Among the myriad of issues COVID-19 threw at us was one that got lost in the noise: Water fountains would be closed as kids head back to a bizarre new school year.

Having public water available within schools is something we took completely for granted...until the pandemic. And hydration is critically important to kids. So as much as we know they love Capri Sun, for a radically different back-to-school period, what they truly need is water.

How can Capri Sun cut through the stream of "we're all in this together" pandemic messaging and make tangible change among its demographic in a way that was authentic to them?

Fill those iconic juice pouches with water, donated 5 MILLION of them to schools, and apologize to kids profusely.

We chose to take a more honest approach with kids. They were dealing with an array of changes thrust upon them because of COVID-19. Then we replace their beloved juice with water. Yes, this new reality is different, but the real truth is that it kind of sucks. Apologizing for that seemed like the right thing to do. Enter: We're Sorry It's Not Juice.

The integrated campaign targeted specifically at young parents kicked off with a full-page newsprint “Apology” that outlined why this is needed right now. Anchoring our message was a fun OLV in which we invited kids to try out a new Capri Sun "flavor", can caught their priceless taste-test reactions on camera.

Having public water available within schools is something we took completely for granted—until the pandemic. And hydration is critically important to kids. So as much as we know they love Capri Sun, for a radically different back-to-school period, what they truly need is water.

Sorry kids. You're welcome, parents.

We tapped into behavioral-based data from LiveRamp to target parents who care about the new back-to-school format. This was supplemented with geospatial data that prioritized locations near retail and on school commutes, including gas stations, grocery, malls, train stations.

The magic in this strategy is that, while we solved a big problem for parents across the US, we also inadvertently reminded children how great Capri Sun juice tastes.

Our blind taste-test online video launched at the end of August along with a string of (informally) formal social post apologies. The live date was timed to capture attention of parents whose kids were gearing up to head back into school as the pandemic news tornado swirled with uncertainty over safety concerns about a new educational normal.

This coincided with a donation of 5M pouches to schools in the Chicago area—home of the Capri Sun factory where workers stopped production on the juice for a number of days and changed all packaging for the cause.

The campaign would stretch until kids were back in mid-September. Or, at least, that's what we thought. Positive social sentiment was so strong that, soon enough, parents all over the US were asking for a donation—so that's what we did.

5 MILLION in donated water pouches to schools and communities.

Unanimous positive social sentiment.

21%+ increase of social mentions across all channels of Capri Sun compared to same period last year.

100M in earned media.

Significantly hiked consumer awareness and affinity.

Cut through the pandemic noise with an act, not an ad. The right idea at the right time.