Red Bulls Marketing Strategy

Marketing Essay
http://www.brandchannel.com/features_profile.asppr_id!"#"
All big brands around the world are now shifting towards the phenomenon
of globalization. A product is no more confined to geographical boundaries.
Globalisation calls for global marketing strategies being implemented
around the world to resonate the brands identity and its image to target
customers. A synonymous marketing strategy is cost-effective and this is the
strategy applied by many big companies around the world. However,
eperts also say that this is not always a wise strategy because consumer
behaviour around the world varies from culture to culture and from nation to
nation. !or instance, an American consumer will react and respond
differently as compared to a "epalese consumer. #hus, while implementing
global marketing strategies, a wiser move would be to tweak it, customise it,
and to relate it with the local consumer behaviour. $imilarly, few
international big names in "epal have only implemented their global
strategies and are not probably eploiting the huge potential they have. %ne
such case is that of &ed 'ull in "epal. $ince the entrance of this drink in
"epal, it has done well enough to survive in the "epalese market as
compared to some of the other energy drink brands. &ed 'ull has
implemented its global marketing strategy such as unconventional method
without really evaluating its effects on the customer loyalty in "epal. #hus,
the (uestion still remains whether the customer loyalty is influenced by &ed
'ull in "epal that uses global unconventional marketing strategies.
Statement of problem
&ed 'ulls marketing strategy around the world is to use unconventional
strategies that involve guerilla stunts and buzz generating tactics to
communicate to their customers. Guerilla marketing is based on below-the-
line )'#*+ activities where brand recall is created through events and stunts
that are mostly related to sports ),-games+, parties, adventure and music.
#he sports &ed 'ull supports are ones that are not popular in "epal.
!ormula one and ,-games are not really popular. $imilarly, &ed 'ull does a
lot of promotional events at discothe(ue to enhance its brand. 'ut this is not
applicable in "epalese situation because we dont have any such type of
place. #his is where the problem lies for &ed 'ull in "epal. *ike
everywhere, the strategy depends on unconventional marketing which is not
applicable and does not relate to the "epalese culture and tradition. !or
eample, how many people in "epal would be interested in free style
football- Hence, if they conduct a sports event based on free style football,
still many people who are unrelated to these events will not consider .oining
there. Also, the idea of ,-games that involve moto )motorcycle racing+,
skiing )ski big air, skier cross+, snowboarding, snowmobile, /nline skating,
skateboarding, and car racing are not played in "epal. #hus, any event based
on these games would be absolutely useless here. 0e do not have well
organised night clubs and discothe(ues, as already described. #hese areas
are the best places where most of &ed 'ulls promotions and selling would
take place around the world. &ed 'ull also conducts a lot of its adventurous
events around the world in deserts and mountainous areas. /n these contets,
security is the prime issue. %ne would also argue &ed 'ull should use
above-the-line )A#*+ methods of promotions )e.g. television, print and
radio+ to communicate to a larger audience. #he bottomline here is that &ed
'ull "epal is not considering the local culture and consumer behavior and is
blindly implementing its global marketing strategies to communicate with
its customers. #hat is why the current research has been done to find out the
effectiveness of &ed 'ulls global unconventional marketing strategy, for
eample '#* method, in customer loyalty in "epal.
$im and %b&ecti'es
$im
#he current research was conducted to find out the effectiveness of &ed
'ulls global unconventional marketing strategy )e.g. '#* strategy+ in
customer loyalty in "epal.
%b&ecti'es
#o analyse the situation of consumers in energy drink
1o they consume energy drink-
Are they aware of energy drinks available in markets-
1o they prefer any energy drinks-
#o analyse the factors that affect potential target market of &ed 'ull in
"epal.
1o gender, age-groups, marital status and income of consumers have any
effect on &ed 'ull market in "epal-
Analysis of the &ed 'ull brand in customer loyalty
0hat consumers think about &ed 'ull (uality-
0hy consumers think &ed 'ull was uni(ue among drinks-
0hat consumers think about &ed 'ull brand-
0ill &ed 'ull consumers keep on purchasing it on future-
0ill &ed 'ull non-consumers consider purchasing it on future-
#o analyse the effectiveness of &ed 'ulls marketing strategy in customer
loyalty in "epal-
0ill sampling affect customer loyalty-
0ill promotion events affect customer loyalty-
Any suggestion in enhancing customer loyalty-
(ustification of the study
At the end of this study, our research will help understand the effectiveness
of &ed 'ulls global unconventional marketing strategy )e.g. '#* strategy+
in customer loyalty in "epal. /n addition, this study will be important to
analyse the &ed 'ull brand in customer loyalty.
A detailed report would be generated regarding consumer behavior,
preferences, attitudes, reactions, lifestyles, and characteristics which would
help us prepare an in-depth analysis on our research ob.ectives. An eciting
prospect of this pro.ect would be to find out to what etent &ed 'ull
possesses the ability to reach markets and reach consumers as using
unconventional marketing strategies limits their reach and opportunities.
*astly, the study will generate recommendations that will be crucial in &ed
'ull marketing strategy in future.
Scope of the study
#he study comprises of conducting a research in different parts of
2athmandu targeting individuals and groups )principally university and
college students, celebrities and media related persons+ falling into our
target criteria in order to find out the effectiveness of &ed 'ulls
unconventional marketing in "epal. #he research also involves interviews
with industry eperts to gain their viewpoints and comments on the matter
which was important to understand about &ed 'ull markets in this country.
)*+ER$+,RE RE-*E.
