Red Bull: SWOT analysis

Emotional context
Red Bull’s essence is based on its authenticity and free soul. As such a modern and young brand, they demonstrate it through extreme sports and challenging events, where they provide customers with a product that gives them the strength and energy they are looking for. They have built deep and strong emotional links that connect with their audience through every visible element: logo, slogan and can.

Logo
Red Bull Logo. Red Bull´s gold and red logo has been consistent over time. The two red bulls facing each other are a symbol of strength, energy power, risk-taking and aggressiveness. The sun rising alike background makes reference to its Asian roots (Thailand). The blue and silver symbolize intellect and “coolness” while the red and yellowish characterize emotion. Slogan
“Red Bull gives you wings”
Wings & the product
Wings & the people
Wings literally
The Product
It makes an approach with their audience in a concrete level of a product that vitalizes mind and body, giving you energy and increasing performance, concentration and metabolism.
The People. With this slogan Red Bull creates emotional links with its audience, young people that value their freedom, independence and adventurous lifestyle.
Literally
Red Bull also takes its slogan ‘gives you wings’ literally. They have a series called Red Bull Air Race where pilots fly around a course in a race for the fastest time. They also have Red Bull FlugTag, a contest in
which people build homemade flying machines to launch off a pier. Red Bull recently just launched Felix Baumgartner from the edge of space. And one event that proves Red Bull’s commitment to its wing-giving promise is Red Bull Paper Wings, a worldwide paper plane competition.
Red Bull FlugTag
Red Bull Paper Wings
Can Red Bull’s 8.3 ounce can has an appeal that connects with its consumers. It is a taller can that gives a more “modern” image than other cola-cans making it unique and different. Its thinner appearance and lighter material connects with their slogan “..gives you wings”. And probably the most appealing fact of their can is that it is all they offer: one shape, one color, one size; making the brand personality ‘cool’, original and simple.
Extreme & Challenging
Jus as Coca Cola has established the marketing of happiness; Red Bull is the expert of marketing of extreme emotions. A consistent element across Red Bull´s activations is the thrive for speed, energy and accomplishment. The audience want to feel the courage and audacity that they see at Red Bull`s events.
Energy & Strength
Red Bull has found the way to engage with their audience through extreme sports and fearless athletes. They share videos that become viral with content of athleticism and bravery evoking the energy and strength people hopes to get from drinking the product. Freedom & Authenticity
Red Bull’s consumers look for a brand they can identify with. Freedom and authenticity are highly valued by consumers. Red Bull engages with these values with a ‘bit irreverent’ and inspirational brand. They sponsor all kind of challenging and innovative sports, events, races and more. And for those who are more of an artist than athlete, they offer the Red Bull Music
Academy to appeal every dream. Also interesting is SWOT Analysis Gym essays
Modern & Young
In order to keep targeting young people, Red Bull has to maintain itself young and modern to engage with their audience. This requires constant transformation and innovation towards new technology. Red Bull uses new technology to share content across many different blogs, social media outlets and distribution channels that connect with young audience; but they also use technology to be a part of their events such as in the Red Bull Stratos, where they used the most advanced technology and engineering of our time. Another way Red Bull has found a way to connect with young audience is the “Beat it” event.
Brand Contact Summary
Marketing
Force
Social
Media
In
Store
Multimedia Events
Marketing force
Red Bull connects with their audience through their marketing force: student brand managers. They recruit key influencers that are part of their target audience to do sampling, providing the student representatives with free cases of Red Bull and encourage them to throw a party. This generation no longer responds to commercial messages, on the other hand, ambassadors’ credibility with customers makes Red Bull part of the culture.
Social Media
Red Bull’s over 39 million Facebook friends is the proof of their expertise in community building and engaging with their customers through Internet. They also have dedicated Facebook pages for the Stratos balloon jump, X Fighters and its Music Academy. Their posts are dedicated to promote lifestyles with their sponsored sports and athletes rather than their product. They also promote their content through social media such as Twitter, Pinterest, Google +, among others. Read about Ball and Brown Study
Events
Red Bull runs events across the world to allow their audience be part of the brand experience. Some of the world activations include:
-­? Sports events and sponsorships (auto racing, moto cross, cycling, snowboarding, skiing, surfing, wakeboarding, skydiving, etc.)
-­? Proprietary sponsorships. Red Bull owns professional soccer teams and creates proprietary events like Crashed Ice, Air Race World Championship and King of the Rock Street Ball. -­? Participatory events open to everyone including soapbox races, Flugtag, and Candola. -­? Red Bull Music Academy. Since 1998, Red Bull sponsors a world-travelling series of music workshops and festivals once a year, a platform of recording sessions and lectures by musical luminaries for those who make in today´s musical landscape. Multimedia marketing. Red Bull’s worldwide sponsorship of events allows them to have a lot of content to share through digital platforms with their customers such as Red Bull TV. They have also been successful developing original multimedia for entertainment such as cell phone apps, and videogames like Kart Fighter, among others. Red Bull also manages an e-commerce site www.redbullshop.us where they sell men and women apparel and all kind of accessories.
In Store Displays. The brand’s effort to communicate its identity reaches the stores with in-store displays that reveal Red Bull’s personality that clearly distinguish itself from its competitors and any other products in store.