On 2nd June, Britvic and PepsiCo will launch a brand new advertising campaign for sports drink Gatorade. The launch will be supported by a £5 million marketing campaign, which will comprise outdoor, press and online advertising as well as a PR campaign, targeting physically active consumers and professional athletes. The aim of the campaign is to highlight the unique scientific heritage of the world’s most popular sports drink, which is scientifically formulated to rehydrate, replenish and refuel athletes. |
There are a total of five executions, three of which feature striking split images of sportsmen, whose bodies are half athletes, half scientists, reinforcing the point that Gatorade is the most scientifically researched sports drink in the world. These ads will run in mainstream magazines and roadside 48-sheets.
The other two ad executions show a scene in a laboratory with a range of athletes from boxers and swimmers to cricketers and footballers, all in their appropriate sporting positions surrounded by laboratory apparatus, emphasising the link between science and sporting excellence. These adverts will appear in more specialised sports magazines and underground/cross tracks posters.
The online executions detail the proven benefits of Gatorade and offer interactive tools to help athletes improve their performance.
All of the executions have the headline, “The Science of Winning”, referring to the unparalleled years of research carried out at the Gatorade Sports Science Institute to develop the product.
The campaign also involves a heavyweight PR campaign, focusing on educating and supporting physically active consumers and professional athletes. This will include a presence at key sporting events across the UK in 2008, where there will be a number of GSSI experts and professional athletes on hand to give tips and advice on sports hydration and nutrition. One of the highlights of the campaign will be the Mazda London Triathlon, where Gatorade will be the official sports drinks sponsor and will carry out sweat tests on race participants.
Sports drinks is one of the fastest growing sub-categories in the UK with sales up 16% in 2007 to £154m (i). With its unique optimal scientific formulation that is now free from artificial colours, flavours, sweeteners and preservatives, Gatorade is expected to unlock considerable potential in the sports drink category.
Responding to consumers’ increasing preference for more natural products, the UK is the first global market to launch a new formulation of Gatorade, which contains no artificial colours, flavours or sweeteners and no preservatives. Available in two flavours, orange and lemon, it is designed to appeal to all physically active consumers who want to perform at their best.
Gatorade is available in single and four-pack 500ml PET bottles, with a sports cap and an ergonomically designed bottle to fit comfortably into the hand whilst exercising.
Britvic has an exclusive agreement with PepsiCo to produce and distribute Gatorade in the UK. Gatorade is available on-shelf and in vending machines in grocery, impulse and leisure outlets from May 2008.