotional memory, not just in our awareness. Every Coca-Cola Christmas advert, film placement, or sports sponsorship strengthens that neural pathway creating brand habit. Pepsi’s taste challenge doesn’t just question flavour; it challenges habit loops.

OTINGA Insight:

“The most successful marketing doesn’t just fight competitors — it fights routine.”

Key Data Summary

Metric	Pepsi Max	Coca-Cola
Blind Test Preference	70 %	30 %
UK Market Share (2023, Statista)	23 %	46 %
Brand Recall (18–34 yrs)	+10 % after campaign	Stable
Social Hashtag Reach	80M+ views (TikTok/IG)	N/A

What Modern Marketers Can Learn

The Pepsi Max Taste Challenge is far more than a cola campaign it’s a behavioural marketing case study. Here are five takeaways for SMEs and marketers:

1. 1. Perception > Product – People often buy what feels right, not what tastes right.
   2. Proof Builds Credibility – Data-driven storytelling like Pepsi’s 70 % win builds authority.
   3. Experience Outperforms Advertising – Live activations build emotional memory far deeper than passive ads.
   4. Challenger Mindset Wins Hearts – Being the underdog gives you permission to be bold, honest, and human.
   5. Authenticity in Disruption – “Prove your tongue never lies” worked because it wasn’t just witty — it made people think

Conclusion

The Pepsi Max Taste Challenge proves a timeless truth: The best product doesn’t always win the most emotionally resonant brand does. Even when Pepsi wins on taste, Coca-Cola wins on meaning. But campaigns like this keep the conversation alive — reminding both brands and marketers that perception is power and experience builds memory.

For OTINGA, this campaign is a perfect case of how neuroscience, storytelling, and experiential marketing intersect. Because marketing today isn’t about shouting louder  it’s about showing proof that people can feel.

Download our free guide: How to Turn Experience into Brand Memory.” Learn how your business can design campaigns that speak to both the brain and the heart. Subscribe at www.otingamarketing.com

References 

Abadiha, F. (2018) Neuromarketing and Consumer Behaviour: Understanding the Primal Brain. Tehran: Jahangir Press.
BBC (2019) ‘Pepsi brings back the Taste Challenge.’ Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business (Accessed: 13 October 2025).
Marketing Week (2023) ‘How Pepsi Max reignited the taste test war.’ Available at: https://www.marketingweek.com/pepsi-max-taste-challenge (Accessed: 13 October 2025).
McClure, S.M. et al. (2004) ‘Neural correlates of behavioural preference for culturally familiar drinks,’ Journal of Consumer Research. Available at: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15501975 (Accessed: 13 October 2025).
Morin, P. and Renvoise, C. (2018) Neuromarketing: Understanding the Buy Buttons in Your Customer’s Brain. Boston: Wiley.
Statista (2023) ‘Global Soft Drink Market Share.’ Available at: https://www.statista.com/outlook/cmo/softdrinks/worldwide (Accessed: 13 October 2025).
Steidl, P. (2018) The Science of Branding: How Neuromarketing Shapes Perception. Sydney: Pearson.
Wiley (2005) “Cola Wars Continue: Coke and Pepsi in the 21st Century.” Available at: https://catalogimages.wiley.com/images/db/pdf/0471743216.ch3.pdf (Accessed: 13 October 2025).