Red Bull started as an energy drink and came to be, over the years, a full-on marketing powerhouse. At the moment, Red Bull has the highest market share of energy drinks in the world, with almost 7 billion cans sold every year.
But Red Bull does not base its success solely on the quality of their energy drink. Their marketing strategy is one of the smartest, most effective ones out there. Red Bull now has two Formula 1 teams, football teams in the United States, Germany, and Austria, a fashion brand named Alpha Tauri, as well as a League of Legends team. All of these associations gave Red Bull more visibility than most brands on the market and substantial competitive advantage.
Red Bull's marketing strategy should be every adventure brand's ultimate goal, no matter if you have a business that sells winter sports equipment, and adventure clothing brand or a camping gear store. But before we dive into what you can learn from Red Bull's marketing strategy, a trip down memory lane is necessary.
A look at red Bull's unconventional marketing strategy
Red Bull came out when energy drinks were almost nonexistent, and traditional advertising was very pricey. That's why Red Bull decided to go guerrilla and advertise their product a tad bit different. Red Bull's target audience was constructed of 18-35-year-old males, so they made sure they were present wherever their audience was.
The company wanted to put its product in the consumers' hands, and what better way to do it than to give it away for free? They sent their Red Bull Wings teams to give free samples to people at college parties, in bars, in coffee shops, and at sports parks.
To this day, going to wherever their audience may be is still Red Bull's core strategy. This is why they started getting involved in sports, broadening their horizons. One may say that Red Bull managed to become a media house that also happens to sell energy drinks.
Reaching the target market by going the extra mile
One of the most important things you can learn from Red Bull is the way the company is willing to go beyond sky limits to reach its target market. They use three principal approaches to attract their audience:
●Entertaining content: Red Bull's marketing team works to put out high-quality content that can compete with any publicity agency. Putting out content that your customers enjoy to consume is very important in drawing attention to your brand.
●Massive publicity stunts: for Red Bull, publicity is all about going big or going home. Not being afraid to put your brand out there with a more unconventional approach is what helps build individuality.
●Becoming event planners: instead of just partnering up with event planners, Red Bull started planning their extreme sport and music events. If you want to get closer to your audience, consider participating in or organizing events, even if they only happen locally.
Emphasizing the brand rather than the product
Red Bull has long stopped putting their energy drink in the first place, but rather their brand as a whole. Their identity revolves around their catchphrase, "Red Bull gives you wings," which has grown to represent everything Red Bull stands for.
This message can be adjusted to almost any type of audience they may want to target. Wings can mean anything from power to compete in sports events, inspiration to create music and determination to win a Formula 1 championship. Their brand message is so inspirational, it can be given any meaning the consumer wants to, which makes it versatile, but at the same time, it is very straightforward when needed.
Creating a massive amount of content
Adventure brands already have a small customer niche, so to reach as much of it as possible, you need to start producing content that responds to their needs. Red Bull does so by combining its audience's interest in extreme sports, music, and an overall fast-paced lifestyle with their product and its ability to give people the energy to participate in these events.
Red Bull produces content on its website, YouTube channel, social media, as well as in collaboration with other brands that their audience might be interested in. And while not every brand has Red Bull's marketing budget, by using a combination of marketing strategies, you can extend your reach and be more present where your audience may be. Collaborating with a reputable internet marketing agency is the only way to do this, especially if you don't have a designated marketing team in-house yet.
Mixing traditional with digital media
Ever since digital media started being around, people began paying little to no attention to TVs, radio stations, magazines, and other forms of traditional media. But Red Bull knew traditional media still has its importance, so it did not neglect it.
Now, Red Bull produces TV content for its online channels, including Red Bull TV, as well as other traditional TV channels they have partnered up with. Their content focuses on sports, music, events, as well as films and culture. They also have their own record label, music academy, and online radio station.
If you want to follow in their footsteps, you need to start focusing on promoting your brand through traditional local media as well. You sell snowboard equipment, and your store is in an area where snowboarding is an everyday activity? Invest in billboard advertising and collaborations with local medial to build your brand name and be where your audience is.
Dominating all social media
Red Bull's social media pages are filled with beautifully created content. But a huge part of Red Bull's content is created by their audience instead of their marketing team.
The company knows it is paramount to make your audience feel important and appreciated, so whenever someone shares inspiring content that aligns with the brand's message, they share it on their social media. This helps them be closer to their audience and extend their visibility and is a very easy to follow approach.
