Sunday, November 27, 2011

Ch.8 Business Marketing

Red Bull, solely being a company which sells energy drinks is chracterized as a firm who makes its profits in a consumer market.
Business Marketing on the Internet
 Already selling it's products in 163 countries Red Bull has a huge global market in which they can advertise thier product. But what sepetates the company from other is that,Since its inception Red Bull has shunned print advertising in its marketing strategy. It has not created one Web-marketing campaign. And it hasn't tweaked or expanded its product line one iota. Red Bull has, however, expanded into 50 countries, experienced annual double-digit growth, and captured the loyalty of a notoriously fickle consumer group: teenagers. Today, a dozen imitators like Whoop Ass and Red Devil vie for the number-two high-voltage beverage spot, and Mateschitz is the richest man in Austria.Some observers say that Red Bull's branding is revolutionary, calling it an 'anti-brand' strategy.from colds or flu, so Red Bull had to promote its brand differently.
The firm avoided usual methods of marketing, relying more on what is called 'buzz marketing' or word-of-mouth. A brand image was created and cultivated which associated the drink with youth culture and extreme and adventure-related sports, such as motor sports, mountain biking, snowboarding and dance music. Red Bull's target consumer segment began to adopt nicknames for the product such as 'liquid cocaine' or 'speed in a can', thus spreading its 'left-field' appeal.

"In terms of attracting new customers and enhancing consumer loyalty, Red Bull has a more effective branding campaign than Coke or Pepsi," says Nancy F. Koehn, professor of business administration at Harvard Business School and author of Brand New: How Entrepreneurs Earned Consumers' Trust from Wedgwood to Dell (Harvard Business School Press, 2001). "Red Bull is building a beverage brand without relying on the essential equipment of a mass-marketing campaign. Perhaps the indispensable tools of marketing aren't so indispensable after all."
Here are some tools that Red Bull doesn't use: billboards, banner ads, taxicab holograms, blimps, Super Bowl spots. Even its TV spots -- all of which feature the whimsical sketches of a mysterious Austrian artist -- serve more to amuse than to educate or entice consumers.
(if you click on the link you will see the many comical Red Bull commercials released by the company)

Bull Shift: Marketing Makes a "You Turn"

Like its product, Red Bull's branding campaign is sleek and small. Its grassroots efforts fly well beneath the radar, and they provide a startling return on investment. In fact, its most lucrative strategies cost next to nothing.
"Grassroots marketing is enjoying a resurgence with Starbucks, Red Bull, Krispy Kreme, and Trader Joe's -- young, successful brands built by word of mouth," Koehn says. "Person-to-person marketing is going to be a big part of the next chapter, the next frontier of branding competition."
The sudden shift from TV blitzes and blimps to low-key, low-cost marketing schemes, says Koehn, follows the convergence of three trends. First, advanced communications technology is creating a generation of consumers skeptical of every TV ad, email message, and celebrity endorsement. If a marketing message doesn't offer a distinct, unique benefit to the individual consumer, he or she will tune it out, Koehn says. "As information overload becomes a time-management issue for consumers, mass marketing is necessarily going to be less effective."
Second, people are casting votes with their credit cards. "People are using products to provide things that they think traditional institutions no longer can, like social progress, a sense of community, and a sense of public good," she says. "Companies that want to claim consumers' votes will have to implement branding strategies that represent something."
Finally, Koehn says that consumers are looking for authenticity, self-identity, and community in the brands they endorse. And for Red Bull's target audience, being authentic means being a bit irreverent, a bit antiestablishment, and every bit different from your parents, says Marc Gobé, president and CEO of the desgrippes gobé group, a New York-based branding firm with a client list that includes Godiva, Versace, and Starbucks.
"The beauty of Red Bull is that it's the antibrand brand," says Gobé, author of Emotional Branding: The New Paradigm for Connecting Brands to People (Allworth Press, 2001). "Red Bull doesn't have any of the commercial trappings of a traditional, off-the-shelf product. It's underground, even when it's above ground, and that appeals to the young people who drink it."


