Flat 7Up: A Revolution in the Making 

7UP recently came up with a game-changer; a flat version of the drink. Here I look at why I believe its just the tip of the iceberg.
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Ha, I giggled and laughed and even was a little fooled by some of the April Fool announcements this year. But the one that got me most excited to know it was real was the launch of the 7Up Flat in Ireland. 

My oh my! I have been waiting for this day and am tempted to fly over the pond immediately to pick up my stash. 

A start of a new fizzy pop category; fizzy, non-fizzy drinks

I’m a big fan and guilty of being a bottle shaker for most of my life. If I were to make a prediction, we would see this range expand across other brands in the portfolio and into other markets. It’s the start of something big! 

According to the 7UP science, it took around 7 hours to flatten a bottle through vigorous shaking. I’m convinced bartenders up and down the land would have competed for the fastest time! 

Now, of course, the competition is no more since you can buy this gem of an idea in all bottle sizes throughout the Republic. 

Customer feedback 

I’m quite surprised it took so long and I’ve no doubt it’s the tip of the iceberg for a new category of non-fizzy, fizzy drinks! 

Underlying all the fanfare about the flat drink is some exciting efforts in customer understanding. 

Baked in behaviour

Fizzy pop dominated our supermarket shelves and at home for as long as I can remember. 

The discovery process for a new drink would be to conduct multiple taste tests. Line up 100s of variants and see which people (often blindfolded) like the best.

However, 7UP changed the test from taste to observation in this instance. They would have looked at ethnographic research techniques as well as deployed social media listening to recognise a pattern of feedback. 

It wasn’t about the taste but related to the action many customers would instantly do after purchasing a bottle. Shake, boil, whisk and stir. 

Change the context; get a different answer

It’s a great example of changing the testing and research process that led to a radical new way to serve up the drink. 

It reminds me of the famous Einstein quote, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results”. 

We are often, as marketers looking for new and novel insights. However, tend to use the same set of tools we have always used. And then wonder why we come up with the same answer. 

Changing the tools and methodology and looking at the situation with a different lens is required to come up with an entirely different answer. 

I think 7UP have done a great job here and I look forward to watching this space with anticipation and getting over to Ireland to give this new product a try.

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