,ncon'entional marketing
/n the corporate world, the term marketing simply refers to activities carried
out by organizations or individuals in order to generate awareness capture
interest and boost sales. #here are mainly two strategies to generate
marketing, for eample conventional and unconventional marketing. #he
first, conventional marketing, a traditional marketing techni(ue, mainly
refers to the use of media or A#* activities for the purpose of promoting the
brand. #hese conventional methods comprise of television advertisements,
print advertisements in newspapers, magazines, broadcasts on radios,
billboards or hoardings and other sources of media. 3nlike conventional
marketing, the unconventional marketing refers to all those forms of
marketing that re(uire lower budgets and more time, imagination, creativity
and a lot of energy rather than monetary support. 4ompared to conventional
marketing that lacks an interaction between the organization and the end
user, unconventional strategy is more interactive with customers and gets
them really engaged with the activity itself. 5amples involve public
interceptions, random giveaways or free sampling, and publicity stunt )6&+.
3nconventional marketing is synonymously used as guerrilla marketing,
buzz marketing, public relation tactics, viral marketing, social media, '#*
in various literatures. #his marketing campaign is principally interactive
with consumers who are unepectedly targeted in unepected places.
#herefore, this campaign is aimed at generating buzz and viral marketing via
a uni(ue, engaging and thought-provoking ideology )&omane 2night, #he
'est 7Guerrilla 8arketing7 $trategies,
http9::marketingnotes.a.hubpages.com:hub:#he-'est-Guerrilla-8arketing-
$trategies )'log+, accessed on ;< $eptember ;=<;+.
0hile both forms of marketing result in increased awareness, persuasion
and education of the brand, unconventional marketing helps build a bond
between the brand and the customer. #he 5forsys /nc. website );=<<+ states
that unconventional marketing is an eperiential marketing which appeals to
the emotions. #he customer develops an emotional attachment to a brand,
product, person, or idea. #herefore, unconventional marketing greatly
enhance the customer interaction in order to gain valuable insights and
conse(uently enhance loyalty.
/ustomer loyalty
0hen a company or a business organisation is opened, it is aimed to
generate and retain a loyal customer who would continuously attach with the
company in the contet of its long-term cost-effective business. #he
ideology of retaining a long term relationship with brand loyal, i.e. the
customer who has the continuous re(uirement of the same product is called
customer loyalty. 4ustomers will leave the company or organisation if it is
not aimed at curomer loyalty. >arious eplanations have been found
regarding customer loyalty in literatures. $ivadas and 'aker-6rewitt );===+
said ?there is an increasing recognition that the ultimate ob.ective of
customer satisfaction measurement should be customer loyalty@. Anton
)<AAB+ described ?satisfaction is positively associated with repurchase
intentions, likelihood of recommending a product or service, loyalty and
profitability@. /n <AAC, Guiltinan, 6aul and 8adden )<AAC+ said that satisfied
customers are more likely to be repeat )and even become loyal+ customers
)Guiltinan, 6aul and 8adden <AAC+. 0hile these statements indicate that
customer satisfaction is one of the factors of customer loyalty, customer
dissatisfaction does not always lead to a reduction in loyalty. !or eample,
even dissatisfied, some customers may be loyal because they dont epect to
get any better service even if they did change )&eichheld <AAB+.
/n addition to customer satisfaction, brand loyalty may be another factor
which may play in customer loyalty. $ometimes, customers can also feel a
sense of loyalty and emotional attachment to a particular brand )!ournier
<AAD+. However, the relationship of the brand with a customer is a two-way
process in which it is not concerned how a customer feels to a particular
brand, and this association is .ust Epreference or Eproclivity )6eppers and
&ogers ;==F+.
/ustomer $c0uisition
+he assurance phase
/ustomer 1e'elopment
+he education 2 bonding phase
/ustomer /ommitment
+he sales phase
/ustomer Retention
+he continuation2 acti'ity phase
/ustomer )oyalty /ycle
Satisfaction
Satisfaction
Satisfaction
Satisfaction
S3
S4
S5
S#
!igure <9 4ustomer *oyalty 4ycle as a 'usiness 8odel used by the $cuba
$chools /nternational )$$/+ 1ive 4entres. #hey ac(uire students and convert
them into loyal customers. $<9 $tep <, $;9 $tep ;, $G9 $tep G and $F9 $tep F
)Adapted from http9::divessi-indo.com:ac(uisition:systems.php, accessed on
;F $eptember, ;=<;+.
!inally, price may be one of the determining factors of customer loyalty
)!isher ;==<+. !or eample, good pricing is an important factor in
encouraging customer loyalty )Abratt and &ussell <AAA+. /n contrast, if a
customer is loyal to a brand, he:she will not care of future price changes
)4lark et al. <AAH+ indicating price may not play a role in customer loyalty.
0hile customer loyalty depends on different factors, the process of
customer loyalty is not an easy task in business. #he process of customer
loyalty can be achieved in F steps )!igure <+. #he first step is called the
assurance phase in which customer is ac(uired via different marketing or
business strategy. #hen, customers are made satisfied and then, they are
given different trainings and education programs to keep them bonded. #his
is the education and bonding phase and is the second step of customer
loyalty. Again, the customers are made satisfied and customers make
commitment in the sales phase or third phase. #he satisfaction to customers
is continued and customers will stick to the same brand or the same
company in the continuation and activity phase. #his is (uite important to
keep the customers retention. #he cycle is repeated followed by customer
satisfaction. #herefore, customer satisfaction may be one of the important
factors in customer loyalty )!igure <+.
Measuring marketing effecti'eness
4ompanies spend billions of dollars annually on marketing. 'ecause of
increasingly competitive markets, firms strive to produce higher and higher
profits. #his leads to calls for .ustifying the marketing ependitures )&ust et
al ;==F+. 6owell );==;+ states that marketing effectiveness is the (uality of
how marketers perform their marketing activities in order to optimize their
ependitures and achieve both short and long term goals. #he difference
between marketing effectiveness and efficiency is eplained by &ust et.al
);==F+ as they state for eample, that price promotions may be efficient in
delivering short-term revenues and cash flows but ineffective in the long run
if it is destroying profitability and brand e(uity in the long run.
