SCHOOL OF LAW

BBA LLB 2ND YEAR (SEMESTER IV)

MARKETING IV

TOPIC
A STUDY OF REDBULL’s MARKETING AND PROMOTIONAL STRATEGY

SUBMITTED TO SUBMITTED BY
DR. ADITI SOJATIA PRACHITI SURI

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INDEX
Abstract………………………………………………………………….3
Introduction……………………………………………………………..4
I. Background……………………………………………………………….5
II. Target Market of Red Bull………………………………………………5
Product Analysis……………………………………………………………..7
III. Red bull’s Marketing Mix……………………………………………….7
IV. Ways Red bull Executes its Marketing Strategy……………………….8
V. Why Red bull’s Strategy Works…………………………………………. 10
VI. Data and Graph Analysis…………………………………………………11
VII. Conclusion…………………………………………………………………13
VIII. References……………………………………………………………….. 14

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ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study is to investigate the factors that contributed to the marketing success
of Red Bull GmbH in the international market for energy drinks. It concentrates on the
marketing approaches taken by the company and the positioning of their most successful
product, which is the Red Bull Energy Drink brand. The evolution of a new product category
known as "functional energy" is also covered in this section, along with the history of the
company. In a similar vein, it takes into consideration how this provided Red Bull with a first-
mover advantage. An investigation into the marketing mix utilised by Red Bull yields
information regarding the company's product, price, place, and promotion, also known as the
"four Ps." When evaluating a product, we consider not only its flavour but also its components
and its packaging. The effects of both internal and external market forces are considered when
analysing price. When evaluating Red Bull's effectiveness of place, a variety of geographic
locations and environmental factors are taken into consideration. In the final step, an
investigation and breakdown of the numerous promotional strategies utilised by Red Bull are
carried out.

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INTRODUCTION
Since the beginning of our life forms, people have relied on a diverse range of foods and
beverages to satisfy the requirements and preferences of their individual diets. Some beverages
have withstood the test of time and continue to be popular choices across a variety of societies
and time periods. To be more specific, I am referring to coffee and tea, both of which contain
significant amounts of caffeine and have been known to give their consumers a momentary
boost of energy for hundreds of years. Both beverages continue to enjoy an enormous amount
of notoriety and are undoubtedly two of the top five beverages that are consumed all over the
world. In addition, a lot of people have developed a dependence on these beverages that are
loaded with caffeine, and some of them even go so far as to say that they "could not function"
without their cup of coffee in the morning or their cup of tea in the afternoon. Therefore, there
is no question in anyone's mind that there is a market for a beverage that has been purposefully
developed and has scientific evidence to show that it can increase both physical endurance and
mental alertness. A beverage that would effectively provide users with the energy to finish a
long day of work, perform in a sporting event, continue studying, or assist with any other
activities that are performed on a day-to-day basis.
Dietrich Mateschitz, an entrepreneur from Austria, have seen a marketplace for this kind of
beverage in Europe and established Red Bull GmhB in the country of Austria in the year 1985.
The actual product, which also goes by the name Red Bull, is an energy drink with the tagline
"Vitalizes Body and Mind®" (Red Bull, 2013). It makes use of components that have been
shown through research to be effective in producing the desired effect. Red Bull GmbH was
an industry leader when it came to the production of energy drinks and was the first company
to launch this new category of products in both Europe and the United States of America.
Today, the industry of energy drinks has expanded to include countries all over the world, with
a global consumption of 4.8 billion litres and a market worth of $37 billion in 2011. (Zenith
International, 2012). Red Bull was able to transform itself from a small Austrian start-up
corporation with a commodity that was never discovered by the global market, outside of Asia,
into a multinational corporation. At the time, the company was selling a product that had never
been seen by the global market. In addition, ever since its founding more than two decades ago,
the business has maintained its position as the organisation with the highest market share in
this particular sector. When one considers that the product itself has remained relatively
unchanged throughout its existence, it can be seen as something of a marketing miracle.
Because of this, a significant part of Red Bull's success can be attributed to the company's one-
of-a-kind branding and marketing approach, as well as to the enormous role that these plays.
Red Bull has been successful in marketing itself as more than just a product; rather, they have
portrayed themselves as a way of life. This paper examines how the marketing mix utilised by
Red Bull, which consists of promotion, price, place, and product, has contributed to the
widespread success of their product.

