Pepsi Launches 'Summer Treats' Campaign

Pepsi has unveiled its new ‘You Deserve a Treat’ campaign to support its new range of Pepsi zero sugar flavours inspired by ice cream flavours – Cherry & Vanilla and Raspberry Ripple.

The campaign has been rolled out across social, digital and Out of House (OOH) advertising. It serves as a fun take on the new beverages, with aims to bring more younger consumers to the Pepsi brand, and capitalise on the growing demand for more ‘sweet treat options’ across the soft drinks aisle, whilst continuing to remain sugar free.

Philippa Pennington, Senior Marketing Manager at Pepsi UK, described the campaign as "the definition of a TREAT to work on," saying that the brand had brought out a "super cute and unlikely hero,"  – a CGI pigeon designed to represent an ice cream.

Pidge the Pigeon takes leading role on the campaign

At the heart of its campaign is Pepsi’s new advertisement which introduces an unusual character – Pidge. Pidge the Pigeon is a Computer Generated Imagery (CGI) that has taken centre stage in gaining traction for its curious appearance.

The advert plays into the notion of experiencing how it feels to eat an ice cream, refreshing and indulging, except it is now in cola form. It also takes one of Britain’s most familiar birds and delivers an “elevated indulgence” version of the advert to tie into the 'Pepsi Treats' range.

Inspired to resemble the ice cream flavours in cola form, topped with sprinkles and a pair of sunglasses, this mascot brings a memorable factor to its campaign and ensures audiences are brought back to the new flavoured beverages.

Pepsi Parlour brings the campaign to life

The campaign extends beyond simply advertising its new range and invites customers to sample the new flavours themselves with Pepsi Parlour. Pepsi Parlour is a playful, Y2K-inspired take on ice cream parlours, and brings the campaign to life with its immersive experiences.

The nationwide rollout starts with London (24-26 July) and then Brighton (8-9 August) and blends nostalgic design with modern flavour combinations.

Visitors to the pop up will be able to, free of charge, sample Pepsi ice cream float creations in three flavours: Cherry & Vanilla Sundae Swirl, Raspberry Ripple Sundae Surprise and Salted Caramel Sundae Soda and purchase the cans of cola.

Pepsi’s combination of customer involvement and curious visuals has positioned its new range as a strongly memorable campaign.

Demonstrating Pepsi connecting creative, experiences and culture allows the brand to deliver a fully integrated product launch and drive trial of its latest flavour innovations.

Its nationwide campaign drives an increasing consumer awareness and gives retailers and operators a strong seasonal opportunity to maximise their soft drink category sales by stocking the new Pepsi Zero Sugar flavours range throughout the summer.