6igure 3: +he /hain of Marketing 7roducti'ity
8$dapted from (ournal of Marketing 399#: 'ol.
;<: pp. =;><?@.
#he ?4hain of 8arketing 6roductivity@ is a conceptual contet that can be
utilized for evaluating marketing effectiveness )!igure ;+. #his model
eplains the effects of certain marketing actions of a firm on its position and
standing in the market. &ust et al );==F+ believe that every firm must have a
business model which is used to track the effectiveness of marketing
ependitures in influencing the knowledge, beliefs and emotions of the
customers that ultimately leads to purchase behaviours. #hey stress on the
fact that marketing efforts such as advertising and product improvements
help in building long term assets such as brand e(uity. #hese long term
assets are leveraged to deliver profitability in the short run. 4ustomer
thoughts, beliefs and feelings that lead to purchase behaviours are usually
measured through non-financial measures such as attitudes and behavioural
intentions. #hese non-financial measures drive financial performance
measures like sales, profits and stock values in the short and long runs )&ust
et al ;==F+.
Beha'iours
Hoyer and 8acinnis );==A+ states that consumer behaviour reflects the sum
of all consumer decisions from ac(uisition to disposition of goods, services
and eperiences. 'ehaviour of the consumers is a dynamic process
reflecting ac(uisition, usage and disposition activities. #he (uestions of
what, why, how, when and how much to ac(uire, use and dispose a
particular offering can have a ma.or impact on how strategies for marketing
and communications are developed. /n order to produce, communicate and
provide appropriate goods and services, marketers need rich insights on
consumer behaviours and what they value )Hoyer I 8acinnis, ;==A+.
8arketing efforts such as communications and promotions have a long term
impact on consumer behaviour. /n recent years, consumers have become
more price- and promotion-sensitive over the time because there is a lot of
information and choice available to them. #his is why more and more
companies are attempting to influence consumer behaviours through
marketing efforts such as promotions and communications )8ela, Gupta I
*ehman, <AAC+.
Sales Re'enue
$ales revenue numbers are the most ob.ective measures of marketing
effectiveness. !inancial benefits, such as sales, from particular marketing
efforts are assessed in numerous ways. %ne traditional method is the &eturn
on /nvestment )&%/+ which is the relative return that is obtained from the
re(uired ependiture. !inancial impacts like these affect the firms financial
position in terms of profit and cash flow. However, these methods are
controversial and ineffective if relied upon solely. #his is because most of
marketing efforts are played out in the long runJ there effects cannot be
observed in the short run, while methods such as &%/ only assess short term
effectiveness of marketing efforts. A better usage of such methods must
incorporate future cash flows so as to predict and determine the long run
marketing effectiveness )&ust et al ;==F+.
Brand E0uity
'rand e(uity is a relatively new concept which has developed from the past
two decades as core marketing concept. /t suggests that brand value can be
derived from the discounted cash flows received from the sale of
products:services as a result of associations of the brand with those
products:services )&ust et al ;==F+. &ust et al. );==F+ further cite #ybout
and 4arpenter on the enormous brand e(uity of Home 1epot which was the
3$KDF billion in <AAA. #his shows that even though there may be a short-
term divide between &%/ and marketing efforts, it may not be completely
ineffective due long la$ting value offered through brand e(uity. 5lements of
brand e(uity such as customer lifetime value, brand awareness, associations
and recognition can be determined by recognizing prevailing perceptions
regarding the brand and functional as well as emotional value propositions
that the brand provides )1unn IHalsall, ;==A+.
#he impact on customers and resultant developments in valuable assets such
as brand and customer e(uity influence a brands market share and revenue,
hence, enhancing its competitive position in the market. *ong term benefits
of these assets can increase customer responsiveness to brands and its
etensions, willingness to pay premiums, referrals, increased usage rates,
lower after sales support costs, customer retention and loyalty. All of these
factors reflect a larger market share to be en.oyed by the brand with
guaranteed greater profitability )&ust et al ;==F+. #here is a wealth of means
to measure market effectiveness. 8ethods to evaluate marketing tactics and
impact of marketing ependitures provide the necessary tools to affect the
practice of management and to bring further credibility to marketers. !rom
an accounting standpoint, marketing productivity must be categorized into
modifications in financial assets as well as intangible assets such as brand
e(uity )&ust et al ;==F+.
Red Bull>Aistory
&ed 'ull is a popular energy drink that had been manufactured since the
early <AB; by the #4 6harmaceutical 4o., in #hailand by 4haleo
Loovidhya. #he name of the company was subse(uently changed into &ed
'ull 'everage 4o. *td. /t was introduced into the 5urope by the Austrian
guy 1ietrich 8ateschitz, who found out that one of the #hai energy drink
called 2rating 1aeng )#hai9 &ed 'ull+ was good at soothing the Metlag. He
finally realized that the Asia has a wide potential market for ?5nergy
1rinks@ and there was no such kind of product available in the 0est or the
5urope. /n <ADF, he established an Austrian company called &ed 'ull
GmbH that sold about a million cans in <ADC. 4onse(uently the sale was
epanded to other countries like the 32, Germany, $witzerland and others
)http9::www.fundinguniverse.com:company-histories:red-bull-gmbh-
history:+. #hroughout the world, it is the leader in the energy drinks market
and has about C=N of the market share and has annual sales of billion
dollars )1ata 8onitor, &ed 'ull GmbH, ;==F+.
Red Bull>Branding
0hen introduced to the markets of the world, very few believed in the
successful potentiality of &ed 'ull as a brand and product. #he mere
concept of energy drink was brought into inception by &ed 'ull and most
believed that such a confined product category of energy drink was not
re(uired when you had other options such as tea or coffee as energy
boosters. 'eardwood );=<=+ remarked that &ed 'ull might be a slightly
safer alternative to alcohol. Although there are negative assumptions related
to &ed 'ull brand, it has now become the leading energy drink manufacturer
around the world. &egani in ;==B believes that the soul reason of the
success of &ed 'ull in marketing is due to its audacity to think out of the
bo and its trend setters rather than followers )&egani );==B+.
