Dive Brief:

• 7-Eleven is sending its Slurpee drinks on a private space flight, and upon their return, offering the cups to a select number of fans, per a press release. The launch is a celebration of the convenience store chain's 94th anniversary, and will take place at a 7-Eleven store in Michigan this August.
• One flavor will be selected for the launch based on Slurpee sales made through 7-Eleven's in-app delivery service. Each purchase of a flavor translates to a corresponding vote, and the flavor with the most votes by the end of July will be chosen for the launch.
• Commemorative cups will be designed for the selected Slurpees, which fans can win by placing app orders. The campaign sees 7-Eleven drawing on interest in space to promote its in-app delivery service, which is becoming increasingly important to the chain's marketing strategy.

Dive Insight:

With the launch of its Slurpee drink out of Earth's atmosphere, 7-Eleven becomes the latest brand to leverage cultural interest in space to drive its marketing. Space travel in particular has seen a resurgence in the news as Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos develop their private commercial companies, commencing what has been called the "space tourism race." Last week, founder of Virgin Galactic Richard Branson promoted his company with a test flight that saw significant fanfare. By sending Slurpees into space, 7-Eleven joins other brands like Dr. Pepper and Miller Lite hoping to draw on this interest.

7-Eleven's main agenda with this campaign is to drive awareness while promoting its in-app delivery service. The vote for the space-bound flavor hinges on customers ordering through the platform, as do the sweepstakes for the commemorative cups. The release also humorously refers to the launch as a delivery order into space.

By having a unique delivery system, 7-Eleven is able to collect first-party data on its consumers, which will be increasingly valuable to the chain's marketing strategies for when third-party cookies are deprecated in the near future. 7-Eleven is also able to reduce the large costs posed by third-party delivery services by focusing on its own. The chain is also investing in third-party partnerships as small-basket e-commerce continues to grow.

The in-app presence of 7-Eleven's delivery service also affords streamlined convenience for consumers by being consolidated in one place with the chain's other services. 7Rewards, 7-Eleven's loyalty program, also exists on the app, which the chain can use to appeal to non-members ordering delivery. This effort dovetails with monthlong deals 7-Eleven is promoting to expand its loyalty membership.

The sweepstakes nature of the campaign seeks to engage consumers beyond in-app purchasing. By offering merchandise with its Slurpee commemorative cups, 7-Eleven joins a host of other brands reviving a pre-pandemic strategy. In addition, a commemorative mural will be on site at the launch in Michigan, extending the chain's national effort to appeal to local neighborhoods.

The campaign arrives as 7-Eleven refocuses its marketing with its "Take It to Eleven" approach. Earlier this year, the chain kicked off a new effort celebrating customers' ability to take things one step further, and as part of the launch, doubled its marketing investment. The new approach will cover a variety of media channels, including TV, radio, digital, social and more, CMO Marissa Jarratt previously told Marketing Dive.