How Lipton is marketing its new Hard Iced Tea

Lipton Hard Iced Tea, a boozy interpretation of the traditional summer cooler, is promoting its launch with deadpan comedy. A new campaign from the agency Founders shows outlandish situations—such as a man arriving in swimming trunks to a billiards party; a boss having his desk chair replaced with a mechanical riding bull; and a couple posing in a photo booth for an oil painting. Each situation sets up a repeated punch line—“obviously”—while positioning Lipton as an obvious choice for hard tea. The ads represent a different tone than the non-alcoholic products under the Lipton brand, whose website highlights a message of heart health and other well-being associated with drinking tea. The push for Lipton Hard Iced Tea comes as the growing ready-to-drink (RTD) alcohol market entices more and more soda, tea and juice brands to test their equity as adult beverages. Beverage market research firm IWSR has projected RTDs to double to 8% of the world’s total alcohol beverage market by 2025. Related: SunnyD Vodka Seltzer draws fascination, scorn Later this year, Molson Coors will be launching a hard iced tea in partnership with Coca-Cola’s Peace Tea brand. Like Lipton, the Peace brand will come in various flavors and have 5% alcohol by volume. Molson Coors is also partnering with Coke brands Simply and Top Chico on alcoholic versions of those drinks. Lipton Hard Iced Tea is currently launching in select markets in the U.S., with plans to go nationwide in 2024, the brand said. Lipton Hard Iced Tea is a product of Rochester, New York-based Fifco USA, which signed a commercial agreement with Lipton owners PepsiCo and Unilever to develop and distribute the Hard Ice Tea product within the U.S. Fifco is the U.S. importer of the Labatt’s beer brand and owner of regional beer brands such as Geneseo and Magic Hat. Lipton Hard Iced Tea is the second alcoholic beverage brand to be distributed by Blue Cloud Distributing, PepsiCo's new alcohol distribution venture. Blue Cloud is already distributing Hard Mtn Dew in select markets. “Our intention is not to build a large portfolio of products and complex portfolio, but is to focus on a few good brands developed with strategic partners and then leverage our distribution capabilities to give it to consumers all across the country,” Ramon Laguarta, CEO of PepsiCo, said of Blue Cloud during an earnings conference call last month. “We’re not rushing. We’re going at a speed that we learn and we make this business solid with the right margins and the right consumer propositions.” Ad Age Breakout Brand Leaders New award honors the people behind emerging brands Enter here

How Lipton is marketing its new Hard Iced Tea

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