Red Bull>+he brand
0hile considering &ed 'ull as a brand, it reflects energy, enthusiasm, active
life, trend setters, adventurous and everything that is about youth and its
whereabouts. 0hen a person is found to consuming &ed 'ull, the image
created in mind is a Ecool and Etrendy one and that is the kind of
positioning they have achieved as a brand. All brand managers at &ed 'ull
maintain that the positioning of &ed 'ull will never change no matter what
the situation is, as that is what &ed 'ull, as a brand has thrived on. &ed 'ull
is more about the brand than the product itself. According to Gschwandtner
);==F+, it is not &ed 'ulls sales strategy that helps it sell like hot cakes
around the world, but it is its innovative branding strategy that has helped it
become the number one energy drink name of the world.
Red Bull>Marketing strategy across the world
&ed 'ull as a brand is rebellious in nature and it certainly proves the kind of
unconventional marketing strategy it has chosen. #hey absolutely refuse to
advertise and use some of the conventional modes of promotions such as
billboards, banner advertisements, taicab holograms and blimp in a way
that many brands would opt to do. 5ven their #> spots are very different
from others. 6layed only on niche channels, they are merely sketches of a
mysterious Austrian artiest that tries to amuse the audience more rather than
educating them. #hey completely pursue unconventional marketing
techni(ues to build the brand that ma.orly includes buzz generating tactics,
event-based marketing, hiring brand ambassadors, supporting student
pro.ects, free sampling and others.
&ather than going on mass, &ed 'ull targets underground style with '#*
activities. /t aims to produce viral buzz by paying college going students,
disc .ockey )1M+s and young opinion leaders to host events and parties
where the drink can be served. #hese are the sort of parties &ed 'ull
encourages its ambassador to lead or organise as it aims to associate its
brand with such events. #herefore, strong &ed 'ull branding can be
observed at club, cafO and discothe(ue where young crowds are mostly
present.
&ed 'ull does not spend on advertising and flashy celebrity endorsement.
#hey hire hip youngsters, students and unconventional sports athletes to
endorse their brand and promote it. #hese not only cost less but are also
more effective as they are closest to the target market and know the re(uired
consumer behaviors. 'esides that &ed 'ull organize and sponsor etreme
sports events like the ,-games and freestyle football which against
complements their strategy of unconventional marketing.
/ampaigns
#heir campaigns are mostly based on organizing events that are associated
with the brand. #hese events usually include unconventional sports, parties,
student based events and ehibitions. #hey use such events to heavily brand
their product using all kinds of aesthetics and tools. 6lus, they also sample at
these events to generate product trial and to let their target consumer
eperience the functionality of &ed 'ull. #heir most recent campaign was
the world tour of free style biking champion 2enny 'elaey who was taken
to all &ed 'ull operating countries where he performed stunts at different
schools, colleges and universities. #his event was used to build an
impression for &ed 'ull as an adventurous, outrageous and uni(ue brand.
$ampling was also conducted at all stunt venues. 'efore the tour of 2enny
'elaey, &ed 'ull organized the !ree $tyle footballing competition all
around the world where youngsters flaunted some cheeky skills to win the
ma.or prize of going to the 0orld 4up in $outh Africa.
7ublicity stunt/buBB generating tactics
#he main motive of &ed 'ull behind using unconventional and uni(ue
marketing strategies is to generate or create people talking about them that
gradually support to promote them. #hey aim to create a buzz through their
events that is why they do not prefer using the conventional modes of
communication )e.g. #>, radio and print media+. &ed 'ull aims to create a
viral fever through its events where people are amazed by the activities they
perform and talk about it. #he message spreads like wild fire that is the thing
each &ed 'ull brand manager or brand ambassador targets in all its
operating countries. 8ain motive is to do something so outrageous and
uni(ue, that people keep talking about it. #herefore, the brand is both getting
the re(uired mileage and developing a customer base for itself.
A small eample of how &ed 'ull tried to generate a buzz was the high
.ump that their hired athlete attempted from the tallest buildings in all the
&ed 'ull operating countries. 8edia was invited to the stunt and heavy &ed
'ull branding was ehibited. #here was great hype and anticipation because
of such an outrageous attempt being made by a person. 6eople kept talking
about it and there was a certain buzz about this stunt. #he venues for the
stunt were heavily branded with &ed 'ull aesthetics to demonstrate that it is
&ed 'ull who owns the event. #he stunts were successfully completed in all
&ed 'ull operating countries with the media heavily publishing it on #>,
print and radio. #he Eamazing factor was achieved as people were talking
about it and this was eactly what &ed 'ull wanted to achieve with this
stunt. /n this contet, it might not be selling the product through these stunts
but it is actually developing the brand as an adventurous and uni(ue one and
also that it is creating a buzz about &ed 'ull which is basically the target
and aim of the &ed 'ull brand manager or ambassador at the closing of the
event.
Endorsements
&ed 'ull does not really rely on celebrity endorsement as that is not its style.
0hat it does is ac(uiring sports teams around the world and supporting
them as its official sponsor. #he following endorsements are currently made
by this brand9
&ed 'ull is the official sponsor of all ,-games conducted around the world.
#his endorsement complements their marketing strategy of being
unconventional. All venues and player dresses are &ed 'ull branded and
heavy sampling is done at these events.
&ed 'ull has ac(uired two football teams around the world. %ne plays in the
8a.or *eague $occer in the 3nited $tates of America and is known as the
"ew Lork &ed 'ulls )http9::www.newyorkredbulls.com:+, accessed on ;H
$eptember, ;=<;+. #he other one is in the Austrian !ootball *eague and is
known as &ed 'ull $alzburg )http9::www.austria-salzburg.at:, accessed on
;H $eptember, ;=<;+. 'oth the teams have their kits branded with &ed 'ull.
