# The boring product needs a story people want to repeat > A plain essay on Liquid Death: pre-product brand validation, curiosity packaging, entertainment-first healthy marketing, retail launch stunts, category expansion, and lifecycle conversion. - Canonical HTML: https://growth.iangoh.com/blog/the-boring-product-needs-a-story-people-want-to-repeat/ - Published: 2026-06-07 - Updated: 2026-06-07T03:58:02.000Z - Categories: consumer brand, cpg, brand-led growth - Niches: CPG, consumer products, beverage brands, DTC brands, retail launches, social commerce ## On this page - Test the story before the inventory - Make the shelf ask a question - Do not make healthy feel like homework - Widen the audience without sanding off the edge - Expand only when the brand has permission - Fame still has to convert ## Start with these related tactics - [Liquid Death pre-product commercial demand test](/growth-ideas/liquid-death-pre-product-commercial-demand-test/): Shoot the shareable brand asset before manufacturing the product, then use audience reaction to prove the concept deserves inventory risk. - [Liquid Death curiosity packaging in boring category](/growth-ideas/liquid-death-curiosity-packaging-in-boring-category/): Use packaging that makes people stop and ask a question when the category normally trains them to ignore the shelf. - [Liquid Death entertainment-first healthy product marketing](/growth-ideas/liquid-death-entertainment-first-healthy-product-marketing/): Market the healthy product with entertainment mechanics normally reserved for beer, soda, and junk food. Water is not supposed to have lore. That is why Liquid Death is useful. The product is ordinary in the functional sense. The growth system is not. It takes a low-drama product and gives people something to notice, repeat, wear, post, question, buy, and then buy again. ## Test the story before the inventory [Liquid Death pre-product commercial demand test](/growth-ideas/liquid-death-pre-product-commercial-demand-test/) is the opening move. Before the brand had broad retail distribution, the team tested whether the idea could earn attention. That matters for any consumer product where the brand is the wedge. If the story cannot travel before the pallet exists, the pallet will not save it. ## Make the shelf ask a question [Liquid Death curiosity packaging in boring category](/growth-ideas/liquid-death-curiosity-packaging-in-boring-category/) is the part everyone sees first. A tallboy can with a skull does not behave like bottled water. The point is not shock for its own sake. The package gives the customer a sentence: why does this water look like beer? In retail, that sentence is a distribution asset. ## Do not make healthy feel like homework [Liquid Death entertainment-first healthy product marketing](/growth-ideas/liquid-death-entertainment-first-healthy-product-marketing/) is the deeper lesson. The brand borrows the entertainment grammar of beer, soda, and junk food, then applies it to water and low-sugar drinks. Ian Goh's practical read would care about that translation. In consumer platforms, social products, livestreaming, and market entry, the useful question is often: which emotional format already gets attention, and can a better product borrow it honestly? ## Widen the audience without sanding off the edge [Liquid Death retail launch with broader audience stunt](/growth-ideas/liquid-death-retail-launch-with-broader-audience-stunt/) shows the retail problem. Whole Foods shoppers needed the brand to feel weird but not alien. A launch stunt can do that work if it keeps the brand voice intact while giving a new audience an easier way in. ## Expand only when the brand has permission [Liquid Death category expansion after brand permission](/growth-ideas/liquid-death-category-expansion-after-brand-permission/) is why the story did not stop at water. Once the brand meant something, it could carry flavored sparkling drinks and iced tea. That is different from random SKU sprawl. The customer follows the point of view, not just the ingredient. ## Fame still has to convert [Liquid Death lifecycle flows convert nonbuyer fandom](/growth-ideas/liquid-death-lifecycle-flows-convert-nonbuyer-fandom/) is the least flashy tactic, which is why I like it. A social fan is not a customer until the system gives them a path to buy and buy again. The Liquid