When did Diet Coke become a men's drink? When I was growing up, you didn't touch Diet Coke. It was a diet-conscious, weight-watching, Slim-Fast alternative. For us men, we drank the real thing: Coca-Cola Classic, thank you very much. Nowadays, everywhere I look, what once was a Coke can-stained ring on the kitchen coffee table is a Diet Coke can-stained ring. At Food Court, Coke's cue has dwindled, abetting Diet Coke consumption (unofficial study). Why oh why has the world turned topsy-turvy?
Code named "Project Triangle" in 1975, Coca-Cola's first attempt to release a diet alternative resulted in Tab, a play on words for those wanting to "keep a tab" on their weight. The head honchos at Coke squabbled about launching "Diet Coke" but Roberto Goizueta (a future CEO of Coke) argued that consumers wanted a sugar-free type of Coke. Most everyone knew the drink would sell because it leveraged the Coke name; Diet Coke cans were adorned with a lowercase "d" to emphasize the illustrious "Coke." Instead of fixating on the health benefits, the ad agency SSC&B/Lintas highlighted the product's quality: "Just for the taste of it, Diet Coke." Pepsi ripped off the idea like a new reality TV show. Both companies raced to war.
The occult lore of the new diet drink slithered to the masses. "Secret Formula" this and "sugar-free" that. The drink gained a crazed following. Google "Diet Coke" and you'll find addicts discussing their vain attempts to kick Coke. One writes, "Hello. My name is The Real A and I'm a Diet Coke-aholic. Oh, there were signs all right. The look of horror on people's faces when I would pop a Diet Coke first thing in the morning." Other signs include looking in the fridge, seeing nothing but 6 packs and the Diet Coke keychain. Google unfortunately shows Diet Coke's fans using the drink in perverse ways: medicines, kallitype photography, and spermicide (don't ask, the pictures are nauseating).
But the crazed following used to be women. Remember the Diet Coke Break commercials in the 1990s? A group of middle-aged, working women gather near the office window to ogle a hunky construction worker. Diet-Coke in hand, one lady ends the ad saying, "Same time tomorrow?" When the drink launched in 1982, women were the primary consumers. Now the "loyal customers" are 55 percent women and 45 percent men. Pretty soon we men will yell "topple."
Some point to Coke's new aggressive ad blitz. The ads focus on happiness rather than health. Average Joe's are the pitch-people and stars in the new spots. A Coke spokesperson says, "We're really looking at adult men and women who want to take care of themselves without missing out on enjoyment." Come again? Men and women?
Forget the ads. I think the Diet for Dudes idea goes hand-in-hand with the sexy Generation X and metrosexual phenomenon. The zippy Gen X wants new variety, not your uncle's Coca-Cola. Gen X has besmirched just about everything: Xtina (Christina's reincarnation), XGames, Xbox, X-Files. It's X-treme! Since 1997, 500 new soft drinks have emerged in America including Diet Coke with Lemon, Diet Coke with Lime, and Diet Vanilla Coke; add these to the already-existing Diet Caffeine Free Coke and Diet Cherry Coke. GenXers, what have you done?
Metrosexuals, those urban males who fuss over lifestyle and appearance, reach for their Diet Coke cans, accidentally knocking over the half-used Axe Effect bottle. One Dartmouth self-declared metrosexual from Long Island opened his fridge for me no more Diet Cokes!!! He started to panic but found a warm can underneath his bed. Ahhhh! "The first sip is bliss," he says. Metrosexuals are in. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger describes himself as a metrosexual. Forget muscle man, the terminator is metroman. Lifestyle and appearance are, like, so in these days. And Diet Coke is like so in vogue.
I remember CNN describing Joe Trippi, Howard Dean's former campaign director, "Trippi is in his late 40s, suffers from diabetes and is fueled by a constant stream of Diet Pepsi." For the record, Trippi swigged Diet Cokes and Pepsis. But his constant mouthfuls of diet colas signify a changing of the guard. Topsy-turvy the world has gone from yesterday's "Just for the Taste of it" to today's "Does this make my butt look big? How about my pecs?"