Boxed Water’s™ Flavors line extension was born from consumer demand. For ten years, Boxed Water™ has been at the helm of providing top quality, purified water with the most renewable packaging alternative to plastic bottles and aluminum cans. Water is essential. Yet, it can also be experiential. Our consumers let us know that not only do they want to be good to the planet, they want to let their taste buds in on some fun too.
In 2021, after significant market research and focused group testing, Boxed Water™ launched four new Flavors: Lemon, Blackberry, Cucumber and Grapefruit. The new flavors were crafted with Boxed Water's same award-winning water (purified through an 8-step process); offering a crisp, fresh taste infused with natural fruit flavors. Flavors also feature our groundbreaking 92% plant-based carton (the highest rate in the industry) made from sustainably harvested tree crops.
Boxed Water’s iconic black and white packaging has always been celebrated for being clear, transparent and bold. With Flavors, we wanted to loop in bright pops of color to the equation; leveraging our identity and badge value with a sunny, celebratory vibe. The same was said for our marketing and social strategies.
Our broad goal was to continue to take “conscious consumerism” out of the doldrums and into the happy light where it belongs. We wanted our PR, marketing and social strategies to sing in unison, with amplified awareness via lifestyle media and social media impressions/partnerships that lead to a double-digit increase in online sales.
Grabbing the attention of an overstimulated consumer is no easy task. When Boxed Water™ set out to create videos and assets announcing their new Flavors, it was important to make sure we stayed true to Boxed Water™ 's brand identity, while introducing consumers to something entirely new.
The new design embraced our classic black/white graphics and fonts with an added a bold color aesthetic that created a strong banner effect. We also pointedly inserted the word “Even” before “Better.”
Like our name, “Boxed Water Is Better™,'' we leveraged the “literal.” Applied colors were in sync with their correlating fruits: green, purple, yellow and orange. We went all-in with those colors and simple fruit imagery. We wanted the visual experience to almost evoke a salivary response: bright, tart and fresh. With digital formats we also applied energetic, kaleidoscope movements that demanded attention while conveying the cheerful notes of the Flavors line.
Flavors also offered the ability to lead with TASTE as the headliner…and follow with the environmental superiority of the packaging, which had always been the reverse for the brand. We got to focus more on what’s inside the plant-based carton, which was good for the Boxed Water™ on a macro level.
The launch included coordinated social media posts, display ads, eye-catching videos,social stories and reels, photography, and a video-first landing page design. The bright, bold design dominated Instagram and Tiktok. Influencers, nano influencers and consumers alike were sharing the new Boxed Water™ Flavors.
The consumer call-to-action stayed the same. With “You post. We plant.” Boxed Water continued its tree-planting campaign with Flavors, where consumers are encouraged to post a picture of Boxed Water on social media with #BetterPlanet, and we plant two trees with the National Forest Foundation (NFF). In five years, we have planted more than a million trees, to support reforestation efforts in areas affected by wildfires and other natural threats.
As for the challenge, it was the best kind…but not great when you’re trying to foster consumer muscle memory. We. Sold. Out.
Correlating a launch during a pandemic and supply chain issues, is like training in altitude. We pivoted to product waitlists and e-communication messaging that built anticipation over the return of beloved Flavors. Although there was a lull in product availability, the interest and demand remained.
With the aforementioned “sold out” challenge, the results almost speak for themselves. The market pre-bought the flavors based on the design and aesthetics alone, before even sampling the flavors.
The Boxed Water flavor campaign had over 869 million media impressions for the year. Online sales at Boxed Water grew 45% for the year. During Earth Month launch alone, the new flavors accounted for over 2.6 million impressions on Instagram and TikTok from influencers, consumers, and Boxed Water™ enthusiasts alike. To support this campaign Boxed Water also generated over 9.02 million paid media impressions to ensure that consumers knew about the new sustainable (and tasty) options that were now available. Additionally, Boxed Water gained the attention of new customers and saw an uptick in purchases from the 18-24 demographic, who could not resist the eye-catching video graphics.
2 million paid social media impressions
170% increase in New Users first week of launch
53% increase in online sales over first six months of launch
