- Doritos recently launched limited edition coffee flavour chips
- This is part of a bold new marketing pivot, including the world’s first AI augmented snack
- As F&B brands vye for a share of the retail space, they’re exploring daring and interactive marketing to capture new markets
In a surprising marketing pivot, PepsiCo’s Doritos brand recently unveiled a limited batch of coffee-flavoured chips, sparking intrigue and generating buzz among consumers.
This unconventional move reflects Doritos’ strategic shift towards targeting Gen Z consumers through innovative and experimental product offerings. The idea is to offer consumers a new way to get their “coffee fix”, but it’s mainly an attention-grabbing move.
The release of coffee-flavoured Doritos, not intended for sale but instead distributed through an Instagram giveaway, exemplifies the brand’s bold and risk-taking approach to product development.
“Dorito’s is a PepsiCo brand, which means that it can afford to innovate when it comes to marketing and product testing,” says Stephen Lepitak, Editorial Director at Creative Salon Worldwide.
“It’s very tuned into capturing the attention of gamers and TV audiences with ‘out there’ ad ideas, and more recently tech innovation.”
This targeted initiative forms part of a wider wave of other unconventional releases and features that aim to capture the attention of a younger, more adventurous demographic through unique flavour combinations and engaging marketing tactics.
They also use augmented reality, Snapchat, and collaborations with TikTok influencers, launching challenges and campaigns on the platform to encourage user-generated content like new flavour ideas or recipes that promote engagement with the brand. Starbucks, Death Wish Coffee, Dunkin, and Peet’s Coffee are some coffee brands that are also experimenting with similar tactics.
Product launches that create interactive and immersive brand experiences for consumers are another move by Doritos – including a 200 square foot high-street billboard going up in flames.
“Today, there are the retailer brands as well as small start-up brands vying for the share of retail space, share of market and share of stomach,” says Kunal Mehta, Global Head of Marketing, Communication and Brand at dsm-firmenich.
“So brands like Doritos have to innovate on all fronts – product, packaging, communication, execution and activation. They have the budgets and the muscle, and they are using all of these tactics to appeal to their target audience.”
Community engagement has massive appeal to Gen Z
Brands across various industries are increasingly recognising the value of community engagement and brand co-creation as key elements in their marketing strategies, particularly when targeting Gen Z consumers.
This demographic cohort, characterised by a desire for authenticity, inclusivity, and active participation, gravitates towards brands that prioritise community-building and collaborative initiatives.
“The trend of community engagement and brand co-creation isn’t something new,” says Kunal. “Brands like Coca Cola, Kit Kat, and Lays are some examples of brands that have leveraged this quite well.”
“What has changed now is the way you connect with the audience because of the evolving behaviour patterns. So what worked for millennials may not necessarily work for Gen Z.”
Glossier, a $1.8 billion beauty empire, famously incorporates customer feedback into product development, and luxury fashion brand Telfar invites consumers to shape the brand’s offerings through democratic design processes. Nike and Uniqlo are also prioritising community engagement to build direct-to-consumer relationships.
Doritos’ recent crunch cancelling sound app, for example, not only made it the world’s first AI augmented snack, but was a direct response to feedback from gamers.
By involving their audience in the creation and storytelling of their products, brands can foster a sense of belonging and loyalty among Gen Z consumers. Emma Chamberlain, a popular YouTuber and social media influencer known for her coffee products and authentic and relatable content, engages her audience with social media challenges, vlogs, and live streams.
Authenticity is key to community engagement. La Colombe Coffee Roasters 2022 summer campaign “For the Love of Real” is a great example. The integrated summer campaign featured a cast of six and a voice-over sourced from the brand’s employee network, which underpins the platform of realness and authenticism.
“Community engagement and brand creation is a great way to build brand loyalty and brand love,” says Kunal. “These initiatives make the consumer feel that not only are they being heard, but their inputs are also being taken into actual consideration.”
“It’s a great way for brands to get direct and immediate feedback from its consumer base and deliver back something that they want!”
Brands are also leveraging mega social media influencers – not necessarily celebrities – to reach wider audiences, including the likes of Peet’s, Starbucks, and Blue Bottle.
“The potential loyalty these channels can develop is, in theory, a powerful proposition for any marketer to tap into,” says Stephen. “That’s why influencers are now in major demand – they’ve done the heavy lifting part of developing audiences and brands then hope to jump onto them.”
And they are doing so for pennies on the dollar.
Endless customisation and trends – will the F&B segment follow the fast fashion model?
In the food and beverage sector, the emergence of endless customisation options, rapid trends, and limited test trials before widespread product releases mirrors the fast fashion model prevalent in the fashion industry.
Brands are increasingly adopting a “test-and-learn” approach, introducing new products in small batches to gauge consumer response before scaling up production.
“Food and beverage brands are definitely using a similar strategy and fast fashion can provide a lot of lessons,” says Kunal.
“Product drops, limited editions, and personalisation opportunities on ecommerce sites like Amazon are just some examples of building a closer connection with the consumer that also enables quicker, and repeatable transactions.”
“Testing in small markets or in batches is another approach of building a MVP, getting insights and then scaling it up. This keeps the risk low and the excitement high.”
While this strategy allows for agility, innovation, and responsiveness to changing consumer preferences, questions arise regarding its long-term sustainability.
“It’s a capitalistic world and that unfortunately means that sustainability has taken far too much of a backstep, which, despite growing regulations, doesn’t seem to be slowing down whatsoever,” says Stephen.
“More consumption of any product without it being designed to be environmentally friendly probably isn’t good news somehow.”
The fast pace of product innovation, combined with the constant quest for novelty, raises concerns about resource consumption, waste generation, and brand authenticity in the food and beverage industry.
Doritos’ strategic marketing pivot is a symptom of the evolving landscape of consumer engagement and targeting in an increasingly digital and participatory world.
As food and beverage brands embrace agile product development and customisation to appeal to diverse consumer tastes, sustainability considerations and brand authenticity become paramount in navigating the balance between innovation, engagement, and long-term viability in the market.
Coffee Intelligence
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