Marketing Research: Red Bull Strategy

At such a point in marketing, Red Bull had found its calling, so to speak, in its advertising strategies, but that did not stop them from coming up with new creative tactics to persuade more than 86% of the American public to try their ‘energy in a can' (Gschwandtner). In fact, they hired "hip locals" of busy cities known as the MET's (mobile energy team) to drive around a Red Bull logo car with daily missions that include bringing energy where it's needed, sporting events,

What are energy drinks? Cola and coffee drinks have long been promoted and known as "energy" drinks - meant to give you a little pick me up, mostly in the form of caffeine and sugar. Jolt Cola in the 80s was one of the early entries in the "energy drink" market, with double the caffeine of normal colas, it was marketed towards teens and college students as a way to get an energy edge and keep you awake and energized. Their slogan, in fact, was "twice the caffeine". Jolt has in fact recently been reincarnated given the success of other energy drinks. What are the most popular energy drinks? Red Bull, created by an Austrian company, really defined the category, and was launched in Europe in the late 1980s. Their

The pick-me-up 's 'anti-brand brand ' status explains its rapid success, argues Nirmalya Kumar, senior analyst at the London Business School. 'Red Bull has never done anything in a conventional way. It has not used normal advertising, nor marketing. When it sponsors events or sports, it tends to go for minority ones. '

Energy drinks didn’t become very popular until the 90s. On the year of 1997, Red Bull was launched and afterward the popularity of energy drinks raised among with other numerous brands. The consumption of energy drinks every year has surpass from “5.8 billion liters” in 2013 in about 160 countries. The predicted total United States retail market profit was about “12.5 billion USD in 2012” and the market raised 56% from 2006 to 2012.

Red Bull’s unique and extremely well coordinated marketing repertoire is without a doubt one of the key factors for its success. Red Bull’s strategy to target its audience with non-traditional ads, made the brand more believable for its “No brands” followers. For a brand such as Red Bull, marketing communications are deemed to be so important that 35% of its turnover goes to communications and events. Through this manner of communication, Red Bull avoids traditional media channels by making the product readily available –

The Red Bull brand is an iconic worldwide model of how a company can create a powerhouse and a style of marketing that many traditional companies would never attempt. The company uses its extreme stunts and sponsorships of extreme sports to promote the brand and product and excel in a style that has attracted a younger generation with a main focus on teenagers to the late twenties. This has mainly been due to the success of Dietrich Mateschitz, who helped found the company with a marketing degree from a school in Austria, and prior corporate marketing experience after working for Blendax, (now

Since then Red Bull is known for its crazy fun marketing strategies; through various entertainment based marketing campaign and sports, targeting the young generation.

One of the biggest success story is that of Red Bull, who have come up with new unconventional ideas, changing the sports marketing landscape altogether. The drink, created in 1987 and derived from Thai ingredients, is sold in distinct slim blue-silver cans we all know so well. Available in over 72 countries, Red Bull has become one of the most popular energy drinks in the world. Owned by the Austrian Red Bull Gmbh company, it is also one of the world’s most recognizable brands.

In 1997, the lives of millions of Americans changed after the consumption of one special beverage owned by an Austrian drink company, Red Bull GmbH. Red Bull was founded by International Marketing Director, Dietrich Mateschitz, in the mid 1980’s, who partnered with Thai manufacturer, Chaleo Yoovidhya, who had been selling his caffeinated beverage (KratingDaeng) in Thailand since 1976. Originally selling at $2.19 per 8 ounce can, Red Bull was marketed in the United States as an alternative to soft drinks created by Pepsi and Coca-Cola. Not only did people find this drink an excellent alternative to typical caffeinated beverages, the introduction of this refreshment created the start of the highly marketable and extremely competitive energy

Founded in the early 1980’s, by Dietrich Mateshchitz. In 1987, on April 1, Red Bull Energy Drink was sold for the very first time in its home market Austria. This was not only the launch of a completely new product; in fact it was the birth of a totally new product category. Today Red Bull is available in more than 167 countries and around 50 billion cans of Red Bull have been consumed so far (REDBULL Website, 2014). RedBull™ makes carbonated energy drinks with the claim that it will provide the consumer with a boost of energy to “vitalize the mind and body” RedBull’s tagline is “It gives you Wiiings”. This is a product that in the year 2014 sold over 5.6 Billion cans worldwide, giving people extra energy to get through their day, or to provide individuals with that extra dose of thinking power needed for an exam, or triathlon etc. RedBull™ energy drink ingredients consist of Caffeine, Taurine, B Vitamins, Sucrose & Glucose and water, but there are also other flavors now in the pipeline of products. RedBull™ was the answer to those searching for more of a pick-me-up that coffee or cola would provide.

Red bull sponsored many extreme sport events, party for young customers such as F1, mountain biking, flight exhibitions and DJ contests. By these activities could associate with the public image “cool”. With more and more sponsored activities range from extreme sport to music or art shows, free press was produced by bloggers, writers and journalists. In a addition, this makes red bull different from other brands to attract young people and affect them.

Currently Red Bull is targeting 16-29 year old young urban males, which is a limited market. Expanding the targeted market to other segments of the population would be a prolific move for Red Bull, expanding its horizon. The slogan “Red Bull gives you wings” is directed towards young people with active lifestyles interested in extreme sports and challenging recreational endeavors. It’s being marketed to combat mental and physical fatigue and to improve performance when it comes to sport, work, study and socializing. The market strategy of Red Bull gives the impression that it’s only targeting males and people who are interested in extreme sports. It could be interesting for Red-Bull to target different and untouched segments.

Red Bull extensively uses pull marketing. This approach involves getting consumers excited about the product and conveying this excitement to their family and friends. It is also about trying to get coverage of Red Bull events in the press. This coverage can encourage consumers to find out more about the product. It helps to generate momentum, through creating interesting stories for people to talk about, which in turn help to create brand awareness and grow sales.

The world Red Bull has constructed has proven to be successful in terms of endorsement from their most valuable asset, devoted consumers. Consumers of Red Bull come from various professions, financial positions, and backgrounds. In terms of gender and age, Red Bull’s audience is quite selective. The audience is primarily young males who “live life on the edge,” or slightly older males that physically and/or mentally exert themselves. Red Bull equates “living life on the edge” to living in the “World of Red Bull.”

Ans 1 – It is my opinion that Red Bull has a global marketing strategy which it implements in all the markets in enters into. Red Bull has built its name as a trendy energy drink, catering to young adults (aged 16-29), young urban professionals and post secondary school students. Also it targets young club-goers and private parties to spread its name as an active and stylish drink. Red Bull believes that it is not selling a beverage, but it is selling a ‘way of life’. With their catchy slogan, ‘Red Bull gives you wings’; Red Bull has dominated the energy drink markets of a decade now.