Poppi soda slammed for ‘out of touch’ influencer stunt
Fans are shocked by Poppi’s soda-city.
Prebiotic soda brand Poppi’s Super Bowl LIX ad campaign has caused controversy to fizz on TikTok.
The ad, “Soda Thoughts,” starred influencers such as Alix Earle, Jake Shane and Rob Rausch, and though the ad itself was a hit, the marketing campaign leading up to it faced a lot of backlash.
Prior to the debut of the ad on Feb. 9, Poppi sent huge branded vending machines to 32 influencers, including Rachel Sullivan, Kaeli Mae, Rachel Gaede, Avery Woods, Emilie Kiser and Vidya Gopalan.
Part of the campaign saw these influencers posting videos featuring the massive gift on TikTok, which garnered millions of views, but the reaction from the general public wasn’t so sparkling.
“Seeing these influencers get these Poppi vending machines just makes me never want to buy a Poppi ever again,” one user said in a video. “To me, it missed the mark.”
“They should’ve gave those to college dorm rooms, or athletic departments, I’m definitely not buying another one,” someone commented.
“I literally asked Poppi to send it to schools for students to enjoy for a week instead and they *ignored me* (as usual),” another shared.
“It blows me that brand STILL dont understand that consumers dont wanna see already wealthy influencers get these insane trips/pr packages it would do them better to give to smaller creators,” one chimed in.
“In this economy and political climate it’s sooooo out of touch … genuinely blown away on how this got approved,” a user wrote.
“Yeah, it missed the mark. On another video someone suggested putting them in a group home or shelter would’ve meant a lot more, I agree!” one comment said.
Another user posted a video writing, “Why couldn’t Poppi just send the vending machines to colleges, hospitals, police stations, or fire stations???? Make it make sense.”
“Like an influencer having a poppi vending machine isn’t gonna make me want to drink poppi,” someone added.
Many other videos talking about how Poppi “f–ked up” have gone viral — and Olipop, the rival prebiotic soda brand, has taken the opportunity to criticize its competitor.
“32 machines times $25K per machine yikes,” the brand commented on one post, writing “also for the record, those machines cost $25K each lol” on another.
However, Poppi has refuted Olipop’s claims that these machines were $25,000 each.
“The falsely reported number was not only fabricated but inflated by 60%,” a Poppi spokesperson told TODAY.com, adding that the machines were a long-term “marketing investment.”
The company added that contrary to what people online are saying, they own the machines and they were not intended for one-time use, so the influencers who received these gifts will have to return them to Poppi.
“Both creators across the US and people in New Orleans received these machines,” the spokesperson clarified, adding that their first consumer event with the machines took place on Super Bowl Sunday at The Boot, a Tulane University hangout spot.
They also noted that this isn’t the end of the campaign featuring the machines, and there will be more to come for consumers.
“As our beloved community has always been at the forefront of the Poppi brand, these machines will be rolling out to them via events, social giveaways & nominations in the weeks to come,” the spokesperson said. “Despite false comments from our competitors, we are focused on revolutionizing soda for the next generation and can’t wait for you all to see what’s next.”
The, the day after the Super Bowl, Allison Ellsworth, Poppi’s co-founder and chief brand officer, took to TikTok to address the controversy.
“I’ve been hearing a lot of negativity, and so I wanted to get on here and chat with you guys directly,” Ellsworth says. “First of all, I want to say, I hear you, and there’s a lot of misinformation being spread out there by one of our competitors, from our plans to the price tag of 25K, which is not what it costs and that is not true.”
Ellsworth noted that creator marketing has “always” been a part of the brand since its launch in 2020, but they know that the community is what has been the biggest part of their success.
“It was always our intention to share these with you through marketing events, community pop-ups and giveaways,” she continued. “But one of the things that has made Poppi so successful is that we listen to you and our community, we can always learn and do better.”
“These vending machines will be a part of the brand for years to come, and we want to work with you guys to get them out to the places you’d like to see them out in the world.”
Ellsworth encouraged fans and consumers to nominate fans, teachers lounges, sororities and fraternities, etc. to get Poppi “to the masses.”