&ed 'ull $alzburg even have their stadium named after &ed 'ull and is
called the &ed 'ull Arena. %ne can easily notice the heavy branding of &ed
'ull at the stadium. #his is an effective plan that involves the heavy media
coverage of football all over the world.
&ed 'ull owns a !ormula %ne team which has been doing incredibly well
since the ac(uisition took place
)http9::www.formula<.com:news:headlines:;=<=:H:<=CAB.html, accessed on
;H $eptember, ;=<;+. #he car and the drivers dress are completely branded
with &ed 'ull logos. #his is again a very effective because !ormula %ne
racing gets a lot of coverage around the world and gives &ed 'ull the
re(uired mileage in its target audience.
&ed 'ull endorses the ma.or stars in unconventional sports and gaming. A
stand out eample is 2enny 'elaey who has been supported by &ed 'ull
throughout his career as a free style biker )http9::www.tribalzine.com:-
2enny-'elaey-after-the-success-of, accessed on ;H $eptember, ;=<;+.
Sampling through brand ambassadors
Another strategy of the marketing by &ed 'ull is the contract with brand
ambassadors at schools, colleges and universities to represent the brand at
social events and hangouts. #hese brand ambassadors are given cartoon:s of
&ed 'ull to sample at parties and spots where &ed 'ull might be needed.
#hese situations occur when students are in mental or physical stress due to
various reasons, for eamples sports events or time of academic
eaminations. #he idea is to hire Ecool college going students to represent
the brand amongst its intended target market.
Another promotional strategy is involved in educating consumers. &ed 'ull
organises travel in by its staffs in a car that carries large cans of &ed 'ull.
#he &ed 'ull staffs target those individuals who lack energy and wishes of
energy. #hen, the staffs give a free can of &ed 'ull to these people. #his
strategy seems to be successful during the introduction of &ed 'ull into
public.
Red Bull>Establishment in Cepal and structure
&ed 'ull was finally launched in "epal in ;==; and since it has been a
leader in the market with relatively lesser competition. &ed 'ull was
brought to "epal by $.8. 4hawla 4ompany that only handled distribution
of &ed 'ull initially. 0hen the head(uarters in 1ubai assessed the sales in
"epal, they decided to officially start their operations in an office of their
own. /n ;==F, &ed 'ull "epal was established with three functional
departments namely 8arketing, $ales and !inance. &ed 'ull is currently
being operated in 2athmandu with the Asian head office being in the 3nited
Arab 5mirates )!igure G+. /t has set up its premises in all three cities where
distribution and marketing operations are eecuted. #he current
organizational structure of &ed 'ull "epal is shown in !igure G.
6igure 5 : +he current organiBational structure of
Red Bull Cepal.
Marketing
#he current organizational structure of &ed 'ull "epal is governed by Asian
Head %ffice. #his office primarily plans and eecutes '#* promotional
activities for &ed 'ull. 3nderstanding the consumer need and coming up
with activities to fulfill them is one of their most important tasks. 6re- and
6ost- event communications of all promotional activities are also taken care
of by this office. 5ach city has one marketing head and three $tudent 'rand
8anagers hired from popular universities to work as a team. 8arketing
department also handles communication via social media like !acebook and
others.
Sports and E'ents
#his is a dedicated team that plans around the year activities based on sports
and other functional events. &ed 'ull conducts all its marketing through
guerilla style and that is why this department has its special importance.
#hey primarily plan and eecute accompanied by collaboration with the
marketing department.
6inance
!inance 1epartment consists of a precise and dedicated full-time team
member. #he finance team distributes the budget for eecuting the
marketing activities. #his department also looks after the wage control
system. #he team also maintains and keeps track record of monthly sales.
#his department submits the monthly reports of sales performance to the
head office in 1ubai.
/ommunication
#his department handles all the pre- and post-event communication of &ed
'ull events and activities through all media that include #>, print, radio and
social media. #his strategy is similar to the idea of communication in
unconventional marketing of &ed 'ull brand to its audience. #his
department actively stays in touch with people in the media to disseminate
news about everything that &ed 'ull is doing not .ust in "epal but also
around the world.
Sales
$ince &ed 'ull is imported from 1ubai )Asian Head Puarters+, a production
department is not re(uired. #he distribution department takes in-charge of
the inventory management duties of &ed 'ull. #hey also conduct all
distribution operations of the city.
+he strategic dimensions of Red Bull branding
?&ed 'ull isnt a drink, its a lifestyle@ says 1ietrich 8ateschitz, 45% of
&ed 'ull GmbH )$peed-/n-A-4an, #he &ed 'ull $tory,
http9::www.slingstone.us:uploads:$peedQ/nQaQ4an.pdf, accessed on ;H
$eptember, ;=<;+. He adds that ?we dont bring the product to the peopleJ
we bring the people to the product.@ 0ith the energy drink market
established as it has today, there is truth in 8ateschitz words. &ed 'ull had
become a cult brand with loyal customers in a short period of time. #o
analyze it, we implement the strategic dimensions of branding from !ill
);==H+ )!igure F+.
6igure #: Strategic dimensions of branding 8$dapted
from 6ill 399"@.
*ntegration
A brand can only work when it communicates in a consistent and
meaningful way. A successful branding is partly the result of effective
integrated communications, stated !ill );==B+. &ed 'ull has always been
known for unconventional form of integrated marketing communications.
#he fact is that they only used small distributors that sell &ed 'ull
eclusively without any motivation of dealing with large distributors.
