2. Purpose
• Outline and present a comprehensive review of Fernet-Branca’s global and
domestic competitors
• Agenda
• Overview of Fernet-Branca & Alcohol
• What is Fernet-Branca?
• Creatives
• History of bitters & their transition
• Stats
• Trends
• Recent Market Data and Trends
• Key Competitors
• Jägermeister
• Fireball
• RumChata
• Jack Daniels
• Captain Morgan
• Summary
4. What is Fernet?
• Bitter herbal from the amaro family
• Often consumed as a digestif, in cocktails such as the “Toronto”,
“Fanciulli” or “Hanky Panky,” served with coca cola, or as a shot
• Fernet-Branca: Created in 19th century Milan and was one of
the few commercial alcohol brands still available as
“medicine” under the Prohibition
• Concept of 27 Herbs from 4 continents
• Alcohol by Volume 39%; low in sugar
7. Proposed Campaigns: 2016 “Be
Complicated”, “The Power of 27 Herbs” &
“27 Herbs, All Legal”
• “Be Complicated”: contradicting elements, modern, sexy,
luxurious, embrace complication, relationships, entertainment
and music with a focus on artists
• “The Power of 27 Herbs”: inform consumers about the taste
and depth of the liqueur, connecting with the recipe of the
product, getting back to the history of Fernet
• “27 Herbs, All Legal”: play on words regarding prohibition era,
celebrating ’27’, connect with the recipe of the product
8. Creative: 2016 “27 Herbs, All Legal”
“The Power of 27 Herbs” and “Be
Complicated
CH AM OM ILE MYRRH STAR ANISE GRAINS OF PARAD ISEJU NIPER
GREEN COFFEE CINCH ONA BARK
GENTIAN RH U BARB WH ITE AGARIC
LIND EN COCOA BEANS LAU REL LEAF COLOMBO ROOT
ZED OARY
ZED OARY
CARDAMOM
CARDAMOM
CARDAM OM
GREATER GALANGA CINNAMON MARJORAM
SAFFRON
ALOE PEPPERM INT
We make Rastafarians
wish they were Italian.
WE MAKE RASTAFARIANS
wish
THEY WERE ITALIAN.
27 HERBS.
ALLLEGAL.
27 HERBS.
ALLLEGAL.
G L O B A L D IS T R IB U T IO N
w it h ou t a ca r t el .BITTER
ISTHEnew
HRONIC.
9. The Strategy
• Focus on hip and trendy neighborhood locations, while staying
true to Fernet-Branca top accounts
• Emphasize locations with heavy foot traffic where target is out
and about
• Add high-profile unit in heavy traffic areas for impact
10. Media Option 1: $800k
• Media including:
• Lifestyle- AskMen, Thrillist
• Data-Driven- Tapad, Maxpoint
• Native- Nativo
• Video- BrightRoll, Hulu
• 67.7MM impressions
11. Media Option 2: $1.3MM
• For enhanced option, recommend adding multiple touch
points with current marketing
• Media included:
• Option 1 media plus-
• Additional lifestyle sites- Defy Media, ESPM, Vice
• Online radio- Pandora
• Total: 93MM impressions
13. History of bitters & Their Transition
• Spirits flavored with bitter plants such as herbs, bark, roots,
fruit
• Traditional role of bitters was to be used for digestion after
meals
• Younger generations consider this traditional role as “old
fashioned”
• Transitioning into shot mentality and cocktail flavoring
14. Trends within the Alcohol Industry
• “Even fruity cocktails are given a dash (or three) of bitters, and bitter
liqueurs like Campari and Suze are more popular than ever. It may
take some time to adjust to this new world of bitterness, but you’ll
soon start craving the balance it provides to even humble drinks like
gin and tonic.”
• “The use of Prohibition-era recipes in cocktail bars is nothing new,
especially when you consider that cocktails wouldn’t even exist
without the putrid spirits that the ban made necessary.”
• “I like to sip Fernet with a ginger back. It makes me feel fancy. But
whenever I order it, I hear someone else do it too.”
