Pepsi To Fund Projects; Consumers To Pick Winners

EMILY FREDRIX

NEW YORK (AP) — PepsiCo Inc., looking to freshen up the image of its namesake soda, is pledging to pay at least $20 million for projects people create to "refresh" their communities.

The soft drink maker's "Pepsi Refresh Project" will be used throughout next year to market Pepsi soft drinks, including Diet Pepsi and Pepsi Max, and will have a heavy social media presence as consumers list their projects online and vote on the winners.

The company is announcing the effort on Tuesday with ads in the Wall Street Journal and USA Today. The effort will fund thousands of projects and Pepsi said based on interest from its retail partners and other companies, it's likely other businesses will pledge their own money, too.

For the past year, the Pepsi brand has been marketed with its "Refresh everything" mantra, where the brand asks people to talk about ways to change their world. Now the brand is going further.

"We feel like it's something so different that it's going to connect with our consumers on so many different levels and really inspire people in very different ways," said Jill Beraud, chief marketing officer of PepsiCo Americas Beverages, the division of the company that oversees Pepsi brands.