Dr. Pepper 10 Commercial

When you think about diet soda and who drinks it, the first group of people that comes to mind is middle aged women. That's what soda companies have found is their main customer base too. According to the 2010 US Census, there are 122.5 million people between the ages of 35 and 65. 49% of those people are male, and 51% are female. Even though an even smaller portion of those groups drink diet soda, that still means that soft drinks like Diet Dr. Pepper are missing out on half the target population.


It makes sense to any company that missing half of the population is not a good thing. It makes sense to target that group of people to expand your market. What doesn't make sense to me is to isolate and insult the half of the market you do have with the previously mentioned new add campaign.

Personally I don't drink soda anyway, but I can't help but feel, if I did like Diet Dr. Pepper, I wouldn't after seeing this. The Vice President of marketing at Dr. Pepper says, "Women get the joke." Well, I'm a woman, and I don't get it. To me, all I see when I watch the commercial is antiquated gender roles, both male and female. I like action movies. There's men that like "romantic comedies and girlie drinks".

Looking at this commercial, there's the obvious stereotyping of women, but there's also male stereotypes. Not all guys, straight, gay or anywhere else on the spectrum, like the 'manly' things that this commercial is showing, so not only is the female demographic now turned off by this product, but a good portion of the male population as well. I think this was a terrible choice for a marketing campaign.

Some people are saying that the controversy generated is enough to cope with the backlash, but news and buzz don't equal sales. Their attempt to make their commercial go 'viral' on the internet doesn't necessarily mean they'll sell more soda. What will affect there sales is the way consumers feel about this commercial and its blatant stereotypes, both male and female.

What do you think about this commercial and the direction Dr. Pepper choose for its marketing? Is any press good press?

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