1. Red Bull
Marketing Communications Campaign
Introduction to Marketing Communications
MCOM 15-102
Professor Kathy Patterson
Thursday December 1st
2011

2. 1
MARKET BACKGROUND
Market Analysis:
Red Bull’s estimated Canadian market share is 50% and currently producing $22 million in sales. Their
annual retail sales revenue is $44 million. Their products are marketed in 120 countries profiting with
global sales of $2 billion. The company has an estimated U.S. market share of 46% producing retail sales
of $US248 million.
Red Bull has had tremendous success as a brand leader in the niche segment of the beverage market. They
see themselves as an “anti-brand” company, being praised by their “cult-like” loyal consumers.
Red Bull also sponsors numerous teams and events that are associated with the psychographics of their
consumers and their brand positioning. The company currently sponsors the World Rally Car
Championships and three other racing teams. These teams include Red Bull Racing and Scuderia Toro
Rosso Racing which Red Bull has ownership of. These ventures only generate $70 million in revenue
creating a $30 million loss when deducted from the $100 million Red Bull devotes to this market
annually. The company recently just purchased the European soccer team SV Austrian Salzburg
(renaming it Red Bull Salzburg), and the New Jersey soccer team North American Soccer League (also
renaming it Red Bull New York).
Competition Analysis:
Recently other companies including Pepsi-cola and Coca-cola have entered the energy drink market.
Market shares for the North American energy drink segment are as follows:
Red Bull 50%
Hansen Natural Corporation 18%
Pepsi-cola 10%
Coca-cola 17%
All other (independent and regional brands) 5%
Hansen Natural Corporation is a company that owns MONSTER Energy and LOST energy drinks. Both
brands combine bring Hansen 18% market share in the drink market in North America.

3. 2
AMP Energy (most commonly known for its Mountain Dew flavour) and SoBe No Fear are brands
owned by Pepsi-cola. They provide Pepsi with a combined market share of 10% in the energy drink
market. Pepsi-cola also owns Aquafina bottled water.
Coca-cola owns Rockstar and Full Throttle brands. These products are raising Coca-cola into the second
biggest competitor of Red Bull with 17% market share.
Finally, the remaining 5% of the market share in the North American energy drink market belongs to all
other independent and regional brands.
Product (Brand) Analysis:
Red Bull is an Austrian produced energy drink that was adapted from a Tai beverage called “Krating
Daeng.” When translated into English the saying created “Red Bull” and the company was born.
Their innovative drink formula is what propelled the energy drink market into what it is today. Fighting
mental and physical fatigue Red Bull creates increased mental and physical exertion. The drink promises
to improve performance in stressful or straining situations, and increase concentration and improve
reaction speed. Red Bull promises to also stimulate your metabolism along with revitalizing the body and
mind. It is important to remember that even though Red Bull products invigorate the body and mind they
are not made to rehydrate your body during participation in sporting activities. Because of its energy
building ingredients and revitalizing qualities Red Bull focusses their brand around the theme “Red Bull
gives you wings.”
Red Bull products contain ingredients like taurine, glucuronolactone, caffeine and sweeteners like
glucose/sucrose. Their products are marketed in a 250ML can. They produce an energy drink, sugar free
energy drink and a flavour shot.
Red Bull relies on “buzz marketing” and word of mouth to sell their products. The company restricts their
distribution and does as minimal advertising as possible to create an exclusivity and “opinionated
preference” to their products.

