When Diet Coke first came out in 1983, its makers had one goal: Make it clear this is a diet soda.
After all, the drink was created, at least in part, in response to a failed attempt at a subtle, low-calorie soda. Twenty years earlier, Coca-Cola Company had debuted its first-ever diet soda, Tab (as in, keep a tab on your waistline.) But from the start, the new soda’s taste was somewhat off, its connection to dieting was far too subtle, and consumers didn’t associate “Tab” with Coca-Cola, among other things. So when Diet Coke was introduced, the soda conglomerate pulled out all the stops, with in-your-face commercials, a new tagline — “Just for the taste of it” — and, of course, a new name: Diet Coke. Definitely Coke, definitely diet, and definitely not subtle.