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I.BACKGROUND
Birth of the energy drink
Before founding Red Bull GmbH, Dietrich Mateschitz earned a degree in marketing from the
University of Commerce in Vienna and worked as the International Marketing Director for
Blendax, a company owned by Procter & Gamble. During this time, he was also a member of
the Red Bull Racing team.
Because of the nature of his work, Mr. Mateschitz was required to spend a significant portion
of his time travelling internationally on business. During one of his visits to Thailand, he
sampled a local delicacy known as Krating Daeng, which is widely regarded as the world's first
ever energy drink and is strikingly comparable to the modern-day version of Red Bull. Dietrich
was relieved to discover that the beverage had eliminated his symptoms of jet lag and given
him an increase in his level of energy (Solomon, 2012). Soon after, he couldn't get enough of
Krating Daeng and realised that there was a demand for a drink like that in Austria, where he
was born and raised. Dietrich resigned from his position in 1984 and, along with his business
partner Chaleo Yoovidhya, established Red Bull GmbH. Chaleo Yoovidhya was the inventor
of Krating Daeng and the owner of TC Pharmaceuticals. In exchange for a 51 percent stake in
Red Bull, the Thai beverage manufacturer TC Pharmaceuticals sold the foreign licencing rights
to Mateschitz (Aaker, 2011). This gave Dietrich Mateschitz 49 percent ownership of the
company. TC Pharmaceuticals owned the rights for the energy drink recipe. Dietrich was
unanimously chosen by the other partners to take over management of the company and serve
as its chief executive officer. Dietrich founded Red Bull GmbH in his native Austria in 1985,
and the first Red Bull energy drink was introduced to the market the following year in 1987.
II.TARGET MARKET AND POSITIONING OF REDBULL
Business to Consumer (B2C) Market
Because Red Bull is a consumer good, the marketing strategy for the energy drink was directed
towards end users. "Business-to-consumer marketing" is a term that describes the strategies
and best practises that are used to promote goods and services to end users or customers
(Brafton, 2013). Consumer marketing is more personal than Business to Business (B2B)
marketing, and it requires Red Bull to not only focus on the product's function or features in
order to evoke an emotional response from customers, but also to appeal to the customer's
wants in order to evoke those same feelings. According to Boag (2013), consumers may view
a product as more than just a drink because it may also represent a certain lifestyle or persona
that they wish to project to others through their consumption of a particular beverage. Red Bull
has put a lot of effort into establishing a name and a reputation for their beverage, with the goal
of providing not only nutritional value but also significant value to the community.
Positioning and Target Market
Red Bull took a transparent strategy when it came to positioning their product in the consumer
market. It is generally recommended that businesses define a specific target market as
marketing to the general population is an extremely expensive and difficult endeavour,
particularly for a start-up corporation with a small number of assets. In general, it is
recommended that businesses define a specific target market as it is generally recommended
that businesses define a specific target market. In addition, because of its comprehensive