4. 3

5. 4
MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS PLAN
Target Market Profile:
Red Bull’s markets to young urban males ranging in age from 16 to 29 years old. These males live in a
constantly exciting, adventurous and exerting lifestyle. They “live life on the edge” or try to and they
usually are average build or go to the gym/work out on a consistent level. “Red Bull males” participate in
competitive and extreme sports or any other kind of adventurous and recreational activities. Competitive
gamers in the video game industry are also gravitating towards Red Bull products to keep them alert
during tournaments. Red Bull defines the whole of these consumers as Generation Y because they are not
only active males but active students who need the energy to finish projects and study all night.
Red Bull also has a vague secondary target market of older consumers in general ranging from 25 to 45
years old. Whether this may be a business executive finishing an annual report or a truck driver finishing
a long haul anyone can use Red Bull energy drinks. These males come from all walks of life and financial
status. They live in suburban and rural areas and have different levels of education. They all share
physical/mental exertion in common and getting their adrenaline pumping.
Positioning Strategy Statement:
“Red Bull promises to revitalize your physical and mental fatigue during stressful and straining situations.
Red Bull energy drinks will increase your performance, concentration, vigilance and metabolism using
health conscious energy-building ingredients.”

6. 5
ADVERTISING PLAN
Advertising Objectives:
- To create brand preference for Red Bull within Generation Y’s young active males, as their primary
source for invigorating the body and mind.
- To communicate Red Bull’s lack of exclusivity and instead an availability to all fatigued consumers.
- To maintain Red Bull’s brand leadership within the energy drink market by building awareness of their
high performance quality.
- To attract and maintain our secondary target market of older males needing energy to maintain their
heavy workloads.
- To ensure that our consumers are aware of the negative effects when used excessively with alcohol.

7. 6
CREATIVE PLAN:
Creative Strategy:
Red Bull’s messages will remind consumers of the versatility that their energy drink provides to athletes,
gamers, business workers, truck drivers, students…etc. The messages need to rebuke Red Bull’s negative
image as being “speed in a can,” and encouraging excessive use with alcohol that leads to teenage deaths.
When used properly Red Bull is an effective way to battle physical and mental fatigue for extended
periods of time and when using it you can be and do whatever you set your mind to.
Central Theme:
All messages will focus on the fact that “Red Bull is all you need.” It is all you need to be athletic, alert or
adventurous. The messages will show different types of active males in different settings and job
positions. The subjects will have a can of Red Bull in hand showing what the benefits do for their
performance. There will also be messages emphasizing that “Red Bull is all you need” without the
addition of alcohol.
Appeal Technique:
The messages will combine a Positive appeal technique with a Lifestyle appeal technique. The images
feature subjects positively enjoying the benefits of Red Bull and using them in their everyday lives and
daily routines. Red Bull has become an “active lifestyle” for all physical and mental exerting consumers.
Tone and Style:
All messages will be simple print advertisements. The fonts will be clear and easy to read and the pictures
simple to comprehend. The main focal point of the images will be the Red Bull can in hand. We also want
to show consumers that you don’t need to mix Red Bull with alcohol excessively.

8. 7
Tagline:
This is the tagline created to summarize the message strategy “Red Bull: All you need…” Different
messages will portray different endings accompanied by various subjects. For example “Red Bull: All
you need… to be athletic” with an image of a basketball player sitting on a bench with a Red Bull. Or
“Red Bull: All you need… to be aquatic” with a synchronized swimmer walking out of the change rooms
with a Red Bull. There will also be specific taglines focussing on minimizing the excessive use of Red
Bull with alcohol. For example “Red Bull: All you need… to be alcohol free.”
Creative Execution:
The campaign will include seven 4-colour magazine inserts in Sports Illustrated magazine. There will
also be fourteen 4-colour billboard advertisements. The messages will encourage consumers to use Red
Bull during their daily routines including sports, school work and business work. All advertisements will
be product/lifestyle focussed. Subjects will be using Red Bull energy drinks to enhance their performance
in their job positions or recreational activities. Red Bull will also be advertising on their Facebook pages,
consumers’ profiles and their official website. The Red Bull website will also feature a mail-in rebate
coupon for “buy one get one free 4-pack of Red Bull.”
Media Plan:
The message will explain that Red Bull energy drinks are all that you need to revitalize your physical and
emotional fatigue during your daily activities. The campaign will use Seasonal-Blitz scheduling running
from October to February (of the following year) and May to July. The outdoor billboard advertisements
will run nationally including Quebec City, Ottawa, Vancouver, Toronto/Hamilton, Calgary, Winnipeg,
and London. The Sports Illustrated magazine inserts will be monthly. The inserts will use the same
scheduling during the same seven months. This campaign is going to create awareness Red Bull’s
positive benefits and positioning. The advertisements will run during the first four months of fall/winter
seasons in order to attract the winter sport playing consumers. The first half of the campaign will end in

