POPPI

MomPop

Project for AI in Advertising, Loyola University Chicago

The Brief

Leverage AI to deepen emotional connection and personalization, keeping real people and real relationships at the center.

The Insight

The most meaningful celebrations feel uniquely personal. Technology only matters when it amplifies real relationships rather than replacing them.

The Idea

Introducing MOMPOP, an AI-powered Mother’s Day experience where users describe their mom in three words to generate a unique Poppi flavor, two-color can design, and AI-generated background of where she’d enjoy it most. Each MomPop would be a playful, personalized celebration of mom, designed for maximum social shareability.

A colorful soda can with a pink and yellow floral design on a pink and peach gradient background.
A can of Poppi soda floating against a yellow background.
Close-up of a can of chocolate drink bottle hovering upside down over a pink background.

STEP 1: Flavor Generator

The experience begins with users entering their mom’s name and three personality traits that best describe her. My custom AI agent processes these inputs to create a fully developed flavor concept that ties each trait to specific taste elements, a short narrative-style flavor analysis explaining how those traits translate into taste, and a two-color palette in hex code format derived from the flavor’s mood and ingredients. This first stage ensures that every MomPop feels deeply personal, with the output directly tied to the user’s perception of their mom rather than a random combination.

Try it for yourself in the AI Agent below.

MomPop
Agent
Pink background with a campaign concept titled 'What's your Mom's Name?' in purple text and a yellow oval input box below.
Pink campaign slide titled 'Describe her in 3 words' with three yellow horizontal blanks for answers.

STEP 2: Custom Can Design

The MomPop generator not only creates the flavor concept, it also builds a custom two-color palette for each submission. The palette pulls from the personality of the mom and the flavor cues, resulting in combinations that feel fun, bold, and instantly Poppi coded. Keeping the palette limited to two colors makes every output feel graphic, modern, and easy to translate into packaging.

Once the flavor concept and color palette are generated, the output is brought to life through a modular can label system I designed in Adobe Illustrator. The layout remains consistent to maintain Poppi’s brand recognition, while the colors adapt to each palette so every MomPop feels unique. The mom’s name and flavor name are displayed prominently, creating a sense of ownership and connection.

The design process also included creating a floral graphic that symbolizes a bouquet of flowers, a universal sign of spring and a classic gift for Mother’s Day. This motif ties the concept back to the holiday, adding warmth and sentiment while keeping the design playful and celebratory.

This approach allowed for unlimited variations without compromising visual cohesion across the campaign.

The design process also included creating a floral graphic that symbolizes a bouquet of flowers, a universal sign of spring and a classic gift for Mother’s Day. This motif ties the concept back to the holiday, adding warmth and sentiment while keeping the design playful and celebratory.

This approach allowed for unlimited variations without compromising visual cohesion across the campaign.

STEP 3: Background Generation & Social Sharing

After the flavor and design are set, users answer a second prompt: Where would your mom enjoy her MomPop? The MomPop Generator then produces a photorealistic background image showing the mom in that environment, from a sunny beach café to a classic art museum. To maintain a polished and cohesive look across all submissions, I refined the generation process to lock in a consistent point of view, bright and inviting lighting, and a composition that keeps the can in focus while still showcasing the setting. This step gave every MomPop a personal story while preserving the brand’s aesthetic.

A pink campaign concept webpage with bright yellow and pink text asking where a woman would enjoy her MomPop drink. There's a large yellow button labeled 'Generate'. To the right, a photo of a soda can with a pink and yellow design is shown within a museum gallery setting, with a 'Love you Mom!' message and a link to celebrate Mother's Day.
Infographic explaining a campaign concept for a personalized drink can called Jill's MomPop with pineapple hibiscus punch. The image shows a can in a luxurious room with columns and statues. Text highlights traits 'Adorable,' 'Stubborn,' and 'Strong,' and includes a message 'Love you Mom!' along with a website link for celebrating mothers.

The final MomPop is assembled into a share-ready asset for Instagram and Snapchat stories. The image includes the flavor name, the three traits provided by the user, and a short personalized note written for their mom. This content is designed to be inherently shareable, encouraging both daughters and moms to post and repost. The emotional connection built into the concept ensures that each submission doubles as user-generated content for Poppi, creating organic visibility during Mother’s Day season.

STEP 4: Voting & Production

To extend engagement beyond the initial submission, the campaign concept includes daily voting brackets on Poppi’s Instagram Stories. Ten standout MomPops would be selected to compete head-to-head until a winner emerges. The winning MomPop would be produced as a limited-edition spring flavor, complete with a matching merch set for the winner and her mom. This gamified element turns the campaign into an interactive event, keeping followers invested and encouraging them to return each day to vote.

STEP 5: Influencer Activation

It wouldn’t be a Poppi campaign without what they are known for: influencer marketing. To build reach, the campaign would partner with lifestyle influencers who have strong family narratives and cross generational appeal. Influencers like Alix and Ashtin Earle could create their own MomPops, one for their mom and one for their stepmom, and share the process with their followers. This layer adds aspirational yet relatable content to the campaign, sparking participation from audiences who already connect with these personalities.

  • Alix & Ashtin Earle

    ALIX
    Instagram (@alix_earle): 4M
    TikTok (@alixearle): 7.3M

    ASHTIN
    Instagram (@ashtin): 517K
    TikTok (@ashtinearle): 1.1M

  • Britanny Broski

    Instagram (@brittany_broski): 2M
    TikTok (@brittany_broski): 7.6M

  • Sohee Carpenter

    Tiktok (@soheefit): 165.4K
    Instagram (@soheefit): 658K

  • Julia Hatch

    Tiktok (@juliahatch22): 2.2M
    Instagram (@julia.hatchh): 908K

  • Chris Olsen

    Instagram (@chris): 2.1M
    TikTok (@chris): 13.6M

Reflection

MomPop is more than a playful Mother’s Day concept. It demonstrates how AI can be used as a creative tool to deepen brand connection and community engagement. By giving consumers the ability to co-create a product that feels personal and shareable, the campaign taps into Poppi’s value of fostering community. At the same time, the MomPop Generator reflects the brand’s commitment to innovation by using technology in a way that feels approachable, fun, and seamlessly integrated into everyday life.

For Poppi, innovation is not only about what is inside the can but also about how the brand shows up in culture. This campaign takes that spirit and channels it into a personalized experience that celebrates relationships while generating organic, community-driven buzz. In doing so, MomPop proves that AI in advertising can be more than a novelty. When guided with intention, it becomes a way to bring people together and make a brand feel even more a part of their lives.

This was an individual project, and I was solely responsible for every aspect, from research and strategy to design and execution. I concepted the campaign, created all visual assets and mockups, and developed the label system art-directed the AI generation process. I also built and refined the custom AI agent that powered the generator, ensuring consistent outputs and integrating them into polished, brand-aligned visuals. While entirely speculative, I treated the project as a full case study, going beyond the assignment requirements to demonstrate how AI can be intentionally directed to serve both creative and strategic goals to achieve personalization.

March 2025