Can't Live Without It

Today Coca-Cola Co. breaks a new TV, print, and outdoor campaign for Dasani water. The new campaign introduces a new tagline, "Can't live without it."

Adweek's sources say that Dasani's positioning as a healthful refreshment remains unchanged in the new campaign. But the NYTimes article claims that the estimated budget of $20 million is being used to create a sexier image, and bring soft-drink marketing tactics into an increasingly competitive fray.

The New York Times reports that "in one Dasani commercial, a man and woman frolic in an elevator as a security camera captures the action, but they turn out to be husband and wife. In another spot, a woman spends a night out on the town with an extremely attractive man, then heads home where she gets undressed and jumps into bed — with her teddy bear."

The goal is to borrow the trappings of the emotionally evocative lifestyle advertising used typically in soft-drink campaigns, rather than the more rational tack traditionally taken to sell bottled water, which focuses on product benefits like purity and refreshment.

"People may not immediately say, `That's water advertising,' because there are no spas, babbling brooks or yoga," said Kellam Mattie, senior brand manager for Dasani at the Coca-Cola North American division in Atlanta. "But they'll come to say, `This is what water advertising can be.' "

Adland® is supported by your donations alone. You can help us out by buying us a Ko-Fi coffee.
Anonymous Adgrunt's picture
comment_node_story
Files must be less than 1 MB.
Allowed file types: jpg jpeg gif png wav avi mpeg mpg mov rm flv wmv 3gp mp4 m4v.
anonymous's picture

I guess I am just unhip or old fashioned, but I find the new Dasani ads to be disturbing, especially the one that ends with the girl and the teddy bear. It's not the story lines that I find objectionable. I am troubled by the menacing-sounding male voice that constantly intones, "It's not done till *I* say it's over". I guess this is some popular rap song that I have never heard. (Give me Aretha Franklin!) I find the message threatening, frightening. I picture some thug with an AK 47 wanting me to buy this water or he will blow my brains out. I also don't see ANY connection to water. From now on, I will make it a point NOT to drink Dasani.

Lynn Wilson
Maddalena1@aol.com

libbillau's picture

They've been running this spot again during the NCAA tournament (nightclubbing girl, teddy bear)... But they changed the threatening rap music, now it's a Curtis-Mayfieldish disco-soul tune instead. Does anyone know the name?

Dabitch's picture

Hmmm - can't even guess as I haven't seen it with the new music yet, just wanted to say that the old music with the creepy "It aint over...til I say it's over" songlyric is here for super adgrunts.
Anyone else seen, or rather heard, the new soundtrack one?