Do the Dew: It's Back

A recent article in The Wall Street Journal signaled the resurrection of the slogan "Do the Dew," a campaign by PepsiCo Inc.'s Mountain Dew, coinciding with its 20th anniversary of the phrase. Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Pepsi Beverages North America Simon Lowden says the slogan refers to enjoying the moment, rather than attempting dangerous stunts.

The campaign will include two online and TV spots, print, out-of-home and digital content. The video ads feature professional athletes: skateboarder Sean Malto in "Fireboard" and Olympic snowboarder Scotty Lago in "Directions."

"Fireboard" is pretty neat. Malto is riding a board with MTN DEW and his name on the bottom of it. He boards along the coast and does some tricks that strike matches and ultimately light a bonfire for him and his friends. The matches spell out "Do the Dew" at the end. Naturally, he starts by taking a sip of Mountain Dew and his buddy offers him a bottle after he completes the tricks.

The campaign is targeted at male millennials with a marketing mix of 55% television and 45% digital. In an age where the soda industry has been in decline due to a rising demand in the U.S. for more healthful drinks, PepsiCo has to work harder than ever to try and get those customers back. It is likely that most of the sales will come from outside the U.S. The Do the Dew campaign will be in other places like Western Europe, Canada, Latin America, the Middle East, Asia Pacific and India.