Friday, November 18, 2011

CH.8 SEGMENTING AND TARGETING MARKETS

Red Bull, who is originally from Austria where it is still produced, distributed their energy drink in over twenty countries. Countries like USA , New Zealand , South Africa , Eastern and Western Europe . So it would be not very useful to restrict the target market to the geographic areas as well as the psychographic segmentation for the targeted consumer that’s because for a product like Red Bull it would be far to narrow as it cuts across lifestyles, demographics and socio-economic boundaries. So the best solution would be to set the target market as a behavioural segmentation. The reason for that decision is because in a behavioural segmentation the individual’s relationship with the product and the use and benefit sought from the product. Red Bull is not just an energy drink it is primarily a utility drink to be taken against mental or physical weariness or exhaustion. It’s use helps to increase endurance and heighten alertness as well as reactions and generally spoken the use of Red Bull helps to cope with the challenges of every day life, which includes work, leisure and sports.

Red Bull Target MarketThe Athlete
It is usually a person who takes his sport very serious, what means he wants to get the best out of his body. Therefore you can say that Red Bull is part of his diet and sport life. So in this case Red Bull is for him a very good and easy way to improve his endurance or speed.

 The Worker          
This could be anyone who has to work hard such as a manager or a street worker. Anyone who wants to get pushed up and would rather like to have a Red Bull than a coffee.

 The Clubber
This category is fairly new, in recent years the people found out that Red Bull can be used as a very good mixer with alcohol. Red Bull sells now 34% of its units on premise. It is almost impossible to find the right target group, the reason for that is because of the various applications of Red Bull. Hence a clear cut categorization in age groups and socio-economics groupings is not feasible. But what we can be sure of is that the typical Red Bull drinker is dynamic and active, the gender does not play any role at all. But it is more likely that more less younger people who really like to go out fall for Red Bull. Research (PHT, 11/97 Smith Kline Beecham Energy & Sports Drinks Report) has shown that 53% of the people who drink energy/ sports drinks are within the age between 14-34 years. Moreover they found out that the main reason for purchasing energy/sports drinks were to quench thirst (37%) and give boost.

Red Bull Target MarketThe Athlete
It is usually a person who takes his sport very serious, what means he wants to get the best out of his body. Therefore you can say that Red Bull is part of his diet and sport life. So in this case Red Bull is for him a very good and easy way to improve his endurance or speed.

 The Worker          
This could be anyone who has to work hard such as a manager or a street worker. Anyone who wants to get pushed up and would rather like to have a Red Bull than a coffee.

 The Clubber
This category is fairly new, in recent years the people found out that Red Bull can be used as a very good mixer with alcohol. Red Bull sells now 34% of its units on premise. It is almost impossible to find the right target group, the reason for that is because of the various applications of Red Bull. Hence a clear cut categorization in age groups and socio-economics groupings is not feasible. But what we can be sure of is that the typical Red Bull drinker is dynamic and active, the gender does not play any role at all. But it is more likely that more less younger people who really like to go out fall for Red Bull. Research (PHT, 11/97 Smith Kline Beecham Energy & Sports Drinks Report) has shown that 53% of the people who drink energy/ sports drinks are within the age between 14-34 years. Moreover they found out that the main reason for purchasing energy/sports drinks were to quench thirst (37%) and give boost.
Red Bull Target MarketThe Athlete
It is usually a person who takes his sport very serious, what means he wants to get the best out of his body. Therefore you can say that Red Bull is part of his diet and sport life. So in this case Red Bull is for him a very good and easy way to improve his endurance or speed.

 The Worker          
This could be anyone who has to work hard such as a manager or a street worker. Anyone who wants to get pushed up and would rather like to have a Red Bull than a coffee.

 The Clubber
This category is fairly new, in recent years the people found out that Red Bull can be used as a very good mixer with alcohol. Red Bull sells now 34% of its units on premise. It is almost impossible to find the right target group, the reason for that is because of the various applications of Red Bull. Hence a clear cut categorization in age groups and socio-economics groupings is not feasible. But what we can be sure of is that the typical Red Bull drinker is dynamic and active, the gender does not play any role at all. But it is more likely that more less younger people who really like to go out fall for Red Bull. Research (PHT, 11/97 Smith Kline Beecham Energy & Sports Drinks Report) has shown that 53% of the people who drink energy/ sports drinks are within the age between 14-34 years. Moreover they found out that the main reason for purchasing energy/sports drinks were to quench thirst (37%) and give boost.









