• by Steve Ellwanger , February 15, 2021

The first Bubly sparkling water line extension combines five fruit mashups with a “kick” of caffeine—but, in the ad introducing the product, brand ambassador Michael Bublé still isn’t satisfied.

PepsiCo launched the latest Bubly campaign featuring the Canadian-Italian singer last week.

In this 30-second spot from TBWA\Chiat\Day New York, a female security guard discovers Bublé sitting in a dark Bubly warehouse fixing yet another “typo” on cans of a product whose name has long been misspelled and pronounced incorrectly—or so Bublé thinks.

Only after the guard turns on the lights does Bublé discover the existence of Bubly Bounce.

“Kick of caffeine. Just what I needed to fix all these,” says Bublé.

When he asks whether the new drink should be spoken “boun-SAY” the guard declares, “It’s not how it’s pronounced” before shutting off the lights and walking away.

Along with containing no calories or sweeteners, Bubly’s brand personality since its early 2018 launch has leaned heavily on colors and flavors. Now it’s adding mango passion fruit, triple berry, blood orange grapefruit, citrus cherry and blueberry pomegranate iterations—plus 35 mg of caffeine per 12-oz serving.

The combination of flavors “add a little more complexity to the taste,” Zach Harris, vice president of water portfolio at PepsiCo Beverages North America, tells Marketing Daily.

As for the caffeine kick, Harris adds, “We know that function and functional benefits are something that consumers are looking for. And we know that caffeine is on the top of that list.”

Bubly’s bond with “all flavors” was one of its early links to the LGBTQ+ community. This year, the brand will be the official non-alcoholic beverage of the reality competition television series “RuPaul’s Drag Race” for the second time.

“We’ll have a strong integration with that,” says Harris. “We know that drag queens, as they’re competing, need an extra kick of caffeine—and Bubly Bounce is there for them.”