How Liquid I.V. Is Positioning Hydration Differently Through Entertainment and Influencers
Liquid I.V. is betting big on summer with a new integrated campaign designed to position hydration as part of the season’s biggest social moments rather than simply a recovery tool afterward.
The campaign, built around the “Summer of Yes” platform, includes a partnership with British girl group FLO, influencer activations, retail marketing, experiential events, streaming integrations, and social media content aimed primarily at Gen Z and millennial consumers. The financial terms of the partnerships were not disclosed.
According to Brittany Shaw, Vice President of Integrated Marketing at Liquid I.V., the idea behind the campaign came together early during development of the brand’s seasonal Cherry Ring Pop flavor launch. Shaw said the brand quickly realized the flavor had the potential to become more than a limited product release because of the strong nostalgia consumers associate with Ring Pop candy and childhood memories tied to it.
“It’s the idea about feeling good physically, and that is what actually unlocks more of that spontaneity, that confidence back connection, the fun, like all the things that people want from the summer,” she said.
The campaign strategy was shaped heavily by consumer feedback around summer social experiences as audiences consistently expressed wanting to fully enjoy events like weddings, concerts, vacations, and festivals without feeling drained afterward. That insight led Liquid I.V. to frame hydration as part of the experience itself rather than something consumers turn to the next day.
Rather than allocating its ad spend on one platform, Liquid I.V. developed the campaign as what Shaw described as a “full ecosystem” approach spanning social media, creators, experiential marketing, retail activations, and streaming entertainment. Though how much the brand spent on its campaign remains unclear.
“We wanted to make sure that visually, in the campaign and across all the different marketing channels and marketing activations, we’re speaking to a wide variety of people,” said Shaw.
The brand also partnered with Off Campus, the rising Amazon Prime Video series currently gaining momentum online. Liquid I.V. products are featured throughout the show as part of the campaign’s broader entertainment strategy, giving the brand visibility beyond traditional advertising placements.
On the creator side, the campaign includes influencers and personalities such as Kamie Crawford, Gabby Thomas, Markell Washington, Tara Yummy, and Micky Gordan. Rather than using scripted creative, Liquid I.V. encouraged creators to share content in their own voice to create a more authentic connection with audiences across different lifestyle categories.
Shaw also noted that the micro-influencers became a major focus for the campaign because they allowed the brand to showcase a broader range of use cases for the product. From travel and fitness to nightlife and festivals, the brand wanted creators to demonstrate how hydration fits naturally into everyday summer experiences.
While Gen Z and millennials remain core targets, Liquid I.V. said the broader “Summer of Yes” concept was intentionally developed to appeal across demographics. The brand aimed to reflect a wide variety of consumers and experiences throughout the campaign visuals and activations so audiences could define their own version of a summer “yes” moment.
For Liquid I.V., the campaign represents more than a seasonal flavor push. The brand hopes the effort further strengthens its presence across music, entertainment, retail, and creator culture as brands continue looking for more lifestyle driven ways to connect with younger consumers.
“Success for us is when a flavor launch starts to feel and behave like entertainment,” said Shaw. “And what I mean by that is when consumers are organically thinking about it, they’re sharing it, they’re creating content around it, and they’re really bringing it into their own summer moments and sharing what that means to them.”
