CPG brands and supermarket retailers understand there's nothing that gets consumer trial and acceptance of new products like good, old-fashioned sampling. So as Pepsi is attempting once again to grow the U.S. market for mid-calorie sodas with a new sub-brand, Pepsi Next, it's time to put the reliable sampling technique to massive use.

In fact, sampling will be a centerpiece of the campaign, "Drink it to believe it," that Pepsi has launched behind Next, the product it tested last year and will begin rolling out nationally to retailers on March 26. Walmart stores will be a key partner for the launch as Pepsi samples Next at 800 Walmart Supercenters across the country. Pepsi also plans to continue a national sampling program for Next in more than 40 cities nationwide through August.Continue reading...

When the news came out of the state of California a year ago that the stuff that makes your cola beverage brown has been linked to cancer, there were a number of consumers that likely didn’t put their change into the vending machine that day.

The amount of that compound (4-methylimidazole, or 4-MEI) in soda would cause the state to need to put warning labels on all of its cans, NPR reports. This, in turn, led to the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) to lobby the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to “ban ammonia-sulfite caramel color,” according to NPR. Coke Clear, anyone?

While the cola companies and caramel manufacturers are obviously stating that there is no validity to these claims, the FDA is also chiming in that this could be much ado about not much. In any event, Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, which account for almost 90% of the U.S. soda market, have tweaked their formulas in compliance with the Californian law — averting the need to add a cancer warning label.Continue reading...

Two years ago, Americans were throwing away 2.5 million plastic bottles every hour, according to SmartPlanet.com.

Coca-Cola, which is responsible for a good number of the beverage bottles floating around America, is trying to make its containers more environmentally friendly — as is its chief rival, PepsiCo, which is promoting its plant-based PET bottle.

The latest volley in the green bottle rivalry: Coke's marketers are touring college campuses, including visiting Alabama’s Samford University and other colleges in the South to “create awareness for their PlantBottle packaging initiative,” according to the Samford Crimson.

The college marketing tour will help Coke test consumer preferences among the all-important 18-24 demo for its eco-friendly bottles in Atlanta, Birmingham, and Nashville in three different beverage sizes: 12.5, 16, and 20 ounces.Continue reading...

Coke and Pepsi have irked the United Arab Emirates’ Ministry of Economy to the extend that the country has kicked their soda cans from local store shelves, according to GulfNews.com.

At issue: UAE officials claim that the two cola companies reduced the size of their cans that sell for 1.50 Dirham (41 cents) and continued charging the same amount without informing consumers, which the UAE's consumer watchdogs sees as tantamount to "consumer fraud."Continue reading...

Toyota teams with Marvel for a Yaris viral video, above.

Ford hooks up with the 2012 Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue for product placement.

The king(size) Snickers bar is dead. Make way for the fun size.

Below: Coke and ScarJo, Will Ferrell, Jeremy Linsanity and more.Continue reading...

Major sporting events and major brands go hand in hand, and marketers can't get started early enough with pre-event promotions. 

Witness the recent Super Bowl. An unprecedented number of Super Bowl ads appeared prior to the Super Bowl, as online unveilings appeared via YouTube and on promotional websites. Some pundits questioned the wisdom of such pre-game publicity, wondering if it simply undermined advertising effectiveness.

But that isn't stopping big brands from doing it again, this time in advance of the 2012 Summer Olympics to be held in London. Coca-Cola, a major Super Bowl advertiser, has gone public with its "Move to the Beat" London 2012 Olympics campaign that was announced in September.Continue reading...

With all the pontificating about the performance of traditional PepsiCo beverage brands such as Pepsi, it's easy to lose sight of a bright spot shining forth from the company's voluminous beverage portfolio, and one emanating from its controversial stable of better-for-you products as well: Trop50.

The low-calorie juice brand, sweetened with stevia and marketed in a campaign featuring 30 Rock's Jane Krakowski that originated in Canada, is headed to $300 million a year in sales after only three years on the market — a pittance, revenue-wise, compared with conventional orange juice, where PepsiCo's Tropicana brand is one of the leaders. But it's been an impressive ramp-up for a new product in a mature segment where all sorts of things have been tried before.

"We went after a segment who love the goodness of juice without also limiting calorie consumption," Kate Keller, Trop50's director of marketing, told brandchannel. "And they don't want to sacrifice the great taste of juice. They're getting the goodness of juice and taste and sugar at half the sugar and calories — it's pretty simple for them."Continue reading...

BMW recalls SUVs that could roll away when parked.

Callaway Golf launches Las Vegas stunt promotion.

Caterpillar voices optimism about global economy and earnings.

Cold Stone Creamery gets sued by franchisees.

Eastman buys specialty-chemical peer Solutia.

Ener1 files for bankruptcy.

Ford is nicked by European losses.

Google spent $2 billion on acquisitions in 2011.Continue reading...