Death lesson is not “be outrageous.” It is sharper: if your product is functionally boring, the brand has to create memory, and the operating system has to turn that memory into revenue. If you want help turning a consumer product or social-commerce idea into a sharper growth loop, the advisory CTA is here: [work with Ian Goh](https://iangoh.com/advisory). ## Related GrowthDex tactics - [Liquid Death pre-product commercial demand test](/growth-ideas/liquid-death-pre-product-commercial-demand-test/) - Brand, Social, Prelaunch - [Liquid Death curiosity packaging in boring category](/growth-ideas/liquid-death-curiosity-packaging-in-boring-category/) - Brand, Retail, Word of Mouth - [Liquid Death entertainment-first healthy product marketing](/growth-ideas/liquid-death-entertainment-first-healthy-product-marketing/) - Content, Brand, Social - [Liquid Death retail launch with broader audience stunt](/growth-ideas/liquid-death-retail-launch-with-broader-audience-stunt/) - Retail, Brand, Campaigns - [Liquid Death category expansion after brand permission](/growth-ideas/liquid-death-category-expansion-after-brand-permission/) - Brand, Retail, Product - [Liquid Death lifecycle flows convert nonbuyer fandom](/growth-ideas/liquid-death-lifecycle-flows-convert-nonbuyer-fandom/) - Email, Lifecycle, Retention ## Essay chronology - [Newer essay: The unfinished game should give players something to show](/blog/the-unfinished-game-should-give-players-something-to-show/) - gaming, community-led growth, product-led growth - [Older essay: The platform should name the game before it names the category](/blog/the-platform-should-name-the-game-before-it-names-the-category/) - creator economy, livestreaming, platform strategy ## Keep reading - [The marketplace grows when selling feels free](/blog/the-marketplace-grows-when-selling-feels-free/) - marketplaces, pricing strategy, trust and safety - [The marketplace has to make selling feel social](/blog/the-marketplace-has-to-make-selling-feel-social/) - marketplaces, social commerce, community-led growth - [The marketplace works when the seller wants to be seen](/blog/the-marketplace-works-when-the-seller-wants-to-be-seen/) - marketplaces, social commerce, community-led growth ## Sources - [BeverageDaily: Liquid Death on its marketing magic](https://www.beveragedaily.com/Article/2024/06/19/Liquid-Death-s-marketing-and-brand-building-strategy/) · [GrowthDex source hub](/sources/beveragedaily-liquid-death-on-its-marketing-magic-beveragedaily-com/) - [Marketing Dive: How Liquid Death cuts through marketing noise](https://www.marketingdive.com/news/liquid-death-creative-beverage-category-brand-interview/723142/) · [GrowthDex source hub](/sources/marketing-dive-how-liquid-death-cuts-through-marketing-noise-marketingdi/) - [Vendry: Liquid Death Killer Baby Namer](https://www.vendry.io/case-study/liquid-death-killer-baby-namer) · [GrowthDex source hub](/sources/vendry-liquid-death-killer-baby-namer-vendry-io/) - [BMO Media: Liquid Death lifecycle marketing case study](https://bmomedia.co/case-studies/liquid-death) · [GrowthDex source hub](/sources/bmo-media-liquid-death-lifecycle-marketing-case-study-bmomedia-co/) - [CNBC Make It: Liquid Death founder on the dumbest possible name](https://www.cnbc.com/2022/11/26/liquid-death-ceo-mike-cessario-we-chose-the-dumbest-name-and-a-facebook-post-into-a-700-million-water-brand.html) · [GrowthDex source hub](/sources/cnbc-make-it-liquid-death-founder-on-the-dumbest-possible-name-cnbc-com/) ## Editing notes - Kept the essay on one practical claim: boring functional products need a repeatable story and a conversion system, not only attention. - Grounded the claims in sourced numbers: $263M retail scanned sales, 113,000 retail doors, 7.9M social followers, #2 Whole Foods SKU claim, over-60% retail sales from newer categories, and lifecycle email gains. - Used Ian Goh’s Ian's growth experience for consumer platforms, social products, livestreaming, retail launches, and market entry without inventing personal Liquid Death anecdotes. - Removed generic brand hype and wrote around concrete mechanics: pre-product ads, packaging curiosity, entertainment media, retail audience expansion, category permission, and lifecycle flows. ## Advisory If you want help turning this into a growth system, Ian Goh offers advisory at https://iangoh.com/advisory.