Our Judge & Jury takes a look at suspected foul play in advertising. This week soft drink brands Pepsi and SodaStream go head-to-head.
Opening address
Soft drink brands have been hit hard by the #fitspo trend of 2015. People are buying less of the liquid gold in an attempt to avoid polluting their bodies with extra spoonfuls of sugar (and getting diabetes). So how do you get fitness fanatics to drink more soda? Create dumbbells filled with the stuff, of course.
Verdict
Pepsi was the first beverage brand to test the concept, releasing poster ads for a 2kg dumbbell-shaped packaging for Pepsi Light. While the bottle was never mass produced, folks were not impressed by Pepsi’s attempt to align with a healthy lifestyle.
Sentence
It seems SodaStream caught on to the controversy, releasing a spoof ad for April Fool’s Day featuring Game of Thrones’ star Thor working out with dumbbells filled with sparkling water. Whether SodaStream is taking the piss out of Pepsi or has blatantly stolen their concept, the jury is still out.Either way, dumbbells filled with soda? We're not buying it.
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