Happy 30th birthday, Diet Coke!
Since the launch of their first commercial back in 1983, the Diet Coke brand has evolved from a household drink to a fashion accessory.
Diet Coke quickly noticed that targeting the people who actually do the grocery shopping (women) would increase sales. Realizing that women can be easily influenced by pop culture, the company began using iconic figures in commercials and advertisements. Diet Coke’s most recent commercial featuring Taylor Swift clearly targets teenage girls and young women which make up the majority of the artist’s fan base.
This marketing strategy soon expanded into the fashion industry, especially once fashion icon Karl Lagerfeld signed on as the brand’s creative director. Lagerfeld introduced his own line of the Diet Coke brand, and created the demand for Diet Coke by fashionistas. Hence, barrels of the product were being served at London fashion week, Lady GaGa used the cans in her “Telephone” music video, and Diet Coke became hotter than the season’s “It bag.” Even accessory icon Marc Jacobs decided to celebrate Diet Coke’s 30th anniversary with a commercial. 
I find it interesting how Diet Coke doesn’t need to market their brand as a semi-nutritional alternative to their regular product. Conversely, the brand focuses more on adding value through the numerous pop stars that can attract a larger audience, targeting consumers from different fan bases by using their favourite pop icon. Clearly, this has been working in favour of Diet coke for 30 years now. Each company targets and adds value in diverse forms, and evidently, Diet Coke has chosen to use a contemporary marketing strategy to do so.
