WATCH: Coca-Cola’s guide to pronouncing SA names

Coca-Cola South Africa has launched an exciting summer campaign to embrace who South Africans are and celebrate the pride they share in their names while enjoying a refreshing Coca-Cola.

A name is significant and in a country that has 11 official languages, it becomes even more important to pronounce a person’s name the way that person says it. This summer the beverage maker wants to provide the platform that gives South Africans the opportunity to understand where people come from, the special stories that come with each name and what they’re all about.

“Coca-Cola is hoping that by drawing attention to the importance of saying a person’s name correctly, we can encourage South Africans to try, fail and take correction from the owner of that name in a way that’s not embarrassing over an ice-cold Coke this summer,” said Coca-Cola IMC Manager, Justine Cullinan.

The brand has levelled up by introducing an exciting conversation-starter for every occasion and has added a phonetic guide under the names on packs to encourage each South African to pronounce each other’s names. The guide is not a scientifically proven way of saying someone’s name, but rather an easy to understand suggestion on how a name is likely to be pronounced.

Michelle Cloete, marketing manager at Coca-Cola South Africa, said they were thrilled to bring back the personalised campaign in a new way.

“We continue to explore opportunities to provide platforms that will connect South Africans. We hope South Africans will embrace this initiative and engage with each other on the intrinsics of their names,” Cloete said.

Watch the video below for a guide to pronouncing unique SA names: