Coca-Cola gets Natasha Bedingfield to "Shake Up Christmas" for Global Holiday Campaign

Coca-Cola is going global for the holidays again this year, this time with the help of international pop star Natasha Bedingfield. As part of a fully integrated marketing campaign, Bedingfield is putting her unique spin on the holiday anthem "Shake Up Christmas," originally popularized last year by the Grammy ® Award-winning band Train. Not just through her inspiring vocals, but through her amazing flair for languages. Bedingfield has recorded the song in a remarkable six languages, reflecting the truly global tradition of coming together at this special time of year, a key message of the Coca-Cola holiday campaign.

In addition to launching Bedingfield's version of "Shake Up Christmas," Coca-Cola is introducing new television spots, online and mobile experiences, in-store promotions and packaging. The campaign, which is an extension of the global marketing platform "Open Happiness" is set to launch this month in over 90 countries across the globe.

Leveraging the success of the 2010 holiday campaign, Coca-Cola revisits the world inside Santa Claus' snow globe where people who are bogged down by their regular day-to-day activities are brought together -- over a memorable holiday tune, a special meal, or a shared bottle of Coca-Cola -- to celebrate the holidays and enjoy simple moments of happiness.

The digital campaign has evolved to include new robust mobile initiatives including an application to create and share personalized Christmas greetings by cropping a photo into a dance performance to "Shake Up Christmas," a Facebook gaming application and gifting of mobile assets, such as customized Christmas wallpaper and ringtones.

"The holidays, in particular, are a time when people take pleasure in coming together and honoring tradition," said Shay Drohan, SVP, Sparkling Brands, The Coca-Cola Company. "Last year, we added the snow globe to our lexicon of iconic holiday images that includes Santa Claus and the Coca-Cola Holiday Caravan trucks. This year, we continue the tradition of holiday storytelling, but we've refreshed the campaign with new creative and Natasha Bedingfield's unparalleled talent."

"I feel like this campaign speaks to me personally, since my career often takes me out on the road, which makes me cherish those precious moments with friends and family that much more," explained Natasha Bedingfield. "When we gather for the holidays, one of our favorite traditions is singing holiday songs, so it's really meaningful for me to perform a song that friends and families the world over can enjoy together."

Bedingfield's uplifting version of "Shake Up Christmas" accompanies two new television commercials, created in partnership with McCann Spain and through a collaboration of Coca-Cola marketing teams in Germany and Mexico along with the global marketing team.

The first spot opens with vignettes of people who are alone and feel disconnected from shared holiday celebrations: a piano player who performs solo for tables of holiday revelers who are enjoying each other's company at a restaurant, a father who is stuck working late at the office, a solitary young worker who is hanging holiday decorations on the side of a building. Santa Claus, while on his break enjoying a Coca-Cola in his workshop, begins tilting the snow globe inside which these three men all exist. The Coca-Cola Holiday Caravan delivery trucks are sent into action, and the three men begin rolling to their new destinations to be reunited with their loved ones. A second spot focuses on two boys, who are similarly brought together through the gentle tilts of Santa's snow globe to play soccer with one another.