Consumers Are Thirsty for Hydration Reminders

Everyone has heard the age-old advice: Drink eight glasses of water a day to stay healthy and hydrated. But keeping count can sometimes be a challenge, even when people know that staying hydrated is important.

According to a recent study conducted by The Coca-Cola Company, drinking water is one of the top six activities shoppers do to maintain their health – one notch above doctor visits.¹ According to the same study, shoppers believe they are mostly hydrated, but recognize room for improvement in their daily routines.¹

To stay hydrated, shoppers turn to bottled water, including brands from The Coca-Cola Company portfolio like DASANI® and smartwater®.

“From the primary research we’ve done, bottled water is the number one category associated with hydration,” says Sally Buckley, senior shopper insights manager, Drug & Value Channels, The Coca-Cola Company. “Bottled water is getting more credit from shoppers than tap water and filtered tap water.”

However, shoppers also tend to need reminders — hydration is not yet top of mind when it comes to health, and hydration benefits are not fully understood, according to The Coca-Cola Company Knowledge & Insights report.¹ In addition, while drugstores are not at the top of the sources of hydration information list, shoppers are open to receiving hydration information from them – and their pharmacists.¹ This offers drugstores a unique education opportunity when it comes to capturing the quick-trip shopper by encouraging hydration habits.

“There is an opportunity for drugstores to become more associated with hydration if they can communicate the depth and variety of their options — at both cold and ambient temperatures — and link hydration to other health and wellness activities,” Buckley says.

Top tips for encouraging healthy hydration routines include:

• Provide in-store and out of store messaging that reminds shoppers to hydrate
• Intercept shoppers in the snack area, at checkout – even in the pharmacy
• Consider rewards programs that incentivize shoppers for more hydration
• Consider partnering with health tracking apps/devices (i.e. FitBit®) to make it easier for shoppers to monitor hydration
• Engage millennials since they are already more aware of the benefits of hydration.¹

“Benefits from hydration was the number one topic that shoppers want to see,” Buckley adds. “Drugstores definitely have the credibility to speak to shoppers about these considerations.”

With premium water sales up 18%, sparkling water up 17%, and base water up 7% according to Nielsen, the time is right to capitalize on the growth of bottled water at retail.² For more information about the benefits of hydration, contact your Coca-Cola representative.

Read Related Stories:
Racks Help Retailers Dive into Premium Water Trend
Excitement Bubbles for smartwater® sparkling
DASANI® Sparkling Gets an Update

^{Sources:
¹ The Coca-Cola Company Knowledge & Insights Hydration Research Report, September 2016
2 Nielsen ScanTrack, Total U.S. Dollar Volume, All Outlets Combined, 52 Wks. ending July 2, 2016}