Chocolate or vanilla? Regular or decaf? Red or white? People have strong feelings about gustatory preferences. For example, I know someone who insists that “chocolate is the only ice cream flavor worth the time” and someone else who’s a committed Coke Zero drinker: Coke is the brand, Zero is the beverage, and, if there’s no Coke Zero, Diet Coke is only just slightly better than tap water.

Speaking of Coke Zero…

Three weeks ago on a Tuesday, I was enjoying a meander down Main Street in Chatham, Massachusetts. I reached a corner and, as I looked right to confirm a safe crossing, I spotted a Coca Cola semi-trailer truck in the driveway to my right – a stacked-high rolling warehouse of Coke products – and a giant of a man unloading cases of Coke to deliver to nearby restaurants.

“Hey”, I called out as I approached.

“Hey”, he replied, looking up from his work.

“I’m curious,” I responded. “I’ve just come back from a few days in France and I noticed that not a single shop or restaurant we visited sold Diet Coke. It was all Coke Zero. What do you see here? What do people in this area prefer?”

“It’s a great question and… it depends,” he replied. “On Cape Cod, it’s Diet Coke. It’s almost flying off the shelves from here to Provincetown (up the forearm of the Cape). Off Cape, 30 miles from here up toward Boston, it’s Coke Zero, Coke Zero, Coke Zero. Very few places sell Diet Coke. It depends on the area.”

Indeed. Turns out that his observations line up. Coke Zero outperforms Diet Coke in major metropolitan areas and with younger populations who prefer the flavor profile of Coke Zero: It mimics regular Coca Cola.

Less populated areas seem to be fiercely loyal to Diet Coke where it is often the only sugar-free option available. Diet Coke demand is driven heavily by Gen X and Baby Boomer consumers who grew up with that flavor.

Just goes to show: Before deciding what to sell or how, ya gotta know your ZIP to target your Zero.

Nick Miller is President of Clarity Advantage based in Concord, MA. He assists banks and credit unions to generate more and more profitable relationships, faster, with business clients, their owners, and their employees through better sales strategies and execution. Additional articles on Clarity’s web site.