Last week New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg – indicating his concern
for the health of New York’s citizens – proposed a ban on the sale of
large-sized, sugared drinks, i.e., 16-oz. or more, in restaurants,
sports stadia, movie theatres, and from street carts. For those of you
addicted to 40-oz. drinks, the proposed ban did not include grocery or
convenience stores.
If you ask New Yorkers, about 55% are
in favor of the ban, 30% are against it, and the remainder said “You
talkin’ to me!” and stalked off. OK, perception is reality. On the
rational side of things, nobody is going to declare regular sodas a
health drink. Refreshing? Sure. Thirst-quenching? Obviously. But
healthy? Not so much.
But decisions aren’t all rational.
Most of a consumer’s decision is emotional, and luckily enough, Brand
Keys is able to measure both. When we look at the emotional aspects of
the Regular Soda category – the one that does deal with “health” and
“being good for me,” here’s how the brands rank specifically for that
according to our 2012 Customer Loyalty Engagement Index:
- Sprite
- Canada Dry Ginger Ale
- Pepsi
- Coke
- Dr. Pepper
- Fanta
- Mountain Dew
Concern
for health is one thing, but there are some flaws in the overall plan.
If the ban is on 16-oz. drinks, what’s to stop brands from producing
15-oz. bottles? A 20-oz. bottle of Coke has 65 grams of sugar, but
because dairy drinks aren’t included in the proposal, you could go out
and have a 21-oz chocolate malt from McDonald’s and consume 111 grams of
sugar.
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