– Ryan Crowder, social media strategist, San Francisco
15. Trends within Alcohol Industry
• 2012, Spirits consumption grew by 3.6%, Wine grew by 1.9% and
Beer returned to growth with 0.5% consumption growth
(usdrinksconference)
• Total amount of alcohol consumers 2008-2015: 94.57 million
• Sales of spirits 2007-2011 (2011; 7,615.2)
0.00
2,000.00
4,000.00
6,000.00
8,000.00
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Volume spirits sold in million gallons
Volume
spirits
sold in
million…
16. Comparing brand purchase set based on
variability in brand consumption;spirits
lessbrandfragmented
17. Target market: Millennial
• They have a focus towards entertainment events, casual dining and
watch TV channels slanted to their demographic
• 77 million millennial, making up ¼ of the US population
• Consider themselves sophisticated
• 5 out of 6 connect with companies on social media
• “Raised on gourmet coffee and the internet, Millennials are
knowledgeable about food and drink; they seek a unique
experience, customization and authenticity. They like to explore and
discover new flavors and products.”
18. Mobile First Consumers
• Over-index for most internet activity
• 47% more likely to spend on average 3+ hours on
social networking sites per day
• More likely to use a smartphone or tablet to access the
internet than a desktop computer
• More likely to watch video online, less likely to have a
cable/satellite subscription and more likely to be non-TV
users
19. Not Just Beer Drinkers
Demographics Brandy/Cognac/Liq
ueur
Distilled liquor
Men 50.3% 49.7%
Aged 21-34 34.3% 33.5%
Single 55.5% 52.5%
Attended College 60.8% 64.7%
$50k+ income 63.4% 66.4%
• The target is among those who drink spirits like
brandy, cognac, liqueurs and/or distilled liquor
20. Stats from Fernet market
• 70% of all Fernet consumed in the US is consumed in San
Francisco
23. Jägermeister- “TheHuntingMaster”
• German digestif made with 56 herbs and spices
• Target market: 21-31 years old
• Shot brand- Jager bomb
• 35% alcohol by volume
• 2012: shift from “party shot” to premium ($4.5mil)
• Launches nationwide outdoor activity, print, Facebook push and first TV
ads
• 2015: heritage, ingredients and process ($2.7mil TV campaign)
• Launched nationwide out-of-home, painted wallscapes, rich media,
print, mobile and social media.
24. 2012 Campaign: “Jagermeister.Itruns
deep”& “Deepfreeze”
• Educate consumers on the proper way to serve the beverage
• Target slightly older audience (25-35 YOA)
• Celebrate the deep meaningful bond experiences between
true friends
• “ The ethos also linked directly back to the product and its
depth – the legend, the brands heritage, the alchemy of the
secret ingredients, its ice cold serve and its multi layered and
complex taste all ran deep.”
26. 2012 Festivals & Events
• Jager & Rock Music: “The Ice
Bar”
• Boost sampling through
educating consumers at rock
concerts
• Provide “special
experiences” rather than sell
• UK appearing at 25 festivals
• Shot sales of over 450,000
during 2012 simply at events
& festivals
http://www.thedrum.com/news/2014/05/21/j-germeister-looks-engage-core-audience-12m-summer-festival-and-events-tour
27. Campaigns: 2015 “56 Parts. Best
As One”
• Apart of the ongoing “Jagermeister. It runs deep.” 2012
campaign
• 3 wooden puzzles made of 56 parts, when put together
outline and emphasize heritage, ingredients and process
• Target market: Millennial
• Just as the Millennial consumers understand, “to get the most of
life you must put in the work”, Jagermeister emphasizes a product
as the result of determination, hard work, discipline and the
science. (musicbusinessworldwide.com)
• Craft the Moment: 30 second TV commercial
28. 2015 Creatives
Neutral tones of 56
separate puzzle pieces
joining into one.
