Comments on: Is it a Drink or a Toy?

By: Ted Mininni

Ted Mininni — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 19:28:55 +0000

Right, Shelley. When some of these drinks debut, they sometimes have limited distribution at first. Interesting thing about the Amazon clearance. “Bad flavor” can mean a lot of things: if it isn’t overly sweet, kids will likely think it tastes “bad”. Or the batch purchased at Amazon, might have been slightly off in the manufacturing process. When it comes to “cleaner” food and beverage products, consumers expect they’ll cost more. Whether the additional cost on certain products is worth it or not, is up to the individual consumer. As I always say: consumers vote on products with their wallets. If Y Water doesn’t live up to expectations, it will either have to be rethought or it won’t make it. But what it does point to is the future of children’s products. Thanks for adding a good deal to my post, Shelley. It’s great to look at the pros and cons of every issue.

By: Shelley Ryan

Shelley Ryan — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 19:17:42 +0000

Hey, Ted!

Since I’m a mom, I wanted a good look at the Y Water, its pricing, where to buy it, what customers said, etc.

Looks like it was introduced on the West coast and in Whole Foods. I did a retailer search to see if I could buy it in my area and guess what — only Toys R Us carries it right now!

In this Nov. 2007 BusinessWeek article, they feature two of the drinks you mentioned. And they say that the “value-added beverage” industry is booming.

But I dunno… $1.69 for one 9-ounce drink for a kid? (Knots sold separately!) And $24 for 24 cans of fizzy grape drinks? I think the canned beverages might appeal to affluent parents.

I’ll be surprised if the Y Water lasts more than a couple of years at that price, though. It’s a telling sign that one of the reviewers on Amazon said she bought it on clearance! Others said they bought it for the novel container and would never buy it again because of the bad flavor.

We’ll stick with our milk, water, and an occasional Sprite here.

By: Ted Mininni

Ted Mininni — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 19:08:33 +0000

Good points, Giles. Some smart designers have also turned garbage into art–to your point. Coming back to packaging: you’re right. Products shouldn’t be the only beneficiaries of innovation. Packaging should also. Structural packaging concepts will likely become more and more important. Design consultants and brand managers do need to heed one thing, though: retailers’ needs. Brilliant packaging is meaningless if it doesn’t come to market. Meaning: if it doesn’t work in retail shelf sets, what’s the point?

Thanks for weighing in, Giles. I appreciate your comments.

By: uberVU - social comments

uberVU - social comments — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 19:07:00 +0000

Social comments and analytics for this post…

This post was mentioned on Twitter by MarketingProfs: RT @paul_a_barsch: Is it a Drink or a Toy? I love what Y water is doing! http://bit.ly/c50YGN...

By: Giles (Webconomist)

Giles (Webconomist) — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 18:35:01 +0000

Brilliant concept; I have little doubt other companies will employ a similar strategy at kids. Perhaps even adults, with multi-use products from containers. Creating “social objects” out of boring objects, but will it last or is it just the 21st century’s first Chia Pet?

My only downside is that we’re producing more containers to increase landfill and garbage or perhaps these could biodegrade?

By: Ted Mininni

Ted Mininni — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 17:32:04 +0000

Hi Paul,

Thanks for weighing in here. Agreed: as parents we want our children to consume healthier beverages than what they’re likely to choose on their own. Packaging solutions like this make it easier for our kids to buy into better choices simply because these drinks are cool and fun. At the same time, we can feel good about them, too. It’s a win-win, right?

By: Paul Barsch

Paul Barsch — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 17:09:44 +0000

Ted, this is a plain smart strategy. I absolutely love what Y water is doing. Talk about the cool factor. Just goes to show how important design considerations should be in new product introduction and keeping your old brand fresh.