Friday, November 11, 2011

Ch. 11 - Developing and Managing Products

"New peoducts are important to sustain growth, increase revenues and profits, and replace obsolete items".

New product-a product new to the world, the market, the producer, the seller, or combination of these.

Red Bull, who only markets one product which is its energy drink can fall into the 'new product' definition. The company's product created its own market "the energy drink category"Red Bull became hugely successful and operates within the global soft drink
marketplace. Within the soft drink industry its niche is the ‘energy drink’ market, of which
Mateschitz was largely responsible for creating. Red Bull currently is the leading energy drink
across the entire globe. It holds 70% of the market worldwide. Because Red Bull only markets one product they must implment a flawless process to assure sales.

Product/Brand Development Strategy Process

Great Strategy Begins with Great Research.
  • Once the brand’s core values have been identified, the road towards effective brand proposition development begins.
  • Development of the brand statement- commencing a Brand development strategy.  
  1. Brand Positioning Strategy
    • Clear, Engaging, Unique, & Relevant to the target audience. 
    • Able to incorporate an element of positive emotional attachment that is better than just "good”. 
    • Echoed within business, internally and externally.
    • Consistent across multiple marketing & advertising mediums.Continually toughened within the organization so that employees consistently deliver what is promised. 
    •   Able to adapt to a changing marketplace.
  2. Distribution Strategy
    • Intensive distribution aims to provide saturation coverage of the market by using all available outlets such as:
    • Super markets,
    • Gyms,
    • Coffee Houses: Subway, Barista, Costa Coffee, Café Coffee Day
    • In n Out Convenience Stores.
    • Pizza Outlets.
    • Media Relations
    • Use Technology
    • Monitor the Web
    • Create Public Awareness
  3. Integrated Marketing Communications Management
    • Sales Promotion:
    • Must encourage the 1 st purchase of the product in a store.
    • Make them aware of the product & its advantages.
  4. IMC Objectives
    • RedBull’s IMC objective is: Sales Promotions.
    • Create new target markets.
    • Large display in the Departmental stores.
    • Bull Hoof stickers on the floors of departmental stores promoting RB.
  5. IMC Budget
  6. Internet Web site
    • Promotions through social networking sites such as: facebook, twitter, Hi5.
    • Also, Ad promos on websites such as NDTV, zoom India.
  7. Media
    • Ad Campaigns on Prime TV channels such as NDTV good times, MTV, Channel V, Zoom, VH1, Star World & a few more.
  8. Budget
    • Magazine:
    • Femina, People, Rolling Stones.
    • 15k per page * 12 mnths- 180,000
    • Newspapers:
    • HT City & Delhi Times
    • 1lac per page * 4 weeks * 12 mnths- 4800000
    • Radio:
    • 10k per mnth * 12 – 120000
    • TV:
    • 5 lacs * 4 weeks * 12 - 2400000
    • Total Expense: 31,80,000
    •  
  9. Integrated Marketing Communication Methodologies
    • How do we communicate? How do customers process information?
    • There are many models & theories.
    • Thorough understanding of the audience's needs, emotions &
    • activities is essential to ensure accuracy & relevance of the message.
  10. Advertising
    • What target market do you want to reach?
    • What image do you want to portray?
    • What product or service do you want to emphasize?
    • How much money can you spend?
    • When is the right time to advertise?
    • Red Bull has an aggressive marketing campaign.
    • Red Bull uses all the available media channels, meaning cinema, TV, radio, press and the internet.
    • In other words the company focuses on the media through which it reaches its primary target market-young people.
    • RB allows the consumers to interpret the product & the moments of use themselves.
    • Red Bull achieves this by a humorous and witty cartoon campaign, transferring the message that this energy drink helps you to escape by `giving you wings ´.
  11. Consumer Promotions
    • Red Bull sponsors the motorsports or fun sports, but always where Red Bull is needed.
    • Red Bull does event sponsoring.
    • Event sponsoring attracts people’s attention towards the product and connects them.
  12. Personal Selling
    • Sampling is another very important part of the three pillar marketing system.
    • As the major purpose of Red Bull is to energize the company samples at the right place at the right time, where it finds its exact target market.
    • Examples of usage are driving, studying, working night shifts and sports.
    •  
  13. Media Plan
    • TV:
    • Still a staple medium of advertising.
    • Allows to demonstrate the advantages of RB.
    • Good Reach.
    • Magazines:
    • Economical.
    • Provides higher brand awareness.

