💡 A Lesson in Marketing ft. Red Bull
Energy Drink = Red Bull. What lies behind Red Bull's powerful branding strategy? Read on.
Energy? ❌
Wiiings ✅
Adrenaline? ❌
Red Bull ✅
That’s how strong Red Bull’s marketing is.
But how did it create this strong brand persona?
Back in 1987, an Austrian entrepreneur,Dietrich Mateschitz, had a magical beverage during a trip to Thailand. Why magical?
The drink energised him and cured his jet-lag like never before!
His entrepreneurial mind instantly said ‘Let’s launch this in Austria and make a business out of it!’
And so he gave the world a new product category: caffeinated energy drinks.
All it had to do was crack marketing. How?
Red Bull's Marketing Strategy
Strategy 1: Tap the herd mentality
It created a false sense of popularity by filling bins outside clubs and bars with empty Red Bull cans.
The empty cans made people think ‘Woah, this new brand must be really good!’.
This increased brand adoption.
Strategy 2: Sell an emotion
Red Bull’s choice of emotion: best adventure companion.
So that anytime someone seeks thrill, they think ‘Red Bull’.
And it practiced what it preached.
It participated in adventure sport events and made world records:
In 2005, Red Bull ventured into Formula 1 and made the Red Bull F1 team
In 2011, it entered extreme snow sports like snowboarding and skiing
In 2012, it sponsored the world-record shattering skydive event in which Felix Baumgartner (an Australian skydiver) broke the sound barrier in freefall
Result?
Red Bull became synonymous with adventure sports and adrenaline rush.
And while it was creating once-in-a-lifetime experiences for its users, it also created content for itself.
It established Red Bull Media House (RBMH), an in-house media department for content creation.
It also released Red Bulletin, its own lifestyle magazine delivering thrilling content.
Strategy 3: Events and community building for like minded adventure-lovers
Be it athletes, skateboarders or bike racers, Red Bull organised events for all and inspired them to dream big. The community gave them a sense of belongingness.
Result?
Its users were no more buying an energy drink, they were buying a companion for adventure and thrill.
Wondering how much this brand building costs Red Bull?
In 2023, it reported a €10.55 Billion revenue, 20-30% of which it spent on marketing.
Yes, that's one the highest marketing spends in the industry!
But, marketing seems to be an investment rather than an expense for the company:
Cost of Felix Baumgartner’s space jump: $65 million.
Outcome? Global exposure, with over 8M concurrent live-streaming viewers on YouTube!
Key marketing lessons from Red Bull
Never market your product. Only the experience/emotion attached with it.
All your marketing campaigns should ultimately have one objective for a higher brand recall. Just like all of Red Bull's campaigns scream ‘Red Bull gives you wiiings’.
Content marketing and community building can go a long way if done right- people love to know about people, stories, events and everything in between.
Which other brands are winning the marketing game? Tell us your favorite!