“Jägermeister has a
fascinating and unique
history that many are
unaware of,” says Marcus
Thieme
Wooden works of art
corresponding to the brand's
three pillars—heritage,
ingredients and process
30. Strengths:
• Presence internationally- Germany, UK & Australia
• 2014; 64% of sales generated internationally with 36% outside
Europe
• “56 parts. Best as one” campaign is unique, interactive and
different
• Large investments into advertising & branding
• Strong branding and consistency
31. Weaknesses:
• Sales surpassed by Fireball
• Fireball $131 mil, Jagermeister $81 mil
• Jager sales decreased 3.8%
• Jager blames “aggressive” pricing
• Fireball is $6 cheaper
• Taste- “medicine”
• Little local marketing experience
• Highly competitive market
• Shift in consumer trends away from Jager…
33. Fireball- “Tastes like heaven, burns
like hell”
• Spicy cinnamon whisky liqueur
• Developed in Canada in mid-1980’s
• 2007 rebranding and new name/new logo
• Early target market Nashville selling liquor as an easy shot
• Transitioned into college market
• Early strategy: tweeting to bartenders (dominothry.com)
• 2013, became one of the top ten most popular liquors
• Shot brand
• Target market: 21-30 YOA
• 33% alcohol by volume
35. Creatives: How it began
• Dr. McGillicuddy;s Hot Cinnamon Fireball (early 2000’s)
36. Creatives: The ‘new’ look
• Fireball: “Tastes Like Heaven, Burns Like Hell”
Connect with your dark side and live on
the edge: “Live it, love it, shoot it- what
happens next is up to you”
37. Campaigns: 2015 Friday
Giveaways
• Give your weekend a
scorching start…
• Customer engagement
through Instagram posts and
Facebook tags showing how
to enjoy Fireball on a Friday
• Weekly prize giveaways: I-
pods, festival tickets,
headphones, speakers, etc.
38. Campaigns: 2014 Dragons,
Dice & Dares
• A drinking game application for smartphones
• Engages consumers
• Rating: 4.5 stars
39. Untraditional Marketing
Strategy
• Rather than traditional print, Fireball went straight to the bars
and pubs offering free sample shots
• No advertising campaign
• No commercials
• Focus on social media, tweeting, and the engagement
between bartenders to increase awareness
• Assist bartenders with developing recipes incorporating
Fireball flavors
• Use of brand ambassadors and large sales force
40. Strengths:
• Easy to drink- good taste “cinnamon fresh breath”
• Price- liter $24, preferable for their target’s budget
• Easy to remember- branding success
• Hits touch points of the Millennials
• Media presence surrounding the consumer
• Targets college towns correctly
• Consumer engagement which meets target market trend
• Drinking contests- encourage bars to host Fireball drinking contests
41. Weaknesses:
• Marketing strategy risks:
• limited media presence
• image as solely a college liqueur
• no market flexibility- pigeon holed
• Recall in Finland and Sweden due to products inclusion of
propylene glycol
43. RumChata
• Cream liqueur- 5 time distilled Caribbean rums with Wisconsin
dairy cream, flavored cinnamon, vanilla etc.
• Served on the rocks or in cocktails
• Founded in 2009
• Based on the summer Spanish, Latin American drink Horchata
• 13.75% alcohol by volume
45. Campaign: Marketing strategies
• Combining tradition advertising with social media
• YouTube channel demonstrating RumChata drink and food
recipes for each season of the year, a “How to channel”
• National print ads: Rolling Stone, Shape and People
• Partner with Jack Daniels Flavors to cross promote: ‘Cinnamon
Toast’- year long campaign offering co-branded print and trade ads in
lifestyle and beverage publications, dual branded tool kits and YouTube
seasonal cocktails (pressroom.jackdaniels.com)
• 30 s commercials on TBS, Bravo and Comedy Central as well as
local stations during late night shows
48. Strengths:
• Cross promotion year campaign- maximizing exposure across
both trade and consumers
• Appealing taste
• Creative is fitting to the culture of RumChata
• Appearance in media channels such as YouTube, target for
Millennial
49. Weaknesses:
• Lack of consumer interaction
• Lack of identified target market
• Not regarded as sophisticated
51. Jack Daniels
• Tennessee Whiskey- Old No. 7 Brand
• Top selling American whiskey in the world
• Served as a shot, on the rocks or in a mix drink
• Target market: upper class urban individuals
• Created in 1866
• 40% alcohol by volume
54. Staying True to Our Values
• Values:
• Independence, integrity and authenticity
• “What was recognized as independence and integrity 60 years
ago still rings true today. These values are true to what we are
and what Jack Daniel’s represents.”
