Do Customers ‘Get’ Your Product?

Founders often think they know what people want. But what if they’re wrong? Here’s how one beverage company rebranded—making itself more appealing to the right buyers.

- FRANCES DODDS

When O2 launched in 2014, it called itself an “oxygenated recovery drink.” What’s that? It means it’s infused with oxygen to improve recovery. O2 was marketed to young men who exercise hard, like its founders, Dave Colina and Dan Kim, and it did great in gyms. But it struggled to reach wider retail. Then it became clear. Retail buyers didn’t understand the phrase “oxygenated recovery,” and consumer research revealed a surprising disconnect: O2’s most engaged customers were women ages 35 to 55—not young men! It was time for a change. O2 hired the branding agency We Are Bill. Here’s how they tore the brand down and then built it back up.

STEP 1/ DEFINE THE PROBLEM.