1ifferentiation
&ed 'ull takes differentiation as a core aspect as it is a pioneer, the first of
its kind in the market. 'eing the first energy drink, it has has various
advantages, though it is not easy to open a new market category. 'ut &ed
'ull took the differentiation further, by taking a different approach in their
marketing, sales, promotion, and distribution. Mudged by the targeted
consumers, the generation L, differentiation is essential as they strive for
their own identity. Gobe in ;==< eplains ?#hey are looking for
authenticity, self-identity, and community in the brands they endorse. And
for &ed 'ulls target audience, being authentic means being a bit irreverent,
a bit anti-establishment, and every bit different from your parents@ )Gobe
;==<+
$dded 'alue
As the final key aspect in the strategic dimensions of branding, added value
enables the customers to derive etra benefits as one brand can provide
different advantages to another. #hese advantages can come in the form of
rational attributes-based advantages or emotional-based advantages through
the augmented aspects of the products. &ed 'ull has added value in both
aspects. As it is an energy drink and has proven that it can revitalize the
body and mind, it fits as an advantage in the rational sense. As for the
emotional-based advantage, the product marketing communication
positioned &ed 'ull as a lifestyle product, for eample, it is aligned with the
lifestyle associated with action or etreme sports. >alue is added to brands
through three main components9 perceived performance, psychosocial
meaning and the etent of brand-name awareness.
7ercei'ed performance
6erceptions derived from consumer on the relative (uality and perceived
associations are concerned as a key attribute. &ed 'ull as an energy drink
has done its .ob that it was promised to do for the consumer. &ed 'ull even
utilised the enhancing and vitalising effects to associate the relationship in
distribution.
7sychosocial meanings
/t refers to the immaterial associations that consumers make about brands
such as meanings about personality and epressions of individuality. 0ith
&ed 'ull, it had been perceived as a brand with an edge, as Gobe );==<+
eplained ?&ed 'ull is not about safety, thats the brand emotion is over the
edgeJ its pushing the envelope. 1anger is part of the deal. /f you can
survive &ed 'ull, you are cool.@
Brand>name awareness
/t has been argued that the level of name awareness can provoke feelings of
familiarity and reduced risk or uncertainty. #he origin and development of
the name &ed 'ull itself was not based on the familiarity of the market, it
was based on the drinks name in #hailand. 'ut 8ateschitz had tweaked the
meaning a little bit to make it more familiar for the western market, from red
water buffalo to &ed 'ull, as bull is associated with strength and virility.
Marketing strategy of Red Bull in Cepal
&ed 'ull has adapted a very unconventional style of marketing in "epal
which relies completely on '#* activities. 3nlike elsewhere around the
world, where there is a certain percentage of marketing activities done
through #>, radio and print, they do not do A#* promotions in "epal.
$ome of the tools that &ed 'ull doesnt use in "epal are #>, radio,
billboards, banner advertisements, taicab holograms, and blimps.
&ed 'ull has strongly adapted the practice of Eviral marketing by paying
students and young opinion formers to organize &ed 'ull events at colleges
and universities. #hey have also hired three $tudent 'rand 8anagers from
2athmandu 3niversity, 6urbanchal 3niversity and 284 which are the top
three institutes of 2athmandu and have done the same in the rest of the
cities. 0ith students acting as their representatives, &ed 'ull provides them
free cartoons of &ed 'ull and encourages them to throw parties and events.
#his results as an effective way to spread the good word about &ed 'ull as it
doesnt re(uire a huge amount of money, its (uick and the student
advocates offer credibility to a product competing in the beverage market.
Another advantage is that the student also provides research data that are
valuable for the company.
&ed 'ull in "epal is still in the process creating a market. 6eople still have
to be educated about the concept of energy drink. Another promotional
strategy, as discussed previously, involved in educating consumers is that
&ed 'ull recruits staff that looks after the people who want energy.
#hey also organise promotional events involving university and college
going students with themes like sports, art, part and music. Although this
serves to attract only a certain percentage of the market, this is all &ed 'ull
relies on to communicate with its target market.
&ed 'ull "epal has adopted the same strategies as around the world.
Although with ma.ority of the population can be communicated to through
mass-media, it still sticks to its strategies of unconventional marketing.
/ampaigns in Cepal
$ince its inception in "epal, &ed 'ull has organized a few buzz generating
events that resonates the brand identity to its customers and they are as
follows9
&ed 'ull 'A$5 .ump9 #his was a global campaign where they hired an
athlete to .ump from the tallest building in the city to create a hype about the
product. /n "epal, this stunt was performed among various people in the
presence of media. #hey were invited to eperience this outrageous act. #he
event was a huge success in terms of the fre(uency the brand distribution.
&ed 'ull !ree $tyle $occer9 #his again was a global campaign where
youngsters from all over the country were selected on the bases of their
footballing skills and were provided a platform to flaunt their talent in front
of the common public. #his event was conducted in 2athmandu. #he
turnout of participants was considerable low as compared to the turnout in
other &ed 'ull operating countries because of the lack of popularity of the
sport in "epal.
1oodle Art 4ompetition9 $tudents from all over the city were encouraged to
submit artwork to be selected for ehibitions conducted at different
universities. #his was a smaller sized event but was effective as there were
many students who liked the idea of rough sketching and doodles.
#he #our of 2enny 'elaey9 #his free style biker was taken to different
schools, colleges and universities in 2athmandu where he performed his
stunts.
/ompetitor re'iew
&ed 'ull was the first energy drink which was successful and was en.oying
a good market share. *ater on, few companies realised that there is a huge
potential market of those people who like to have energy drinks and after
observing the successful &ed 'ull, some big companies like 6epsi and
$hezan decided to enter into the energy drink market with their part of
shares. %ne of the ma.or factor that differentiates energy drinks is that they
are costly than other drinks, .uices, malt, carbohydrate drinks and others.
Another factor which plays an important role is the taste of the drink. 5very
energy drink in the market is trying to compete with one another in every
possible manner and thus taste might be the ma.or factor on which every
drink tries to differentiate itself as taste is the most prominent change in
energy drinks. #he two ma.or competitors of &ed 'ull in "epal are $ting
and $peed.
