Mtn Dew's Breakfast Drink, Kickstart, to Get Massive Marketing Push

via adage.com

New Beverage Aims to Give Millennials a Morning Pick-Me-Up

Mtn Dew is looking to jump-start its new morning beverage, Kickstart, with a massive marketing campaign, including paid media, PR and a robust sampling effort.

A national television campaign -- which, based on the creative, seems aimed at a demographic of millennial guys -- is set to launch Feb. 25. Ad Age has learned that the spot focuses on the idea of "Chasing Sunrise," showing an all-male cast making their way through the morning. Omnicom Group's BBDO is the agency handling creative for the brand.

Emily Silver, marketing director at Mtn Dew, called the Kickstart launch "big and strategic." She said parent company PepsiCo is looking to give the fledgling brand a "strong push out of the gate," by focusing on spending up front.

"This is a much bigger push than we've put behind one thing for Dew as long as I've been on the brand," said Ms. Silver, who began working on Mtn Dew about two years ago. "This is an opportunity to drive some loyalty by putting out a comprehensive, differentiated morning solution."

In addition to TV, there are plans for radio spots, as well as out-of-home in key markets like New York, Chicago and Orlando. A partnership with ESPN's "Mike & Mike" show will include a radio spot, product placement during the show and a text-to-win promotion. And plans are in place for a five-month sampling tour, with teams expected to hand out more than 2 million samples.

"We want to get the name out there," Ms. Silver said. "We're confident in our testing, confident that once people try this, repeat will be strong."

Enterprising millennials and die-hard Mtn Dew fans have long blended the citrus soda with juice for a morning pick-me-up. Case in point: Taco Bell, which last summer introduced Mtn Dew A.M., a blend of the soda and Tropicana orange juice. Ms. Silver said company research showed that almost half of millennials are looking for a boost in the mornings, but they don't necessarily want a full-powered energy drink. So, they've been fickle, bouncing between juice, coffee, soda and energy drinks.

That led Mtn Dew to begin testing a morning beverage in April of last year. Kickstart was not tested in market. The product going into market later this month comes in two flavors, Orange Citrus and Fruit Punch. Both have 80 calories per 16-oz. can and combine the taste and carbonation of Mtn Dew with 5% fruit juice and a dose of caffeine.