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nature, this strategy may lead to the customer becoming perplexed. Because of the lack of
specificity in the definition of the product's characteristics, it is challenging to determine the
precise benefits that will be derived from using the product. Red Bull was able to overcome
the challenges presented by an open position and communicate the benefits of their products
to a large target market through the use of carefully crafted messages that were based on the
requirements and preferences of the target audience.
An efficient product positioning strategy ensures that marketing messages are received
favourably by target consumers and motivates those consumers to take action. Red Bull's
message to its target demographic was conceptualised by Mateschitz as a brand positioning
statement that read "revitalises body and mind." In a way that is both straightforward and
intriguing, the statement centres its attention on the function of the beverage in question as well
as the measurable benefit that it confers on the customer. Red Bull's target market was not a
demographic or a psychographic, as is typical in market segmentation, but rather anyone who
needed energy, regardless of age, sex, income, or any other defining characteristics. This is in
contrast to traditional market segmentation, which focuses on specific demographics and
psychographics. According to Norbert Kraihamer, Group Marketing and Sales Director for Red
Bull, "we only have two dimensions: people who are mentally fatigued Bachelor of Commerce
and people who are physically fatigued or both". In addition, Red Bull did not specify any
occasions for consumption because the company wanted customers to feel free to consume
their product whenever they felt they needed an energy boost, regardless of the time of day or
location. Red Bull was successful in penetrating many different market segments and leaving
room for the company to expand as a result of this strategy, which consisted of not focusing on
a specific niche market or limiting itself to events or activities. Because of this strategy, Red
Bull became very flexible over the course of time as the energy drink industry matured. This
enabled the company to adapt with changing trends and the entry of competitors, which was a
significant contributor to Red Bull's ability to maintain its position as the industry leader
PRODUCT ANALYSIS
Because Red Bull Energy Drink is a consumer convenience good, it can be assumed that the
consumer does not give much thought to the decision-making process before purchasing the
product. Because this category of goods is "widely available, purchased frequently, and with
minimal effort," the customers tend to be price conscious and habit oriented due to the nature
of the purchases they make. Red Bull, on the other hand, was launching an entirely new product
category onto the market. It was called "functional energy," and it was given this name because
the company's beverages were not intended to be consumed for the purpose of pleasure but
rather for energy. Because of this, Red Bull was able to capitalise on being the first company
to market their product as a preference good and benefit from the first-mover advantage. The
establishment of a consumer preference for a brand and loyalty to that brand by consumers
results in the creation of customers who routinely opt for that product when given the choice.
Through a powerful marketing campaign that elevated the status of their brand, Red Bull was
able to convince customers that their product should be considered a preference good.
When Red Bull first entered the market, the company offered just one product: the Red Bull
Energy Drink. Since then, the company has expanded their product line only marginally. Their
product range is extremely constrained and essentially lacks both breadth and length, with the

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exception of their flagship beverage, which is now offered in sugar-free, calorie-free, cola, as
well as fruit-flavoured variants. This beverage is their only source of depth.
A small product mix can be beneficial for a company because it prevents the company from
overextending itself and spreading its resources too thin, both of which can be detrimental to
the company's success. When a company has a large product mix, they run the additional risk
of cannibalising their own products. This occurs when the company introduces too many
products onto the market at once and begins to lose sales of older products to sales of newer
products. The limited variety of products that Red Bull offers does, however, come with some
drawbacks.Due to the limited variety of products that the company offers, it is more
challenging for the business to diversify its risk, attract customers who have a variety of
preferences, and increase its profitability from multiple market segments. With the help of their
open brand positioning and the fact that their target market is not segmented, Red Bull has been
able to substantially offset most of these drawbacks with their original energy drink's popularity
and leading sales in the market.

III. REDBULL’s MARKETING MIX ( 4 P’s )

Product
Red Bull is unlike many other beverage companies in its simple product mix. Though the
company has launched multiple flavour varieties, non-alcoholic mixers, and a sugar-free
version of its original recipe, the primary driver of sales for Red Bull is the original recipe
variety. Red Bull has seen increased success as consumer preference shifted from carbonated
soda to energy drinks.
Price
Red Bull holds a dominant market share in the energy drink industry, allowing them to follow
a premium pricing strategy for most of its products. However, they still need to account
for value-based pricing when setting standard prices for their drinks.
Place
Red Bull is sold in 171 countries worldwide, and the company sold 7.9 billion cans worldwide
in 2020. Ease of availability is huge for Red Bull’s sales numbers, and its availability in
supermarkets, convenience stores, nightclubs, and more has contributed to its massive success
on the world stage.
Promotion
Red Bull spends millions annually to promote their products and ensure they are at the top of
the mind of those looking for energy drinks. “Red Bull Gives You Wings,” the company’s
famous tagline, is used in most of their advertisements, which are often shared digitally or on
TV and streaming services. Aside from traditional advertising, Red Bull’s sponsorships and
publicity stunts make them especially appealing to younger audiences. Just think about Felix
Baumgartner standing on his jump pad in the stratosphere above Earth before plummeting
further and faster than any human before — wearing Red Bull gear from head to toe. That’s
quite a way to create brand awareness.