9. 8
January to attract the students finishing projects for their first semesters. The second half of the campaign
will be during the middle of the year when truck drivers are hauling longer loads and students are
finishing projects for their second semesters. The messages will also attract the summer sport playing
consumers as well.

10. 9
OTHER INTEGRATED MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS ACTIVITIES
Online Communications:
Objectives:
To increase Red Bull’s new positioning and brand awareness to our primary target market.
Strategy:
Red Bull will be using online banner advertising through Facebook, and redesigning their official
website to showcase the new advertisements. The Facebook ads will show up on consumer’s profiles that
have “liked” Red Bull and its products.
Execution:
Banner advertisements will be placed on Facebook user profiles that have “liked” Red Bull and its
products. They will run during the same scheduling as the billboard advertisements and magazine inserts.
On our official website we will be showcasing the “All you need” campaign advertisements. Consumers
will also be able to print off a rebate coupon. The coupon will specify that when you purchase two 4-
packs of Red Bull energy drinks, keep your receipt, fill out the information and mail it then you will
receive your money back for the second case. The online communications will run the opposite months as
the outdoor and print advertisements to create Red Bull’s classic “buzz marketing” and anticipation.
These months would be August, September and from February to April.

11. 10
SALES PROMOTION:
Objectives:
- To promote a trial purchase of Red Bull products from our primary and secondary target markets.
- To encourage distributors to continue selling Red Bull energy drinks.
Strategy:
Red Bull will be conducting trade allowances and point of purchase allowances to distributors along with
in-store free sampling.
Execution:
Trade allowances will be paid to distributors to buy larger orders of Red Bull energy drinks for the first
and second halves of the campaign. Point of purchase allowances will also be paid to include in-store
displays of the new advertisements on side panels, flyers and at the free sample tables. Red Bull will also
be hosting free trial sized sampling of their energy drinks in distributor’s beverage isles.
MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS CALENDAR
ACTIVITY: JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC
Outdoor
Advertising X X X X X
X X X
Magazine
Inserts X X X X X
X X X
Online
Rebate X X X
X X
Trade
Allowance X X X
X X X X
Point of
Purchase
Allowance X X X X
X X X
In-store
Sampling X X X
X X

12. 11
MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS BUDGET
MEDIA/ACTIVITY: LENGTH: COST:
Outdoor Advertising October – February
May - July
$775,714
Magazine Advertising October – February
May - July
$21,600
Online Rebate (redesigning) August and September
February - April
$100,350
Trade Allowance September – December
April - June
$29,336
Point of Purchase
Allowance
October – January
May - July
$36,500
In-Store Sampling August and September
February - April
$36,500
PLAN BUDGET: $1,000,000
Outdoor Advertising: Figures includes 10 week billboards in Quebec City, Ottawa, Vancouver,
Toronto/Hamilton, Calgary, Winnipeg and London.
Magazine Advertising: Figures include printing monthly inserts in Sports Illustrated magazine.
Trade Allowance: Figures include amount paid to distributors to buy larger orders of Red Bull energy
drinks for the first and second halves of the campaign.
Point of Purchase Allowance: Figures include amount paid to include in-store displays of the new
advertisements on side panels, flyers and at the free sample tables.
In-Store Free Sampling: Figures include hosting free trial sized sampling of their energy drinks in
distributor’s beverage isles.