Vitaminwater Crowdsources Next Drink

Vitaminwater is turning to Facebook fans to come up with its next flavor.

The “Flavorcreator” Facebook app, which launched this week and runs through Oct. 20, is designed to crowdsource the company’s next product. Eric Berniker, vp-marketing for Vitaminwater, said that in the first phase, the company will “eavesdrop” on conversations on Facebook and Twitter about which the hot flavors are. After that, the company will diagnose which vitamins and minerals consumers want via a Facebook quiz. Finally, fans will be called in to develop a name, design and copy for the bottle. The winner will then be selected by 50 Cent and Carrie Underwood. The product will hit shelves in March.

Vitaminwater started its fan page on Facebook in March and now has about 450,000 fans, thanks in part to TV ads that ran that month to promote the page.

Berniker said that traditional media is still important to Vitaminwater, but the brand is tapping social media to “keep an ongoing dialogue with fans and drinkers.” Added Berniker: “It’s not just a fun program, it’s about handing control over to our fans.”

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This article was sourced at www.brandweek.com