Sunday, November 6, 2011

CH.16-Integrated Marketing Communications

"The ultimate goal of any promotion is to get someone to buy a good or service or...to take some action".The AIDA concept outlines the process for achieving promotional goals in terms of stages of consumer involvement with the message.

A= Attention
To acquire our attention, Red Bull launch a series of promotional strategies; Their marketing is mainly based on the “3 pillars of Red Bull; Sampling, Advertising, Sponsoring”. This means that next to normal advertisements, they drive around in Red Bull –modified cars handing out cans of red bull and sponsor big extreme sports events and competitions. In this way Red Bull is not just promoting their energy drink but is also selling a lifestyle, seemingly people are willing to be a part of this Red Bull extreme sports lifestyle.


 I= Interest
  To maintain consumer intrest in the product Red Bull host or sponsers many customer freindly events (ex.contest,andsweepstakes) one recent event that Red Bull has launched is;
Red Bull Space, located in the heart of SoHo, is a home for your unique and innovative events and ideas. We host a broad range of events and projects from large scale art installations and photo shoots to private tastemaker events and music acts, but don't let that hinder your imagination.
Imagine a 3,000 sq. ft. raw space that not only welcomes creativity and challenges, but also provides the necessary tools and support needed to bring your vision to life. A broad range of events and projects are supported from large scale art installations and photo shoots, to private tastemaker events and music acts. Let your imagination fly; the possibilities are limitless.
Red Bull Space has 12” platform for intimate performances. The high-tech sound system and cordless microphones make for a flawless musical experience. Red Bull Space is equipped with a cold kitchen, and modern, state-of-the art appliances. The area can accommodate 100 guests for a seated dinner, or 250 guests standing with passed hor d’oeuvres. We can assist you in planning an intimate dinner for your guests, with premium service and an elegant atmosphere. Should you desire a more casual event; the space can be transformed to fit your dining needs.
Red Bull space offers a fresh, timeless area for any fashion event. With its white walls and interesting yet simple architecture, it provides a premium backdrop for photos. We can construct a professional runway for your audience; or an intimate trunk show may suit your style. Natural light floods in from the 8 ft. windows, or the custom shades provide the photographer with different levels of light. Our beautiful indoor lighting system (color and white light) can also be used to create the perfect scene. Our balcony, which overlooks Thompson Street, is a nice addition to the already interesting space.The 14 ft. projection screen transforms the space into a theatre, which can seat up to 75 people. The state-of-the-art sound system and high-definition projector give the optimal viewing experience. The custom shades block any outside light during daytime premiers. The theatre area makes up only about 1/3 of the space; additional areas of the space can be utilized as needed.

D= Desire

Red Bull’s smart use of social media and branded content


Red Bull is playing a smart game. Branded content is a huge area in social media at the moment but most brands get it so wrong by focusing on peppering their logo and branding on everything but Red Bull understand the subtle nature of this medium. The key to branded content is creating something that people want to watch and share but at the same time that fits in with the core values of your brand.

Turkey

This video is shot in a way that it could actually be a movie and although it clearly wasn’t cheap to produce it is already getting close to a quarter of a million views after only a couple of days. The iconic location, the slick tricks and the alternative lifestyle means it is content that is bound to get shared. You only see a can of Red Bull a couple of times as well as the logos on his outfits but it in no way feels like an advert and makes compelling viewing.

Santorini

This one relies on the stunning Greek location to provide a beautiful backdrop as Ryan Doyle goes about his tricks. Again there are a couple of flashes of Red Bull as he takes a sip between tricks which does just enough to put it in to my mind to buy a can later but not enough to make me feel like it is an advert and turn it off. Because this branded content is so good you end up watching it all the way to the end whereas if it had logos everywhere you would be long gone.



A= Action
 As for actually implementing On market share Red Bull is the most popular energy drink in the world,with over 3 billion cans sold every year. In 2010, more than 4.204 billion cans were sold in over 161 countries. 7,758 employees generated 3.78 billion euros in turnover!

