Dive Brief: 

• Olipop is headed on a national tour and looking to hire two best friends to join the brand as “senior soda consultants,” per details shared with Marketing Dive. 
• Social media-fluent consumers can apply for the positions now through March 22 for the chance to join Olipop and travel to up to four cities while generating content for the brand. The all-expenses-paid trip will offer up to $40,000 if all four cities are completed. 
• The first stop will take place on the East Coast from April 5-10. Afterward, participants may be asked to continue the tour and visit additional cities. The job signals how the soda brand is attempting to gain share in the competitive better-for-you category. 

Dive Insight: 

Olipop is going on tour, and to mark the occasion, it is searching for the ultimate dynamic duo for what it bills as a dream job: the opportunity to travel with the better-for-you soda brand on an all-expenses-paid trip across the country while capturing and sharing content from the journey. The effort represents ongoing bets by the brand on influencer marketing and indicates how creators have continued to cement their role as a marketing asset in the digital age. 

The friendship duo chosen to serve as Olipop’s senior soda consultants will have the chance to explore various cities while doubling as “soda pop-stars,” per the activation’s landing page, which entails capturing Olipop during the tour while educating others about the product. The experience, which kicks off in April, will pay $10,000 per city ($5,000 per person) for up to four cities and cover all expenses including airfare, food and a daily stipend. 

Best friends with experience in content creation are encouraged to apply online or via LinkedIn for the senior soda consultant role through March 22. Applicants should be comfortable with platforms including Instagram, TikTok and Threads, the Meta-owned competitor to X (formerly known as Twitter) that has recently amassed 130 million users. To apply, those interested must submit a resume and can optionally share a video of themselves and their best friend enjoying Olipop on either Instagram or TikTok and tag the brand along with the hashtag #OliDreamJob. 

A concerted effort by Olipop to leverage creators could help it shore up a stronger connection to consumers, especially key younger demographics, and up its odds of establishing brand loyalty. Creator-led ads have a 1.4-times greater impact on building brand loyalty and a 1.3-times greater impact on inspiring brand advocacy, according to a recent creator economy report by the Interactive Advertising Bureau and TalkShoppe. Accordingly, 44% of marketers this year plan to increase their investment in content creators.

In addition, a buzzy marketing play could help Olipop break through the increasingly competitive better-for-you category, which has grown in popularity in recent years as consumers prioritize wellness. Olipop, which carries a tagline online of “healthy meets delicious,” was founded in 2017 and touts a “functional formula” packed with seven unique botanicals, plant fibers and prebiotics. 

Others in the better-for-you category have unveiled creative marketing ploys recently, including Olipop competitor Poppi, which made its debut Super Bowl in February with a 60-second ad. “The Future of Soda is Now” positioned the upstart as a healthier option compared to other sodas on the market. Beyond the soda category, Gatorade this week unveiled its new electrolytes-packed Gatorade Water alongside a digital-first marketing campaign.