• “We discovered that the core values of the brand are
universal, regardless of gender, age, nationality or culture.”
http://www.forbes.com/sites/avidan/2012/07/05/when-it-come-to-bourbon-america-knows-jack/#2715e4857a0b4c470be61cc1
55. Campaigns: 2015 Toast to Frank
• Contest to celebrate Frank Sinatra 100th birthday
• Believe he embodies similar characteristics as Jack Daniels
• Those who share their toasts using the #ToastSinatraContest tag on
Instagram could win a swingin' weekend in L.A. and Las Vegas
• Musical artists contribute video toasts for the campaign- Brendon Urie,
Butch Walker and Scott Bradlee
Commercial:
https://www.y
outube.com/
watch?v=h8n1
ClGfS20
http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/jack-daniels-
toasts-frank-sinatra-instagram-and-hopes-you-will-
too-167895
56. Campaigns: 2015 Whiskey
Making
• Old No. 7 “Whiskey Making”
focus to strengthen the brand’s
roots
• Honor history and
commitment to authenticity
• Stories that demonstrate the
values of Jack Daniel’s
• Series of television, print, social,
OOH and digital videos in the
US, UK, Germany, Australia,
Belgium and Canada
Commercial:
http://creativity-
online.com/work/jack-daniels-
whiskey-making/44172
http://www.campaignbrief.com/2015/11/jack-daniels-tennessee-whiskey.html
http://arn.com/latest/jack-daniels-launches-whiskey-making/
58. Campaign: “The Few and Far
Between”
• Digital campaign “mischief, revelry and whiskey” celebrating quirky bar stories
• Stories may include theories about Jack, personal stories, tales of nights drinking
whiskey, etc.
• Concept from the idea that the brand is “rich in storytelling”
• Everyone loves a good bar story… So we set out across the country to really find
those in some of the greatest bars in America
http://adage.com/article/digital/bar-talk-jack-daniel-s-gathers-stories-digital-campaign/294780/
60. Strengths:
• Brand recognition due to age
• Use of millennial platforms- story board, videos, social media
• Innovative and expanding flavors of product mirroring
increase in vodka flavorings
• Consistency to brand values
63. Captain Morgan
• Brand of Rum
• 19 varieties
• Target market: 21-24 YOA
• Shot brand or mix drink
• “All you need to know is that it tastes delicious. And that it mixes with everything. Like fruity
stuff. And ginger stuff. And tea stuff. And piña stuff. And soda stuff. And just about anything
else you can think of. Captain’s honor. Now go mix some drinks. Why are you reading this?
What’s wrong with you?” (capatainmorgan.com)
• Use of icon: Captain Morgan
• Rebrand in 2011 of Morgan Spiced Rum to Captain Morgan
• Price: $19.99 1 liter
• 17.5% alcohol by volume
65. Campaign: 2010 One Million
Poses
• Inspire consumer interaction with Captain Morgan
• Encouraging celebrities, athletes, influencers and fans to participate
• Upload onto CaptainMorganUSA Facebook
• Each upload, brand donates $1 to the philanthropic organization, The First
Mate Fund
66.
