It's all about giving giving digital entrepreneurs in the UK and the rest of Europe here the opportunity to get their ideas developed in the big wide world, with the help of Pepsico
Launched successfully in the United States last June, the company is now expanding the programme ‘PepsiCo10’ across the Atlantic.
The goal is to identify up to 10 promising companies and give them the opportunity to work with PepsiCo in the U.K. to deliver pilots of their technologies, whilst receiving the support and guidance from industry-leading mentors. Keen readers will see that at the top of the "interest list" below is social media! PepsiCo is partnering on the programme with global venture capital firm Highland Capital Partners. Highland Capital Partners, OMD and Weber Shandwick will continue to serve as advisers to PepsiCo throughout the programme. To enter, emerging technology companies must have a ‘ready-to-go’ product that fits in one of the following five categories: social media; mobile marketing; place based technology; digital video; and gaming or learning platforms. Proposals will be evaluated on their ability to impact PepsiCo’s brands and/or further PepsiCo’s corporate Performance with Purpose priorities: health and wellness, environmental sustainability and talent development. Bonin Bough, PepsiCo’s Global Director of Digital and Social Media said, “We had a fantastic response to the inaugural PepsiCo10 last year, with more than 400 innovative entries and we are excited to be rolling out the initiative across Europe.” Selected applicants will undergo a series of rigorous assessments, and a subset will be invited to submit video presentations, which will be judged by the partners, alongside senior brand representatives from PepsiCo brands Pepsi, Walkers, Tropicana and Quaker. Ian Ellington, General Manager for Walkers Crisps, which will benefit from the PepsiCo10 technologies said, “There is a huge appetite amongst consumers for new and exciting social media technologies . For us as a business, digital is a dynamic and increasingly important area for innovation. "We’ve already used digital and social media to great success in our past campaigns, such as Walkers’ Do Us A Flavour campaign and we now look forward to harnessing the emerging tech and start-up landscape and cultivating the next generation of digital pioneers.” In the US winners have included:Tongal, a video sharing platform that is currently sourcing animation video for the Brisk Tea brand;
BreakOut Band, a collaboration music platform that worked with Pepsi MAX to Evil Genius Designs, a mobile gaming platform with which PepsiCo has worked to develop a virtual reality video game featuring products across the PepsiCo portfolio, and
Evil Genius Designs, a mobile gaming platform with which PepsiCo has worked to develop a virtual reality video game featuring products across the PepsiCo portfolio. Would-be applicants can find out more about the programme here and have until July 15 to apply .
