One of the first "diet soft drinks" to hit the market was the vile brew Tab Cola. It's actually been around since the 1960s, marketed primarily to women to keep their man interested in them (read that - get fat and he cheats and leaves you). As the concept of equal rights for women made its mark in the 1970s with the women's liberation movement, Tab Cola's campaign was changed to sell its cola to women as part of being one of the "beautiful people."
And for years, Tab was always considered a woman's diet drink. Tab, from the people who make Coca Cola, tried to change that image by appealing to men in a few ads, but frankly this never worked.
What made Tab awful was really more the fault of the sweetener - sodium saccharine. Before there was Nutra Sweet, there was this stuff. It had the pesky problem of being a "delayed sweetener." When it first hits your tongue, it tastes bitter. But after a few moments, the sweetness kicks in, and then stays... and stays... and stays more. Hence, you get the aftertaste problem.
A good soft drink should not be a palate challenge, and Tab generally was, except for those who just drank so much of it, they got used to it. And that presented the second problem - in the 1970s sodium saccharine was tied to causing cancer in rats. The warning label went on the cans.
Nutra Sweet (aspartame) came along in a big way in the 1980s and killed off Tab, which disappeared off most store shelves, despite the fact it has been in regular production ever since it was created. (Believe it or not, aspartame was first sold as a sweetener for gum and kids cereal before it settled into its primary role as being a diet beverage sweetener.)
Tab has made a small reappearance on some store shelves, and is trying to reinvent itself as a diet energy drink targeted to young men. Considering the dominance of Red Bull, I'm not sure how far they'll get.
So let's review the ads from the folks who made Tab, starting with the horrendously sexist ads from the 1960s. You won't believe this stuff.
BE A MINDSTICKER.
