In-depth: Summer, IPL and elections – Perfect plot of cold drink brands

Delhi: With catchy jingles and visually striking, celebrity-filled commercials, cold drink brands in India are pulling out all the stops to elevate their marketing endeavours, especially with the summer season aligning with the highly anticipated IPL 2024 cricket league and the general elections.

Mukesh Vij, Founder of Hashtag Orange, said, “The early onset of summer is already tipping the scales in their favour with an increasing consumer demand for soft drinks. Moreover, both IPL and general elections are events that ignite numerous conversations across the country. Cold drink brands are already leveraging the immense power of these events to connect with a wider audience and drive engagement and sales.” 

However, leading brand consultants and advertising experts in India suggest that cold drink brands explore avenues beyond traditional TV commercials. They recommend leveraging experiential marketing, riding the e-commerce wave, and embracing digital marketing strategies.

Lloyd Mathias, currently a business strategist and former EVP & Category Director, Beverages, India & South Asia, PepsiCo (1994-2005), believes that relying solely on television is outdated. He told BestMediaInfo.com, “To target the youth, cold drink brands have shifted their focus towards experiential marketing and social media tactics.”

He said, “Experiential marketing helps attract the consumer at the point of consumption, be it through doing activations at physical stores or the places where young people hang out.”

Niket Kumar, Founder of Unconventional, instead of trying hard to present themselves as ‘cool’, soft drink brands need to go deeper into digital platforms and social media in general. 

He explained, “Cold drink brands need to have ideas that can lend to creating interactive and/or shareable content. Brands in this category can start a trend which can organically spread…chai pee lo, like a wow, moye moye? They can use gamification to enhance engagement, and use personalisation and customisation to offer unique experiences.” 

Mathias added that influencer marketing has increasingly become an important tactic for cold drink brands with youth spending more and more time on social media. 

Nonetheless, Mukesh Vij emphasized the enduring relevance of TV in the media mix. “TV will always remain an important part of the media mix, further amplifying the brand message and driving the brand’s presence to a wider audience. This combination of digital and traditional media will ensure comprehensive coverage and reinforce the brand’s visibility across various touchpoints, ultimately enhancing brand recall and engagement,” he said.

In the good old days, cola brands from the house of The Coca-Cola Company and PepsiCo used to release campaigns in which they took a jab at each other. These campaign wars used to be highly competitive yet they were carried out in a sporting manner.

However, Kumar of Unconventional, believes that the war is over but the battles are far from it. 

He said, “The era of outright cola wars in advertising has simmered down, but the battles will continue, albeit on different fronts. I see a huge opportunity there, as some of these battles will prove to be more pivotal than the “great” war itself. Instead of relentlessly focusing on outshining competitors with flashy campaigns, marketers may want to leverage technology and digital mediums to focus on significant arenas such as innovation, sustainability, and consumer trust/advocacy building.”

Samit Sinha, Founder and Managing partner, Alchemist Brand Consulting, stated that, between now and in June when the country is gripped by election fever, more pertinently there will be millions of young Indians who will be eligible to vote for the first time and this could be an interesting opportunity for soft drink brands to increase their salience and enhance engagement with consumers. 
Mukesh Vij, Founder of Hashtag Orange, noted that cold drink brands intensify marketing efforts in summer to capitalise on rising demand. "They allocate a significant portion of their budgets to advertising campaigns, aiming to capture consumer attention and boost sales," he explained. 

A look at cold drink brands’ mainline ads for this summer

According to Sinha of Alchemist Brand Consulting, within each sub-category of carbonated beverages, like colas, lime and lemon drinks, orange-flavoured drinks etc. there is no tangible differentiation. Therefore brands have no options but to focus on the intangibles and attempt to establish emotional benefits. “And over time the successful soft drink brands have done just that, which has helped them become the powerful brands that they are today,” he added.

Coca-Cola’s Charged by Thums Up has unveiled its new campaign "Mind Charged, Body Charged," featuring Aamir Khan, who reunited with the Coca-Cola family after 17 years and Darsheel Safary. The brand has strategically secured sponsorship for the IPL, leveraging on-ground, TV, and digital platforms to bolster its presence.

Aamir is shown portraying various avatars throughout the film in larger-than-life situations. The creative is meant to show how Charged acts as the enabler to accomplish impossible, big achievements which require both physical agility & mental alertness.

Thums Up has announced its action-packed Toofani campaign, “Soft Kya Jaane Toofan ka Swaad” featuring the talented actor and Kannada sensation, Kichcha Sudeep. The campaign has retained Thums Up’s narrative of "Soft Nahin, Toofan" while introducing a new tagline, "Soft Kya Jaane Toofan ka Swaad," capturing the brand’s core proposition of strong taste along with its core value of boldly embracing the thrill of challenges.

Not just IPL, Coca-Cola has already launched an ICC World Cup-specific campaign for Thums Up, featuring Yuvraj Singh and Virender Sehwag. Also the official beverage partner of the ICC T20 World Cup, The Coca-Cola Company has launched a contest as part of the  ’World Cup ka Toofani Tour’ campaign, where it will give a chance to consumers to win a trip to the ICC T20 World Cup in the West Indies by flying via Thums Up branded exclusive chartered plane.

