So when I was in Melbourne last year, the guys were also working on a brand campaign for Schweppes drinks.
[That’s the entire range of Schweppes drinks, including the pink [grapefruit], red [raspberry], green [lime], orange [orange], off-white [ginger beer], white coloured [lemonade/tonic] variants]
This category is always hard because it’s so easy to slip into parity type of ideas – and it was made doubly difficult because Schweppes wanted the campaign to continue with an idea they’d had for years called Schweppervescence.
One of the big problems was that whenever someone was asked what they thought Schweppervescence meant, there would be a different answer – so the first task was to try and get some sort of consistency of opinion.
After numerous backwards and forwards discussions [including the dismissal of any product ‘benefit’ that wasn’t relevant across the whole brand range] what everyone agreed was that this ‘idea’ was based around feelings – especially things like Optimisim, Innocence, Simplicity, Freedom and Refreshment – so the challenge was to develop a way that would allow these to come to the fore but in an interesting, relevant and emotional way.
Now the thing is, ‘refreshment’ is an attribute many brands try and own/claim [especially beverage brands] so the starting point was to find out what people actually thought this word meant – and what came out was very interesting.
To cut a very long story short, the best way to describe what people regard as real refreshment is ‘a moment of explosive impact’.
It’s not slow, it’s fast.
It’s not passive, it’s active.
It’s not controlled, it’s alive.
In essence, you are consumed by it – your senses are overwhelmed – and you are left feeling very, very alive, even if that sensation only lasts a second.
So with all that [there’s a whole lot more but I can’t be arsed to write about the connection between Australian summers, school holidays, infectious experiences, simple pleasures, swimming pools and the sensation you get when bubbles touch the gap between your top lip and nose] an idea was created that aims to help associate Schweppes with a ‘feeling’ rather than the usual ‘lifestyle’ bollocks that most beverage brands try and flog.
OK, so now I’ve got all that out the way, let me introduce you to Schweppervescence [the cinema cut no less, ha!]
Yes I admit it’s abit Fallonesque, plus it’s just a TV ad [though it’s the start of many things they’re going to be doing supposidly] and refreshment is condition of entry [but at least it’s relevant, not like Drum Playing Gorilla’s] however there’s a genuine insight driving it, the emotion is genuine and not contrived [like some of the rubbish Coke do in Oz] and the execution is beautiful and interesting so hopefully it will start to help differentiate Schweppes from their competitive set, make them be seen as a major brand again and then more pragmatic work [and positioning] can follow.
Anyway I don’t give a fuck if you don’t like it [I know Age in particular, HATES IT, ha] – I love it – especially when you compare it to the bollocks Schweppes had been putting out recently – so congrats to all involved, especially Ben, Kate and Karen who fought like madfolk to get it past the plethora of obstacles continually put in their way.