The Dr. Strangebrand Files: Two Weird Brand Extensions from AriZona Beverages

By Dr. Strangebrand

September 14, 2013

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While Dr. Strangebrand prides himself on his fine-tuned palate, he often indulges in more pedestrian cuisine. One such weak spot: AriZona Beverages. Growing up, I’d venture to the corner store after a long day of playing handball for a 24-ounce AriZona drink for the bargain price of 99 cents.

Recently, I was excited to come across two new brand extensions from AriZona to tempt my taste buds: AriZona Soda Shaq, a line of cream sodas endorsed by basketball legend Shaquille O’Neal, and AriZona Combo Trays, which come in two flavors: Nachos ‘n’ Cheese Dip and Salsa ‘n’ Chips.

I bravely decided to taste test all three products and take a closer look at the brand extension strategy behind each one. First up, all four flavors of Shaq Soda: Vanilla, Blueberry, Strawberry, and Orange. Why cream soda? It turns out that it was Shaq’s favorite drink as a child.

On my way to the register, I spotted the AriZona Combo Trays. It seemed like destiny pointing me to the perfect AriZona feast. Little did I know that this perfect pairing wasn’t quite so perfect.

Initially, each cream soda tasted good, but after a few more sips, my taste buds were overpowered by the artificial sugars. It wasn’t nearly as pleasing as Shaq overpowering his opponents with slam-dunks on the court. The AriZona chip-and-dip flavors left me equally disappointed, though the salsa wasn’t all that bad.

After analyzing the flavors, I delved into why each brand extension was a failed attempt to leverage two of Parham Santana’s 10 Ways to Extend Your Brand. The Soda Shaq plays off way eight: Leverage a Celebrity Expertise. The product places Shaq’s face right on the can and ties into his childhood love for cream soda. But in this instance, I’d suggest a basketball related brand extension might offer a better payoff.

The sodas were so sweet that I couldn’t finish a whole can, and they’re not necessarily a natural fit for an athlete. There’s been some consumer backlash to Shaq endorsing beverages many don’t see as a healthy choice. Especially when he’s publicly talked about his family’s struggles with diabetes and expressed concern about childhood obesity rates.

Similarly, I believe AriZona Beverages should have stuck with, well, beverages. Instead, the company tapped way number five: Sell Companion Products. Consumers were probably eating snacks while drinking AriZona beverages, so why not sell the snacks, too? But without any equity in the snack category, this move proved to be a tough sell, as evidenced by all the sale price stickers on the chip-and-dip products.

The brand might take a few hints from Starbucks, which launched a successful companion product with the Starbucks Verismo coffee brewer. Maybe AriZona could launch a tea machine? Or a home soda maker that rivals the popular SodaStream?

Here’s the moral of the story: Choose a proven brand extension strategy and apply it wisely. Otherwise, your product might end up in the sale bin, too.

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