Monday, October 31, 2011

Ch.10 Product Concepts

Red Bull is a sweet, caffeinated drink aimed to give consumers the high energy kick.
Available only in rather expensive 250ml cans, 350ml bottles, with 4 packs and only two
‘flavours’ (original or sugar-free).  Red Bull being a consumer product can also be classified convenience product in that, Red Bull customers don't normally plan ahead on purchasing the product but often buy it regularly.  Red Bull Consumers view the product as both a homogeneous and heterogeneous shopping product. A homogeneous product becuase like many other soft drinks energy drinks Red Bull delivers the same effect : enhance energy boost, or endurance. But what helps Red Bull Make such a large profit margin is its heterogeneous aspect ( or what the company wants you to think makes Red Bull different).
"There are three basic human needs that Red Bull satisfies, physical, social and individual
needs. ‘Human needs are states of felt deprivation… marketers do not invent these needs; they
are a basic part of human makeup…People in industrial societies might try to find or develop
objects that will satisfy their needs." With the company releasing comments like the one just stated they create a subconscious need in the consumer that they must acquire Red Bull to fulfill a need that's really isn't there to begin with. 

Product-Line-extension
Red Bull has tried a series of product line extension to increase revenue;


- Red Bull Energy Drink:


- Red Bull Sugar Free: 


-Red Bull Energy Shot: 


-Red Bull Cola

Branding

Red Bull has an aggressive international marketing campaign. The numerous sponsored activities range from extreme sports  like mountain biking, BMX, motocross, windsurfing, snowboarding, skateboarding, kayaking, wakeboarding, cliff-diving, surfing, skating, freestyle motocross, rally, Formula 1 racing, and breakdancing to art shows, music, and video games. In keeping with their target market of young males, Red Bull has also enlisted help from celebrities, such as Eminem that would appeal to this group (sponsoring the Red Bull "EmSee Battle Rap championships"). It also hosts events like the "Red Bull Flugtag" (German for "flight day" or "flying day") and other such contests. Red Bull also sponsors association football teams, with clubs in Austria, Germany, the United States and Brazil featuring the Red Bull trademark in their names. By associating the drink's image with these activities, the company seeks to promote a "cool" public image and raise brand power. In addition, the slender container is used to suggest a "sexier" image than some other cola counterparts. Hence, this one energy drink has helped create a market for over 150 related types of merchandise, like Red Rooster and Blue Lightning

Team ownerships
`

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Ch. 18 - Sales Promotion and Personal Selling

Sales promotion- Marketing communication  activitties, in which a short-term incentive motivates consumers or members of the distribution channel to purchase a good or service.immediately, either by lowering the price or by adding value. Unlike advertisement which offers the consumer a reason to buy; sales promotion offers an in incentive(any factor financial or non-financial that enables or motivates a particular course of action, or counts as a reason for preferring one choice to the alternatives. It is an expectation that encourages people to behave in a certain way) to buy.  Immediate purchase is the goal of sales promotion.

Marketing managers must decide which consumer sales promotion device to use in specific campaign. Red Bull uses several sales promotion techniques to boost sales. One of which are Contest and sweepstakes; stated in a previous blog ( Ch.3 Ethics and Social Responsibilty) Red Bull created a nationwide competition that was eco-friendly and helped not only interest and publicity but also helped generate long-term sales.

                                                Red Bull Art of Can: Inspired Recycling



The Red Bull Art of Can is a nationwide hunt for creativity and is open to everyone, from full-time artists to anyone with a creative flair. Build, sculpt, weld, glue, hammer, bend, fold, print, tape and paint, whatever you like!

The Red Bull Art of Can offers a platform for anyone, regardless of age, who wants to explore his or her creative talent. Artists, students, grandparents and all those in between are invited to submit their works of art. The Red Bull Art of Can is a true expression of one's imagination, with little or no restrictions placed on the budding artist.
The project will culminate in a premium art exhibition, where the selected pieces will be displayed and the top three pieces awarded prizes. The judges will select the winners which will be announced on the opening night of the exhibition.