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IV.WAYS REDBULL EXECUTES ITS MARKETING STRATEGY
Red Bull’s ability to stay true to its branding and values makes them successful.
1. Maximizing the Idea behind Their Tagline
Red Bull’s messaging strategy revolves around its tagline, “Red Bull gives you wings.” It
focuses on the idea that its product gives people the “wings” or energy they need to do whatever
they want when they want. This tagline fuels their content because they produce and record
some of the most action-packed, high-flying sports and activities the world has ever seen.
2. Keeping Consistent Visual Branding
The visual branding that Red Bull has created is a key contributor to the brand’s success. Take
a look at one of their more recent YouTube videos, the content keeps the watcher engaged
through a fast-paced, high-intensity stunt that leaves them wondering if they’ll be able to pull
it off. That edge-of-your-seat, shock-inducing mentality is what Red Bull’s branding is all
about. In turn, they’re able to say, “We gave people the energy (and courage) they needed
to attempt something this crazy.”
3. Letting Values Be Their Guide
Their values play a role in their content as well. They centre around one core phrase “giving
wings to people and ideas.” Everything that the Red Bull team communicates revolves around
that tagline and its values. The ability to keep that communication consistent over the past 30
years has led to their success.
4. Building a Strong Content Core
Red Bull’s content core can be summed up by saying:
“Red Bull’s content core revolves around the intersection between their audience’s interest for
extreme sports, festivals, and a fast-paced lifestyle with their product’s ability to keep people
awake and give them energy during those events.” They focus on extreme sports, music, art,
dance, nightlife, and much more. Because of that broad spectrum, their content can appeal to
the right audience. There is one thing that Red Bull does with its content core that pushes them
ahead of the pack.
Every piece of content they create matches the quality of other publications their target
audience might read, like Buzzed, Vice, ESPN, and more. That level of quality makes it seem
like it’s coming from a powerhouse dedicated to creating consumable media, not an energy
drink brand.
5. Creating Content around What Their Audience Loves
What does every topic they cover (and a lot of them) have in common? They focus on activities
their audience would participate in while consuming their products. They also publish that
content everywhere their audience is likely to hang out. They publish a massive amount of
material on their website, which, surprisingly, has no mention of their product whatsoever:
They produce a magazine, The Red Bulletin, which circulates over 2.2 million copies a month:
They also create fantastic, awe-inspiring videos: In summary, if their target audience is
consuming content on a given channel, you can count on Red Bull being there.

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6. Revamping The Way They Use Traditional Media
It’s not just content marketing that Red Bull dominates. The brand invests a substantial amount
in traditional mass media channels as well. Red Bull’s TV content operates in two formats:
videos they create for their online channels (YouTube, social media, etc.) and ads that they
partner with traditional TV channel content:
Their TV content resides on their online hub called Red Bull TV. Their videos and shows are
segmented into formats like ‘Events’ and ‘Films’ as well as channel topics like ‘Cliff Diving’
and ‘Culture’.
7. By Being Loud & Proud With Social Media Strategy
Social media is another channel that Red Bull dominates with authority.
Their Facebook page, for example, is full of artistic videos that blend visually appealing
images, music created by their own record label that pumps up viewers, and the sports and
events their audience loves. Their message is short and sweet, while the first 3 seconds leave
you wondering what is happening. You have no choice but to see it through to the end.
8. Bringing the Product to the Audience with Sponsorships & Events
Finally, Red Bull’s sponsorship and events are the last part of their marketing strategy that
seals the domination of their brand. Let’s break their efforts into three categories:
1. Publicity stunts.
2. Events they’ve created.
3. Sponsorships.
Their publicity stunts are so crazy it forces the world to stop and watch. Of course, there’s their
Stratos Jump, but there’s more.
9. Use Student Marketers
Red Bull created a student marketer program, also known as their “Wings Team”, which is
different from what any brand is doing. You may see brands using people as brand
ambassadors, but Red Bull takes it further and allows students to be involved in their marketing.
This strategy continues to build on their brand image and values and invests in future marketers.
Student marketers are getting valuable marketing experience from one of the top marketers in
the world, and Red Bull continues to increase brand awareness.

How Red Bull Uses Events to Reach Customers

The third part of their strategy involves hosting and sponsoring events their target market is
already attending. Whether that means music festivals, film events, or even extreme cliff
diving, Red Bull will either create or sponsor an event around them.
It is a brilliant move because their audience is already there. Their target audience is an active
group. They’re trying new and crazy stunts; they love extreme sports or rocking out at a music
festival. So Red Bull shows up at places they know their target audience would be.

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Take Coachella, for example. This massive music festival takes place over two weekends in
the desert, and fans don’t want to miss a second. That may mean sacrificing a few hours of
sleep. Red Bull shows up and gives them the wings (and energy) they need to stay awake and
keep jamming at the festival.

