Doritos begins 'bold' product launch

New product introductions aren’t what they used to be as evidenced by Doritos “Bold Flavor Experiment” involving mysterious variants of the spicy chips.

The Frito-Lay division of PepsiCo this week is introducing three new flavors of the Doritos Jacked brand to the snack food but not telling shoppers what they are called. The unconventional approach to generating trial also involves a unique contest element to encourage shoppers to digitally engage with the brand.

As part of the brand’s Bold Flavor Experiment, shoppers are encouraged to buy all three mystery flavors and vote beginning April 29 for their favorite un-named flavor. Each day, Frito-Lay will award $1,000 in gold during the 60 day contest. The unconventional prize is due to the fact that Doritos in Spanish loosely translates to little pieces of gold. The flavor that receives the most votes will return to store shelves this fall.

"There's nothing as bold as stepping into the unknown, and crunching into an unknown mystery chip with over-the-top flavor is one way we're inviting fans to be bold with the Doritos brand," said Ram Krishnan, vp of marketing at Frito-Lay. "Our Bold Flavor Experiment is the latest example of how we're rewarding our fans for making bold choices, this time by trying our mystery Doritos Jacked flavors and voting for the bold flavor they like best."

On the promotion site, www.boldflavorexperiment.com, shoppers can also take part in a bold scavenger hunt that will unlock clues to the mystery flavor names. The three mystery flavor names will be officially revealed once voting ends, along with the top vote-getting flavor.