Tropicana’s $50 Million Marketing Mistake
What happens when a recognizable brand changes their look?
Innovation can be costly. It can also be detrimental.
Don’t believe me? Just take a look at Tropicana, the famous fruit juice company.
In 2009, Tropicana marketing executives decided that the brand’s familiar logo needed an upgrade. And not just any upgrade, either. They wanted to change the brand’s entire look in one fell swoop.
With seemingly little market research, the company changed their logo overnight. Here’s what the change looked like:
Tropicana spent a whopping $35 million on the new designs. Yes, you read that right—$35 million.
And at first glance, the new design seems, well, new. It seems innovative. Refreshing.
But it’s not recognizable. It doesn’t scream “Tropicana” like the old logo.
The first words that pop out of the new logo are “100% orange.” Sure, the colors are nice, but the orange isn’t as bright. It’s not as eye-grabbing. It doesn’t pop out at you like the obnoxious orange does on the old logo.
