ASK A SOFT DRINKS FUTURIST: WHY ARE THESE BEVERAGES SO POPULAR?

Oftentimes, soft drinks futurists and keynote speakers are asked to opine on the future of cola, pop and other beverages. But just as often, they have to do a little up-front clarification to help audiences who may not be as familiar with concepts in the field understand just what’s being discussed. Bearing this in mind, let’s not assume we’re ready to jump right into these topics. Serving as soft drinks futurists and keynote speakers, we thought we’d provide a bit of basic background.

To wit, a soft drink is a non-alcoholic beverage that typically contains carbonated water, sugar or sugar substitutes, and flavorings. Some common types of soft drinks include:

• Sodas – Examples are colas like Coca-Cola and Pepsi, as well as non-cola sodas like Sprite, 7Up, and Mountain Dew. Sodas are carbonated drinks that are sweetened with sugar or artificial sweeteners.
• Fruit-flavored drinks – Per top soft drinks futurists and keynote speakers, think fruit punches like Hawaiian Punch and Hi-C, as well as fruit sodas like Fanta and Sunkist. These contain fruit flavorings and are also carbonated and sweetened.
• Sports and energy drinks – Popular favorites are Gatorade, Powerade, and Red Bull. Formulas include electrolytes, vitamins, caffeine, or other stimulants.
• Juice drinks – The likes of SunnyD and Minute Maid juices. Many contain a smaller percentage of real fruit juice mixed with water and sweeteners.
• Flavored sparkling waters – We’re talking the likes of La Croix and Bubly, per soft drinks futurists and keynote speakers. These are carbonated waters with natural fruit flavors but few or no calories.

In other words, soft drinks refer to non-alcoholic, flavored beverages that are either naturally or artificially carbonated. As soft drinks futurists and keynote speakers can tell you, they provide refreshment and hydration.