Q: In an AJC story, PepsiCo was referred to as "Big Blue." I always thought that "Big Blue" was the nickname of IBM. Are both corporations nicknamed "Big Blue"? -- Lance DeLoach, Thomaston
A: IBM has traditionally had the nickname. However, in beverage circles, Pepsi is sometimes referred to as "Big Blue" or just "Blue," said Tim Halloran, a marketing instructor at Emory University's Goizueta Business School. One factor is the amount of blue in Pepsi's logo. A more important factor, he said, is that Coke often is referred to as "Big Red," due to the "Coke Red" color that has always been part of its heritage. It has become corporate shorthand to sometimes refer to Pepsi as "Big Blue" or "Blue" to Coke's "Red."