Why Olipop taps key cultural moments for its marketing strategy
When better-for-you soda brand Olipop launched a marketing blitz in Target’s hometown of Minneapolis, Minnesota, it made a crucial change to its tagline on the billboards spotted around the city.
“We talk about Olipop as ‘a new kind of soda,'” said vp of brand marketing Meghan Shookman. “In Minneapolis, you saw ‘a new kind of pop.’”
That was one of the many strategies Shookman shared on the first day of the Modern Retail Marketing Summit held in Santa Barbara this week. Other marketing pros from brands like Kopari, AG1 and Tailored Brand also shared their frank insights into how they deploy big campaigns, among other topics like generative AI, customer experience and audience targeting.
But one theme that emerged was how brands take advantage of big cultural or calendar moments to reach customers.
Shookman, in particular, spoke about how and when it decides to deploy a 360-degree marketing campaign as it angles to compete in areas where Big Soda has traditionally reigned supreme. Fresh off the launch of its newest flavor, Ridge Rush, as well as partnerships with the LA Clippers and Mattel for Barbie’s 65th Anniversary, Shookman confirmed that Olipop is on track to hit $500 million in sales this year and is profitable.
“Our brand has had a radical growth period,” she said.
To further this growth, Olipop this year undertook its biggest out-of-home campaign to date. It launched a five-city marketing blitz, including Minneapolis, that had regionally-specific takes. In Miami, it focused its campaign on the activities to do before tourists hit town for spring break. In Washington, D.C., it brought influencers to the Washington Nationals home opener.
She said the campaign worked because there were multiple channels operating at the same time. “It was the power of having the 360-effect, of having the right media, influencer and social all connected and signing the same time, which we really hadn’t been great at in the past,” she said. “This was our first opportunity to really orchestrate everything together.”
Olipop often leans on nostalgia and familiarity in its marketing, given that its sodas are inspired by ubiquitous flavors like cola, root beer or grape soda. Recently, the brand took a product-led approach as it launched its newest flavor, Ridge Rush, a green citrusy soda that stands to resonate with fans of another neon bubbly drink with a geographic name. Ahead of announcing the flavor, Olipop launched a campaign to give away 25,000 cans of its top secret flavor to college students as they headed back to campus. It ended up being their biggest giveaway ever, Shookman said.
“We received almost 5,000 applications for the soda,” Shookman said.
Other big moments of awareness Olipop has tapped included Dry January, where it partnered with Instacart for free delivery of its product. And in June, it launched a limited edition Peaches & Cream soda in a partnership with Mattel for Barbie’s 65th Anniversary.
Shookman said that balancing big marketing campaigns as the brand grows comes down to choosing key, culturally relevant moments that highlight the brand in multiple ways.
“You’re not going to be able to be 360 all 365 days,” she said.
Other brands in attendance at the Summit also shared their approach to big campaigns. Beauty and skin care brand Kopari, for example, brought influencers on a trip to celebrate the launch of its sunscreen product — which led to a series of workshops with an influencer partner around building confidence.
Matt Repicky, chief brands officer of Men’s Wearhouse owner Tailored Brands, shared the retailer’s approach to prom as one of its biggest events of the year. In the past, that has involved themed campaigns like an old-school diner. But this year, Repicky said the company will lean into creator-led strategies. This will allow them to tap today’s high schoolers who may already be familiar with the legacy brand, Repicky said, thanks to former spokesman George Zimmer’s tagline, “You’re gonna like the way you look.”
Repicky said the switch from a brand-led campaign to a creator-led one might be uncomfortable, but it’s usually worth the stretch. “We’re baked into the zeitgeist and I want to take advantage of that,” he said.
Similarly, Shookman from Olipop said the brand is cautious about spending its dollars where it might not need to. “We’re going to win with creativity, not with dollars,” she said. “Customers are flocking to us. It’s just about finding them and getting them to us. Creativity wins the day.”