How Red Bull Uses Publicity Stunts To Generate Hype

Another piece of the Red Bull marketing strategy is their insane publicity stunts. They sent a
man up 128,000 ft above the earth in a small ship and helium balloon and had him free fall out
of it. This stunt, commonly known as the Red Bull Stratos Jump, broke two different world
records: Creating massive stunts, like the Stratos Jump.

V. WHY REDBULL’s STRATEGY WORKS

Red Bull’s strategy works because of three different things:
1. The first is their ability to tell a story that entices their audience. Their focus on
everything from extreme sports to music festivals gives them a broad playing field, but
it’s not just that.
2. Red Bull puts its product second and the content and value it can give its audience first.
The attention to detail that their marketing team gives is evident. These people care
about the topics they are writing, recording, or creating content around.
3. Finally, their commitment to the values and aesthetics the brand created when they first
started makes their marketing work. Everything they create relates to the idea of giving
people and ideas wings to fly.

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VI. DATA AND GRAPH ANALYSIS

Graph 1

INTERPRETATION
From the above graph it can be shown that Red bull observed its highest can sales in 2021 since
its establishment. Red bull has been consistently increasing its sales there is increase in every
year’s sale. From the graph we can also conclude that red bull is making more and more profit
year by year and is still in the market dominating the industry even after so many years.

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GRAPH 2

INTERPRETATION
From the above data it can be concluded that red bull has incurred highest amount of its revenue
since the establishment of the brand. From the past years it can be seen that the revenue of red
bull was at the stage of decline but then the company had taken effective measures to boost up
the sales and increase its revenue.

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VII. CONCLUSION
The energy drink Red Bull introduced has permanently altered the beverage sector. The
business also debuted a new brand category and a lifestyle associated with the merchandise.
Since Dietrich Mateschitz founded Red Bull GmbH in 1985, the business has had entire faith
in its product and thought that customers wanted its energy-boosting qualities. Red Bull has
persistently promoted the concept of energy, they created the brand category of functional
energy, and they "controlled the category" with everything they did. Red Bull has maintained
its dominance in the energy drink market for more than 25 years thanks to intelligent marketing
initiatives and effective product positioning. Red Bull has been able to successfully adjust to
the changing market conditions and competition by using open positioning and without
focusing on a particular market segment. Additionally, the company's long history of using the
pull strategy has drawn devoted clients who want to be linked with the Red Bull brand image,
which is backed by Red Bull's extensive participation in event and athlete sponsorships and the
launch of Red Bull Media. Ultimately, Red Bull offers a premium product that has lasted the
test of time because to its constant marketing strategy and significant emphasis on the
beverage's energy component.
Red Bull has created a powerful global brand that has achieved incredible success by
implementing a unique approach to business and marketing strategy and communications. Red
Bull’s standardized product, premium pricing, extensive placement, and most importantly,
engaging promotional strategies have led the company to become one of the most successful
energy drink companies and one of the most recognized brands in the world. Recognizing the
importance of engaging with consumers, Red Bull has successfully managed to create a
globally standardized product and brand that consumers all over the world are able to connect
with.

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VIII. REFERENCE
Aaker, D. (2022). ‘Red Bull: Building Brand Equity in Non-Traditional Ways’. Case Study,
pp.73-92.
Aaker, D. (2013). ‘Red Bull: The Ultimate Brand Builder’ https://prophet.com/2013/05/140-
red-bull/
Brafton Inc. (2020), Business-to-Consumer (B2C) Marketing
http://www.brafton.com/glossary/business-to-consumer-b2c-marketing
BusinessDictionary.com (2020)
http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/undifferentiated-marketing.html
The Economist (May 9, 2022). ‘Face Value: Selling Energy’
http://www.economist.com/node-/1120373
O’Brien, J. (2012). ‘How Red Bull Takes Content Marketing to the Extreme’
http://mashable.com/2012/12/19/red-bull-content-marketing/
Red Bull GmhB (2022), Production http://energydrink.redbull.com/production
Willman, D. (2020). ‘Top 10 Reasons Why Sponsoring an Event is a Brilliant Marketing
Strategy’. http://www.examiner.com/article/top-10-reasons-why-sponsoring-an-event-is-a-
brilliant-marketing-strategy
Zenith International (2021). ‘Global energy drinks market spurts ahead to $37 billion’.
http://www.zenithinternational.com/articles/1012

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