Meanwhile, Pepsi's iconic 90s tagline, 'Yeh Dil Maange More’ with the actor Ranveer Singh triumphantly returned to the limelight, sparking waves of nostalgia and excitement across social media. With influencers like Zakir Khan adding fuel to the fire, Pepsi's resurgence takes centre stage in the digital realm. 

Mathias said, ‘Ye Dil Mange More’ was possibly among the most popular Indian soft drink advertising lines ever. Bringing the tagline back is a good strategy for Pepsi. Plus, they have launched it simultaneously with their new logo. For me, it has been the most exciting campaign so far this year. It’s extremely catchy, brings nostalgia through tagline and has the celebrity power of Ranveer Singh.”

Yeh Dil Maange More! is an advertising slogan, originally coined for Pepsi at JWT by Anuja Chauhan in 1998. It combines Hindi and English, literally meaning "This Heart Desires More," which later became a popular slogan. The slogan and its derivatives have been used in multiple contexts in India. The worldwide Pepsi commercial featuring the song, Ask for More, written by Janet Jackson was released in November 2007.

Mountain Dew's latest summer campaign, led by brand ambassador Hrithik Roshan, tells a tale of friendship and courage, resonating with the adventurous spirit of its target audience. 

In line with its commitment to refresh audiences throughout summer, 7UP, the clear refreshing drink from the house of PepsiCo, has teamed up with brand ambassadors, Rashmika Mandanna and Anirudh Ravichander to launch an all-new campaign that establishes 7UP as the ultimate companion for spicy food enthusiasts across South India. The campaign titled, ‘Kaara Saarama Eat, 7UP Repeat’ translates through a pop-cultural context to, ‘Eat Spicy Food – Drink 7UP – Repeat’ in that order. 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by 7UP India (@7upindia)

Rahul Jauhari, Managing partner, Flibbr Consulting highlighted the growing focus of cold drink brands on the regional languages front, beyond superficially doing a ‘language’ version of an ad. 

He said, “The 7UP campaign for south markets not only used regionally relevant celebrities but was created around a regional insight. I would think, in a country as wide as ours, with such variance in culture and language, going insightfully regional is one way.”

For its mango cold drink brand Slice, PepsiCo unveiled the first-ever campaign featuring its newly appointed brand ambassador and Lady Superstar, Nayanthara. The campaign, 'Ras Aisa Ki Bas Na Chalega’ aims to solidify Slice's position as the ultimate companion for fulfilling insatiable mango cravings

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by N A Y A N T H A R A (@nayanthara)

Parle Agro’s Appy Fizz has launched its summer campaign featuring actor Kriti Sanon. The campaign highlights Gen-Z’s desire for an elevated experience in every moment, triggered by the pop of an Appy Fizz. The ‘Get Fizz’ tagline and the catchy phrase, “Party mein fizz jagade,” captures the essence of the brand's promise to add life and energy to any moment, occasion or celebration offering a glimpse of what it is like to ‘Feel the Fizz’.

The TVC was launched at the start of the IPL season, along with a rollout on national TV channels and the digital medium. The brand will also implement an aggressive outdoor strategy as well as deploy in-store advertising at Kirana stores to reach consumers at every touchpoint.

Reliance Consumer Products’ cold drink Campa has become the official sponsor for BCCI’s 48 matches between 2024-2026. As per reports, Campa has shelled out Rs 48 crore for the sponsorship.

Is the star power enough for cold drink brands?

For long, cold drink brands have relied on the star power in their ads. Highlighting the rationale behind the star-studded nature of cold drink brand advertisements, Mathias elucidated that while celebrity presence isn't obligatory, their inclusion significantly enhances brand impact and recall.

He elaborated, stating, "Cold drink brands typically fall within the non-essential and impulse purchase spectrum. Engaging celebrities help amplify brand visibility and resonance."

On the other hand, Kumar suggested it's time some categories ditch celebrities which seem to have become crutches. He commented, “While celebrities may add glitz and glam to ads, relying on them often feels like taking the easy way out or worse, compensating for creative bankruptcy. One needs to try and break free from the same old formulaic advertising and pave the way for genuine connections with the audience. I strongly feel it’s time to rebel against the status quo and embrace a more authentic marketing approach.”

Mathias projected Pepsi and Coke's continued dominance in the market for the foreseeable future. Nonetheless, he noted that Campa, under the umbrella of Reliance, holds promise to pose formidable competition to Pepsi and Coke down the line.

"Maintaining a creative edge by introducing innovative themes and concepts that resonate with the new generation will be a paramount challenge for cold drink brands," remarked Mathias.

As per Sinha, after decades of uninterrupted growth, the biggest challenge faced by the category is the rising health consciousness amongst consumers who are rejecting these beverages for healthier alternatives. “While diet or sugar-free or fruit-based variants are helping allay some of the concerns to an extent, prospects look quite daunting,” he said.
As summer unfolds, cold drink brands engage in a battle for supremacy, fueled by innovation, nostalgia, and consumer satisfaction. The evolving marketing landscape demands a blend of traditional and digital strategies to resonate with diverse audiences and maintain brand relevance. Only time will reveal which brand emerges victorious in quenching the thirst of millions nationwide.