In the audio clip below, Chad Wilson Olipop’s head of marketing tells WGN’s Steve Alexander why the prebiotic soda brand chose Chicago for its first leap into outdoor advertising. Olipop was created six years ago in Oakland, California, and rapidly became a darling of social media. Wilson says after carving out a niche on the coasts, Chicago, with its diverse culture, matched up as the perfect place to attack the middle of the country. Wilson says Olipop’s popularity is based on sugar content: two to five grams per can vs. 41 grams for Pepsi and 39 grams for Coke. He says buyer feedback on taste is positive and the root beer flavor is now outselling A&W’s.

Along with the 61 billboards scattered around Chicago, Olipop commissioned a mural by well-known Chicago artist Rahmaan Statik.