Sting
6epsi has introduced its energy drink in "epal with the name of $ting. $ting
placed its marketing strategies on the basis of the "epalese culture. /t
utilized the mass market tools of A#* and '#* to reach out to the
maimum customers. #heir advertisement of energizing and revitalizing by
claiming to be energy drink which has the ultimate taste and etreme energy
was appealing and many people went out and tried out $ting. *ike &ed 'ull,
which has sampling car 8ini 4ooper, $ting also introduced its association
with hummer and used to carry drinks in hummer for sampling. #he outlook
of hummer was painted with $ting written all over it and was made
attractive enough. %ther advertisements were included in #> and radio, and
billboards. /n addition, '#* activities were also run in different parts of the
country in which many sporty events were sponsored along with rock
concerts.
$ting entered into the market with a more sweet taste of energy drink.
4ompeting with &ed 'ull, they have introduced two flavours, one is red in
colour and another is yellow. /t is sweet in taste as compared to other energy
drinks. #he main core differentiating point is that $ting is competing on
price with other energy drinks which is usually high in price. $ting was
started with the price of =.BC3$K per can. #he (uality was backed by the
parent company 6epsi 4o. $o, low price didnt have much impact on the
(uality of the product. #hrough low price they are catching the mass market.
#hey are the cheapest energy drink with a fine taste. $ting is also found in a
bottled-filled that costs =.FF3$K per bottle. $ting thus tends to focus on
mass market and is leading towards more of a beverage drink rather than an
energy drink. #heir packaging is also attractive and different.
Speed
$peed energy drink comes from the House of $hezan. After seeing a good
potential market for energy drinks $hezan also introduced its energy drink
with the name of $peed. $peed followed '#* as well as A#* as it was
advertised on billboards in different strategic positions of the country, #>
and radio advertisements were being run on every potential channel. !ree
sampling, sponsoring concerts, sports events and organizing some outdoor
activities which involve people are all parts of their campaign. #herefore,
$peed is communicating with mass market in order to reach out the
maimum people of their target market.
#heir packaging was different and eye-catching. #he price of $peed was
started from the price of 3$K <.GG per can. #his was not reduced unlike
some other new energy drinks in the market. $peed is not competing on
price and thus is keeping its price above which might attract buyers about its
(uality and uni(ueness. 'ut the review is not the same as people after
having it. /t has been shown that people didnt eperience any difference in
taste and it was a yellow coloured energy drink. $imilar types of
characteristics are found in other low-priced energy drinks were offering.
Effecti'eness of Red BullDs marketing strategy in
Cepal
#he term Emarketing effectiveness is the (uality of how marketers perform
their marketing activities in order to optimize their ependitures and achieve
both short and long term goals )8arketing effectiveness, 8arketing
specialist knowledge group ;==A,
https9::www.cips.org:1ocuments:&esources:2nowledge
N;="ow:8ktQ5ffectiveQ>GN;=;==F=A.pdf, accessed on ;H $eptember,
;=<;+. #erminologies such as marketing return on investment )&%/+ and
return on marketing investment &%8/ are often related to marketing
effectiveness as they measure the return on the investment made by
marketers through different marketing functions.
5ach marketing program must be measurable in terms of &%/ and &%8/. /n
the short run, the goal may be to generate more revenue in terms of sales
figures. However, &%8/ in the longer term build more brand recognition.
&%8/ is a tool to yield more out of marketing programs. #his helps the
marketing team to conceptualise marketing programs, plan and budget them,
communicate their goals and ob.ectives, eecute and manage, measure and
monitor, and if successful, go back to the well for more money to scale them
for even more success. #hus, marketing effectiveness is needed to be
considered not only in terms of &%/ and &%8/, but also as a benchmark for
future marketing programs.
#he study of measuring the effectiveness of marketing programs of &ed 'ull
in "epal may follow the three parameters )!igure H+.
6igure ": 7arameters used in measuring the
effecti'eness of marketing programs of Red Bull
in Cepal.
Beha'iours
'ehaviour is one of the measuring factors of marketing effectiveness. /t
consists of subfactors or the characteristics of a person or a customer.
Attitudes, motivation, personality, lifestyle are some intrinsic subfactors that
determine the behaviour of a person. /n addition, the buying decision
process also significantly plays a role in behaviour that is important in
measuring the effectiveness of marketing program of &ed 'ull in "epal.
Sales re'enue
#his focuses on the effectiveness of marketing ependitures in achieving
short-term returns. 6rogram or campaign specific models are usually applied
to measure the immediate impact or net value of epected profits to be
derived from the investment )6at *a6ointe, 8arketing by the 1ashboard
*ight9 How to get more insight, foresight and accountability from your
marketing investments, ;==H, /$'"9 <-HBG<D-=GB-C+. #hese inputs give
valuable information on optimizing resource allocation in the contet of
generating near-term results. #o calculate the &ed 'ulls marketing
effectiveness, company estimated sales figures is etracted from particular
marketing programs.
Brand e0uity
#hese metrics seek to track the development of the longer-term impact of
marketing programs through the brands perspective. #his includes gauging
current and prospective customers perspectives of the brand through
surveys )6at *a6ointe ;==H+. #his perspective is measured in the brands
functionality, personality, accessibility and value propositions )6at *a6ointe
;==H+. /t is a fact that higher brand e(uity, even though intangible in nature,
tends to drive stock returns and hence the actual worth of the organization.
#herefore, it is vital to manage the brand e(uity elements of every product
and measure the effectiveness of marketing on these elements.
/A$7+ER>5
RESE$R/A ME+A%1%)%EF
Research approach
/n the current research, all data were collected from primary sources. #he
primary data for this research was obtained from a (uestionnaire that was
completed by people in 2athmandu and from $kype-to-$kype interviews.