Another sales promotion method that Red Bull has implemented was, attract customers through erotic imagery or ''sex sells''. A feature of sex in advertising is that the imagery used, such as that of a pretty woman, typically has no connection to the product being advertised. The purpose of the imagery is to attract the attention of the potential customer or user which Red Bull has taken into consideration when implementing a Sales Rep. team called "Red Bull Girls''. The "Red Bull Girls" are a team of selected women who tour the country and attend social events ex. such as parties, clubs, beach luau's and perfessional sporting events ex. Nascar, or beach volleyball in order to creat extra publicity for the product.

Red Bull Girls Boost the Sales of Red Bull Energy Drink

Red Bull Girls have the potential to give guys more than wings. Red Bull energy drink would not be where they are if they did not have the red bull wiiings team spreading love and energy to every consumer they come in contact with.These attractive girls are more than just a pretty face, they understand what it takes to deliver a great product and message to their consumers.

You have to Watch This Red Bull Girl Video if you really want to see what it means to really have a cool job that allows you to be yourself..look how much fun the Red Bull Girls are having.. press the play button!






Poinht of Purcchase ( P-O-P)

A P-O-P includes any promotional display set up at the retailer's location to build traffic, advertise the product or induce impulse buying. Becuase Red Bull doesn't have its own retail line or specialty store the company emphasizes on P-O-P.


"Sometimes just selling Red Bull products just isn't enough! Show off the fact that you are a proud seller of Red Bull by displaying your product prominently in one of our Red Bull branded coolers or point of sale displays."- This qoute coming from a advertisment directed towards retailers to get Red Bull merchandise into thier stores.

 Red Bull set aside $800,000  for design, creation, and distribution of sales promo materials and co-operative advertising costs.




Sunday, October 16, 2011

Ch. 17 - Advertising and Public Relations

 Little known outside of his native Austria, Dietrich Mateschitz is one of the most successful entrepreneurs of our age, a man who single-handedly changed the landscape of the beverage industry by creating not just a new brand but a whole new category: the energy drink. As the visionary who brought the world Red Bull, affectionately known as "speed in a can" or even "liquid cocaine," Mateschitz, has been a patron saint for more than two decades to late-night partiers, exam-week undergrads, long-haul truckers, and, above all, extreme-sports athletes everywhere.

Now he's set his sights on media. On May 15, subscribers to the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Miami Herald, Houston Chronicle, and New York Daily News found a magazine called Red Bulletin inserted in their Sunday papers. The 98-page glossy features a cover story on San Francisco Giants ace Tim Lincecum, as well as pieces on Bob Dylan, graffiti art, and Russian BASE jumper Valery Rozov. Billed as "an almost independent monthly," the magazine is a product of Red Bull Media House, a subsidiary media company launched in Austria in 2007 that expanded with a Los Angeles outpost this January.

Red Bull knows what it's getting into. Over the years, it has produced TV programs (No Limits on ESPN), films (That's It, That's All), magazines, a website, and a steady diet of Web videos featuring snowboarders, rally cars, surfers, cliff divers, and concerts. Even so, its current ambitions reflect a serious ramping up, as well as the realization of a business plan that eschews conventional advertising in favor of marketing through its own events, shows, and publications. The company shipped more than 1.2 million copies of the first Red Bulletin in the U.S. (equal to Sports Illustrated's paid circulation). This fall its first feature-length documentary, a look at snowboarding called The Art of Flight, will be released in U.S. theaters. Earlier this year, the company announced a partnership with Bunim/Murray Productions, best known for creating the Real World reality-show franchise on MTV. The two are working on reality TV concepts for Red Bull athletes.

 Mateschitz calls the multimedia assault "our most important line extension so far. As a major content provider, it is our goal to communicate and distribute the 'World of Red Bull' in all major media segments, from TV to print to new media to our music record label." He hopes Red Bull Media House will turn a profit, but, as with his sports teams, he's willing to wait. "In literal financial terms, our sports teams are not yet profitable, but in value terms, they are," he says. "The total editorial media value plus the media assets created around the teams are superior to pure advertising expenditures.

 As for Public Relations,Red Bull has employees in 161 countries.At the end of 2004, Mateschitz had just 2,605 employees; in 2010, Red Bull employed 7,758 people—which works out to more than $667,000 in revenue per person.