I recently read an article on AdAge discussing the recent efforts of Coca-Cola to increase sales of Diet Coke.  According to the site, the company is revamping the Diet Coke and introducing new flavors in response to sagging sales.  One way that the company is doing this is by crafting a new look for the Diet Coke can.  Instead of the traditional red and black lettering printed on a silver can, there will be a vertical stripe running up the can, with the text embedded inside it.  Coke executives hope that this sleek new look will inspire a new generation of Diet Coke consumers.  Along with the fresh new look, there will be some risky new flavors, including Feisty Cherry, Ginger Lime, Twisted Mango and Zesty Blood Orange.  Marketing experts for Diet Coke hope that the addition of the new flavors and the sleek new can aesthetics will attract more customers and increase overall profits.

The value proposition of Diet Coke is that people can enjoy the great taste of Coca-Cola without all of the sugar. As the Baby Boomers were gaining years and pounds, Coca-Cola executives seen the need for a leaner drink, which is how Diet Coke came to be.  All of it is here in this article: The Extraordinary Story of How Diet Coke Came To Be. Diet Coke is seeking to provide a new taste experience with the addition of the four new flavors, however, they are emphasizing that the flavor of the original Diet Coke is still the same.

The main thing that I take away from this article is that the tastes of consumers are changing.  Whereas the "Baby Boomer" generation couldn't get enough of the stuff, it seems as though "Millennials"  don't enjoy Diet Coke as much.  It is important for a company to respond to the feed back of their customers, which is what Diet Coke is doing by offering a new variety of flavors in the hopes that they will appeal to a new generation of customers.

The addition of these new and exciting flavors of Diet Coke are what surprised me the most about this whole marketing campaign.  I thought it was interesting because the flavors are so unique compared with the classic taste of Coca-Cola original and Diet Coke.

I learned that just because you are the industry leader of soft drinks, and people around the world consume your product on a daily basis, it does not give you the right to avoid innovation.  I think it is important that they introduced new flavors of Diet Coke, and I'm interested to see whether or not they catch on.