Amanda Ainsworth of San Diego, California, wanted to do something positive in her community and help ease the burdens of struggling low-income families around her. So she developed a program called "Gardens of Gratitude," which provides impoverished families and individuals with locally-grown and sustainable food. The project helps both the families and the environment, but Ainsworth didn’t have the money to get it started by herself – so she submitted it to the Pepsi Refresh Project, where it is currently ranked No. 1 to receive a $5,000 grant that would cover start-up costs and promotional materials.
The popular Pepsi Refresh Project, which runs a series of television spots asking viewers to "refresh everything" by voting for grant recipients on the program’s website, has more than 1,000 would-be philanthropists clamoring for grant money to get their projects off the ground. With $1,300,000 to give away every month, Pepsi is offering grants of $5,000, $25,000, $50,000 and $250,000 to the two most popular ideas in each denomination.
The program is so popular, in fact, that PepsiCo has announced its intention to expand the Refresh Project to Europe, Asia and Latin America.
The Refresh Project has been something of a shift from Pepsi’s traditional advertising campaigns. For example, the company declined to run a spot in last season’s Superbowl – the single most expensive venue for television advertising and a forum in which Pepsi has been a staple for decades – in favor of focusing on its Refresh Project. Though it has no doubt improved brand perception, Ana Maria Irazabal, marketing director for Pepsi, couldn’t say how much it has helped revenue. Whether or not the project has brought money to the company seems to be a secondary focus, as Pepsi redoubles its commitment to helping nonprofits get a foothold in their communities.
The Refresh Project is "definitely something that’s becoming viral," Irazabal told the Associated Press.
She added that the company may be returning to run a new spot during the Superbowl this year, too.