Lotus Botanical Elixirs: Raspberry Infused

The “Pink Lotus” formulation of Lotus Botanical Elixirs is a carbonated drink labeled as a “balance supplement.” It features a proprietary blend of functional ingredients, including lotus flower extract, rhodiola rosea extract, schizandra berry extract, ginger root extract and natural caffeine (71mg per can). The product, which is labeled as a supplement, is otherwise pretty straight forward, with sparkling water, sugar, flavors, raspberry juice, red cabbage extract and citric acid rounding things out. As a result of this blend, the flavor profile of the product is relatively similar to what you might expect to find in an energy drink. Both the raspberry flavor and the level of sweetness are quite mild and there’s only a slight functional flavor to the product. Ultimately, the flavor is enjoyable for what it is (we’d say the same for the other two varieties in the line as well), but it’s not something that feels like a key part of getting a consumer to purchase the product. On the packaging and positioning end of things, we feel as though it’s not clear as to what this product’s purpose is. “Balance Mind & Body” and “Balance Supplement” are pretty conceptual and subjective (especially compared to energy, which is likely what this product will sit next to on a shelf or in a cooler). As a result, the product requires somewhat close examination to really figure it out and it’s much less direct in what it offers than other products. This has proven to be a challenge for other functional non-energy drink brands (for example, Solixir) and we suspect that this brand will be no different. Visually, the 12 oz. slim can, which features a textured finish, has a polished looking design. However, given our previous points about the conceptual nature of the functionality, we do wonder if shifting more towards energy or doing something to further promote the drink’s flavor would be helpful. All in all, this is a unique product in its approach, but some refinement is needed in order to help the message get through to the consumer and create demand for this type of function.