RED BULL CASE STUDY

Focus on Digital Branding Strategy & Initiatives

By Christine Spitler | February 13, 2014
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THE BRAND
S.W.O.T. Analysis | The Product | The Extended Brand | Strategic Direction

• Iconic Brand
• Industry Leader
• Brand Recall
• Entertainment Value
• Loyal Fan Base
• Digital Developments
• Seldom Featuring of Product
• Connotations of “danger”
• Bad PR from deaths
• Male skew
• Niche market
• Not recently innovative
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S.W.O.T. ANALYSIS
• Product Line Expansion
• Skew Demographic Female
• Unique Packaging
strengths opportunities • Celebrity/Athlete Endorsement
• Partnership with Alcohol Brand
• Producing a “Natural” Formula
• Non-traditional competitors
infiltrating the market
• FDA regulation
More approachable “flavorful”
weaknesses threats •
alternatives
• Cheaper alternatives
• Health Concious Consumers
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THE PRODUCT
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THE PRODUCT

Discontinued in
2011
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BRAND EXTENSION

Video Images are hyperlinked

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STRATEGIC DIRECTION
Red Bull North America Inc in Soft Drinks (USA) Company Profile
(July 11, 2013)
• According to the global company website, Red Bull is focusing on the core markets of
Western Europe and the US, as well as the growth markets of Brazil, Japan, India and China.
The company is also concentrating on the global roll-out of its new Red Bull Editions.
• Red Bull North America has a strong marketing strategy, similar to that of its parent
company. Sponsorship of sports events and using all possible channels (including buzz
marketing and TV advertising) to capture the maximum young audience is a key strategy.
The launch of the Red Bull Magazine (The Red Bulletin) helps the Red Bull community to
connect and engage, and it is a clever strategy to retain consumer loyalty. The company
also offers on-demand Red Bull TV, with television shows focusing on spectacular sporting
and culture experiences worldwide. The brand has an image of notoriety, danger and
controversy, and any reference to potentially dangerous ingredients have actually helped
to make the product a big hit among its core youth demographic. Its popularity on the
nightclub circuit as a mixer with spirits has also played a major role in the brand’s success
among its target audience.

Source: Euromonitor International from company reports, company research, trade press, trade sources
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STRATEGIC DIRECTION
Marketing Strategy
• Red Bull has essentially spared no expense in pursuit of its
own path to market domination. The company’s
philosophy has been to ignore traditional media
advertising and marketing (bar its own unique set of
comical cartoon adverts), instead channeling money
into sporting, music, and cultural events. Its efforts have
been so extensive that the number of sportspeople and
events sponsored total in the hundreds… with a recent
study estimating that spending money on traditional
advertising methods to gain the same amount of
recognition would cost around double what Red Bull
currently invests…Another key indicator of Red Bull's
dedication to its brand image is that its own website is
dominated by the sports and events it runs, and
information about its own products takes on an almost
secondary role.

Source: Red Bull: A trailblazer in marketing strategy: Case Studies published by MarketLine on 19 July 2012
http://advantage.marketline.com/Product?pid=ML00007-012
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DIGITAL PRESENCE
Social Media Involvement
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1.37 M SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE

Followers

42.7 M
Fans
Mostly
RTs

Action On AVG
Content > 1 post/day
Product
Feature

Mostly
Outdoor/
Adventure 1.15 M
Pics Followers
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SOCIAL MEDIA CONT’D

Mostly
RTs
3.3 M
Subscribers

4 “sister”
Most
Watched
channels
Video:
36+ M
Views About: Experience the world of Red Bull like you have
never seen it before. With the
Experience bestofaction
the world Red Bullsports
like youclips
have on
never seen it before. With the best action sports
the web and YouTube exclusive series, prepare for your
clips on the web and YouTube exclusive series,
"stoke factor" to be at anforallyour
prepare time high.
"stoke factor" to be at an all time
high.
Video image is hyperlinked
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THE ENERGY DRINK INDUSTRY

Key Trends | The Competition | New Growth Opportunities
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KEY INDUSTRY TRENDS

• “…energy drinks continue to blur the line between functionality and
refreshment. In the US, 2013 could have been the year of the “soft drink as
energy drink” concept.
• PepsiCo launched Mtn Dew Kickstart early in the year. The product, which
contains 5% fruit juice, Vitamins B and C, and an extra jolt of caffeine, was
positioned as a breakfast alternative to coffee and featured a refreshing taste
vastly different from Red Bull and original Monster.
• Kickstart is not considered an energy drink due to lower levels of caffeine and a
lack of taurine or guarana, but the positioning is the same.
• “…consumers wanting both the functionality and flavor for their carbonated
pick-me-ups. “
Quoted from “Soft Drinks – New Product Launches, January 2014”
by Jonas Feliciano Analyst – Beverages | Euromonitor International 2014

http://www.portal.euromonitor.com/Portal/Pages/Search/SearchResultsList.aspx
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THE COMPETITION

TRADITIONAL NON- TRADITIONAL

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THE COMPETITION

Brand Share (Sports AND Energy Drinks)

Red Bull’s Growth in Brand Share
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NEW GROWTH OPPORTUNITIES

• Redefining Product Category
• Promotion of New/Alternate Uses (i.e.- Alcoholic Mixer, Morning Breakfast Staple)

• Developing a New Approachable Product

• Merges “functionality and flavor”
• Targets consumer afraid/ skeptical of traditional “energy drinks”

• Incorporate More Interactive Story-based Marketing of Loyal Product User.

• Similar to strategies used by loyal car users (i.e.- Toyota loyalist family)
• Feature up-and-coming artist who drinks Red Bull before every performance.
• Record story of BMX athlete who trains with a Red Bull always handy.
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