Jones Soda’s Bottle Ballots

With 8,370 votes, Barack Obama has a commanding lead, followed by Ron Paul with 5,184 votes, John McCain with 2,334 votes and Hilary Clinton with 1,860 votes.

Wait a secondRon Paul is in second place? Whats going on here? Is this the latest Florida vote-counting scandal?

No, these are just the numbers of Jones Soda cola bottles soldeach one adorned with a different smiling face of your favorite candidate aboveas of late August in the soft-drink companys Campaign Cola 2008 promotion (campiagncola.com). The choices of the otherwise identical cola flavors have names such as Yes We Can Cola, Pure McCain Cola, Capitol Hillary Cola and, yes, even Ron Paul Revolution Cola.

Its no coincidence that Jones is sporting the candidates mugs on their bottles when political cognizance is high; its all part of a bigger push for recognition that has been in full force since the company raised $30 million in a 2006 stock sale. After eight years on the alternative side of the cola wars and a reported a loss of $11 million this past year, Jones Soda is trying to bubble its way into the Coca-Cola and Pepsi territory.

We know we will never be as big as Pepsi or Coke, admits Seth Godwin, Jones Sodas marketing manager, but we are in the process of heavily developing our brand to have more access points. Jones most recent attempt to lure soda connoisseurs began in June at the tail end of the long, contentious primary season, selling more than 15,000 bottles in the first two months.

Godwin says the political theme fits well with Jones original marketing slogan: Run with the little guy and create some change. This dedication is evident in the simple existence of the Ron Paul bump. When the Jones campaign started, Paul was not included. But after receiving fervent e-mail and blog postings from Pauls few-but-fervent followers, Jones acquiesced and launched a special tribute soda for the maverick Republican.

The Seattle-based beverage maker has never been shy about developing interesting, if not downright outrageous, marketing gimmicks. Jones is already nationally known for using photos submitted by the general public to grace its labels. But the company is probably most famous for its wild annual holiday packs. In past years, the packs have included sodas that taste like turkey and gravy, Christmas ham and biscuits. The company even offers a Hanukkah pack that includes sodas flavored like latkes. Last year, Jones signed a deal with Qwest Field to become the first non-Coke and non-Pepsi soda firm to win the rights to supply soda drinks to an NFL stadium. The company celebrated by releasing the limited edition Seahawks Collector Pack, with sodas that tasted like dirt, perspiration and sports cream.

Jones has also been marketing its continuing conversion from glass bottles to aluminum cans. First stocked exclusively at Target in 2005, the cans went national in 2007 and became available on Alaska Airlines in April 2008.

But despite all the unique publicity, Jones continues to face difficult financial times ahead as it moves into the mainstream soda market. Meanwhile, well see how well Jones unscientific survey translates at the real voting booths.