67. Campaign: 2012 “Official First
Mate”
• Apart of “Welcome to the Captain’s World” campaign
• Features supermodel Marisa Miller
• Sex appeal to promote liquor
https://www.behance.net/gallery/4940407/Captain-Morgan-First-Mate
68. Campaign: 2014 White Rum
Has a New Captain
• Captain Morgan launched a
new spirit- White Rum
• Multi channel and multi
media campaign
• Facebook
• TV with 5 different 20 second
commercials
• Interspersing surprises
throughout campaign
• 2015 appears in UK
http://www.thespiritsbusiness.com/2015/08/captain-morgan-challenges-bacardi-in-new-ad/
http://www.thespiritsbusiness.com/2015/11/bacardi-and-captain-morgan-battle-continues/
69. Strengths:
• The face and icon: Captain Morgan
• Interactive and real
• Distinctive and memorable
• Consistent with brand theme
• Price is preferable for target market
70. Weaknesses:
• Low brand recognition partly due to rebranding
• May be perceived as low quality
• Highly competitive market
72. Fernet-Branca’s: Proposals
• Campaign transition towards educating the consumers of the
product- “27 herbs” while also connecting to the brands roots
during the Prohibition
• Campaign transition towards embracing complication;
whether it be relationships, identity or complications life
• Expanding media platforms to tailor towards Millennials;
“surround”
73. Competitors: Risks
• Jägermeister- Similar campaign/concept, brand loyalty
• Fireball- Taste, interactive campaigns, memorable brand due to
name/slogan/image, large ambassador and sales force free shot
strategy
• RumChata- cross promotion increases awareness, use of many
marketing platforms tailoring to Millennials, spice flavoring
• Jack Daniels- regarded as sophisticated, brand loyalty due to age,
media platforms tailored to Millennials, presence in social media,
innovative constantly offering new flavors
• Captain Morgan- taste, interactive real icon for brand
Now, even fruity cocktails are given a dash (or three) of bitters, and bitter liqueurs like Campari and Suze are more popular than ever. It may take some time to adjust to this new world of bitterness, but you’ll soon start craving the balance it provides to even humble drinks like gin and tonic. (http://www.pastemagazine.com/blogs/lists/2015/01/the-future-of-cocktails-8-booze-trends-to-watch-for-in-2015.html)
The use of Prohibition-era recipes in cocktail bars is nothing new, especially when you consider that cocktails wouldn’t even exist without the putrid spirits that the ban made necessary.
Bartenders love mezcal due to its complexity and boozy character, which means that you’ll see more and more of it on menus in 2015.
Mixologists are also catching on to the molecular gastronomy trend, evidenced by the prevalence of gels, foams, and chemical emulsifiers in many drinks.
http://winesur.com/news/millennials-when-what-and-how-much-do-they-drink
(77mill)- http://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/reports/2014/millennials-breaking-the-myths.html
(44x)-http://www.sdl.com/404.html?aspxerrorpath=/about/news-media/press/2014/new-sdl-study-shows-millennials-are-56-percent-more-likely-to-discover-marketing-content-on-social-networks-than-via-search-engines-or-email.html
(5 out of 6) http://www.sdl.com/404.html?aspxerrorpath=/about/news-media/press/2014/new-sdl-study-shows-millennials-are-56-percent-more-likely-to-discover-marketing-content-on-social-networks-than-via-search-engines-or-email.html
Last quote- http://www.restaurant.org/Manage-My-Restaurant/Marketing-Sales/Food/Pouring-Profits-Millennials-Adult-Beverages
I like to sip Fernet with a ginger back. It makes me feel fancy. But whenever I order it, I hear someone else do it too.
– Ryan Crowder, social media strategist, San Francisco
Argentina drinks way more in my experience. Fernet-and-cola is practically their national drink. I went to a pool complex in Buenos Aires where promotional Fernet people led children in a very bizarre Fernet-Branca song and dance.
– Joel Pryde, software engineer, Seattle
(http://www.thebolditalic.com/articles/4156-why-does-san-francisco-love-fernet)
The campaign launched nationwide, in 12 metropolitan cities, with out-of-home, painted wallscapes, rich media, print, mobile and social media.
http://www.beveragedynamics.com/2015/03/03/jagermeister-unveils-campaign-celebrating-the-brands-heritage/
Point 3: http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/j-germeister-takes-handcrafted-next-level-three-incredible-wooden-works-art-163295
Early strategy- http://dominothry.com/blog/bid/321796/The-Small-Business-Advantage-of-Fireball-Whisky-Digital-Marketing
