Bottled water’s miraculous reign may be coming to an end

I believe that bottled water is the most creative business innovation in the last 20 years. Its brilliance is so simple, yet the creative thinking behind how this industry has become a $50 billion global business drinking machine is unmatched.

Think about it. Some very smart people took a substance that’s largely been free to civilized nations since the beginning of time, wrapped it up in a unique marketing package and began to sell it in small bottles for $1.50 a piece. What’s more unbelievable is that is wasn’t just accepted, but has literally taken over as the “must have” replacement for tap water, as well as many types of soda and sugared juices. If someone told me 15 years ago that I’d be spending upwards of $25 to $40 per week on bottled water versus just drinking from the tap, I would have told him he was nuts.

The bottled water phenomena demonstrates just how powerful imaginative marketing can be. Consumers love Fiji water because they think it’s a very hip, high end product that provides them with a great taste because Fiji is cool. While Poland Springs has created its image as being the purest water around with the best taste because (of course) everything that comes from Maine is pure and natural. The hands down winners though are Coke and Pepsi, distributors for Aquafina and Dasani. Some how, they’ve managed to dupe us all into purchasing water that actually does come right out of our tap…and we feel pretty good about it.

But now, an unlikely competitor could be landing a knock out punch to the bottled water industry. And, it happened so quickly that it’s almost surprising. Before this grave challenge, the industry was maturing and competitive forces created greater consolidation because of lower margins. Like many industries, those bottled water companies that were becoming the industry leaders found new ways to expand their reach through product extensions and creative marketing/sales strategies. But, it was becoming tougher because of the added competition from other beverage companies.

Now, the game has completely changed and life will never be the same for these companies. Our green movement has turned the industry upside down and there may be little hope to save it. How does an industry compete with a tidal wave of momentum against it which is making a very sound and boisterous case that the very package holding the product is an eco-enemy?

In just the last six months, the noise surrounding the need to save our environment has increased 100-fold. Buying water in a bottle has become one of many highly visible symbols for waste in the eyes of consumers. The industry has started to fight back by communicating its green strategies and new offerings. But, unless something drastically changes, the bottled water industry will need to pull a rabbit out of its hat once again to remain viable.

Comments

[Jeff Caylor]

What if, one day a year, everyone who drinks bottled water drank tap water instead? With the $2(or more) we would have spent, we can provide for 2 years for an individual in Africa who doesn't have access to clean water (bloodwatermission.com).

A campaign like this could be managed by Dasani or Aquafina. It would boost their image and give back to the planet at the same time.