It's Not A Diet, It's A Lifestyle
No more South Beach Diet products for you! Kraft decided the word 'diet' carried too much of a negative connotation (we tend to agree), so the company is changing all of its South Beach Diet products to 'South Beach Living.'
It's a one-word name change, but "diet" always has had powerful and not necessarily positive connotations among consumers, bringing to mind older folks struggling, and often failing, to lose weight.Interesting how there's no quote from Dr. Agatston. He signed a trademark agreement with the company, so it seems odd to us that they can just go change the name. Have any of you ever tried some of these products? We're curious about them. We could satisfy our curiosity by going to the supermarket and picking up a few items, but we'd rather just ask you."Living" on the other hand suggests vibrant youth pursuing a healthy, natural lifestyle.
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Coca-Cola Co., for instance, developed its Coke Zero, a no-calorie version of its flagship product, partly because young male consumers responded poorly to beverages labeled "diet."
After all, no one has ever successfully marketed a "diet" beer. The makers of everything from mayonnaise to hot dogs long ago settled on "light" as a healthy, positive-sounding euphemism.
For Kraft, "diet" seemed to limit South Beach to those who wanted to lose weight, not the wider and growing category of consumers who want to eat healthy.
"We think [the name change] is going to broaden the appeal of the brand and fuel its growth trajectory," said Howard Brandeisky, Kraft's vice president for strategic marketing initiatives.
Kraft scraps Diet in favor of South Beach Living [Chicago Tribune]