#hough data were primarily associated with primary sources, secondary data
such as information about &ed 'ulls events, market structures were
provided by respondents. /n addition, the data related to energy drinks were
found in published articles and books.
+ypes of data
Guantitati'e data
/n this study, numbers or percentages of the respondents or the level of
income )<3nited $tates 1ollar, 3$KRA= "epalese &upees+ or other
(uantitative data were calculated using numbers and percentages.
Gualitati'e data
#he (ualitative part )gender, behaviours, brand awareness and loyalty+ were
calculated using (uestionnaires or interviews.
7opulation
#he frame of reference for the study was limited to the "epalese market for
energy drinks which was aged above <D and resides in the urban areas. &ed
'ulls target market category is considered to be the high-income groups of
$54 A and <DSG; years age groups. #herefore, these types of population
were considered during sampling.
Sampling
!or the current research, the samples were restricted to the urban areas of
2athmandu only. 'ased on a purposive sampling method, ;== individuals
who fall under the target market category for &ed 'ull were selected. #hese
individuals were either interviewed via $kype-to-$kype talk or distributed
(uestionnaires via !acebook and emails which were easy for data collection.
Measurement/*nstrument selection
1ata 4ollection9 As already stated, secondary data was collected via
literature review that consisted of the previous studies conducted on the
prevalent strategies adopted by &ed 'ull globally as well as locally. 6rimary
data were collected via interviews and (uestionnaires.
#ools for primary research9 6rimary research has been conducted through
interviews and survey (uestionnaires )open ended+ have designed for
collection of data.
-ariables
#he variables which are very important and playe an integral part in
derivation of the research results were9
/ntroduction of new:modified marketing strategies by &ed 'ull "epal
Awareness of these strategies in the target market
4hange in eecution of globalized strategies in a local perspective
4ompetition with different brands of drinks
All these variables are those which impact the effectiveness of &ed 'ulls
unconventional marketing strategies in the "epalese market.
1ata analysis
1iagrams )cartoon, $martArt+, charts )'ar charts and 6ie 4harts+ and tables
)normal and ;,; or G,; contingency+ were prepared using 8icrosoft
%ffice, and 8icrosoft 5cel. 1ata were presented in percentage )N+ which
was calculated by dividing by the total numbers of respondents in each
(uestion. 1ata in contingency table were analysed to find out the hypothesis
whether there was significant difference among variables, for eample, age-
groups and &ed 'ull target market, gender and &ed 'ull target market,
marital status and &ed 'ull target market and income and &ed 'ull target
market. 1epending on the types of data, these differences were analysed by
different 4hi-s(uare test, for eample, normal 4hi-s(uare test, 4hi-s(uare
test with Lates correction, and !ishers eact test by Graph6ad 6rism
softwares )6rism H for 0indows >ersion H.==, 8arch C, ;==C+. 1ata were
considered to be significant if the p values were less than =.=H at AHN
confidence interval.
/onsumer profile analysis
#he consumer profile analysis was conducted on the basis of the gender,
age-groups )years+, marital status and income )3$K per month+.
7romotional e'ents and their effecti'eness
As discussed earlier, &ed 'ull in "epal promotes themselves only through
'#* activities. #hese '#* activities include promotional events and buzz
generating stunts that are targeted mostly to the youth of the country. #his
strategy is the main target segment for &ed 'ull not only in "epal but also
around the world. #hese promotional events are usually themed on sports,
parties, youth related events, art ehibitions, youth seminars, workshops,
concerts, gigs and all those events that are for the youth and the media
industry. #he following parts of this chapter will give a clear evaluation of
the success rate of &ed 'ulls promotional events in terms of relevance to
the target market, sales generated from the events and behaviours of the
"epalese people.
/onsumer *nsight
*astly, it was asked the respondents to understand the way that should be
done to enhance the fre(uency of communication to their target consumers.
A lot of interesting responses were given but one of the most common one
was that &ed 'ull should start A#* marketing which involves the use of
conventional media like television, print, and radio. %ther responses include
the wide application of the '#*, for eample, campaigns of &ed 'ull can be
organised in sports such as crickets and football which are gaining
popularity in "epalese youths.
1iscussion
Energy drink consumer analysis
/n the first part of the thesis, energy drink consumer analysis was conducted.
/nterestingly, a huge potential market for the energy drinks was found to
eist in "epal because proportionately higher numbers of people would like
to consume energy drinks. #his shows that this is a good sign and
worthwhile for any potential organisation to invest in the energy drink
category. /n addition, the breakthrough of different energy brands, for
eample >irgin, 4oca-cola, 6epsi and $hezan became competitive in "epal,
however, &ed 'ull dominates all of these energy drinks which have been
found on the basis of the highest N of the people were both known to this
brand and preferred this brand for drinking. #his is also attributed to the
international notion that &ed 'ull is the first successful energy drink with an
international success and is the pioneer in the energy drink market
)'uchhloz, ;==H+. #hough &ed 'ull succeeded in building a dominance
position over "epalese energy drink market, $ting, a new brand, cannot be
ignored in future because this brand seems to be a close competitor of &ed
'ull in the current scenario. #herefore, marketing an energy drink or
functional drink for eample, &ed 'ull is the most challenging task due to
emerging competitors )&ichey ;==<+. /n addition, consumers are being more
likely the price and promotion-sensitive over the time because there is a lot
of information and alternative choice available to them )8ela, Gupta I
*ehman, <AAC+. However, 8ateschitz, the owner of &ed 'ull thinks is not
worried about the competitive market because if one really likes the product,
then he or she really wants to try out the original one that is the best in the
market and not a copied version )Mohnson ;==;+. /t is also supported by the
fact that most of the energy drink brands are still on the road of
establishment whereas &ed 'ull is already an established brand )&iedel
;==G+.
6actors that affect potential target market of Red
Bull in Cepal
0hile &ed 'ull has dominantly taken "epalese energy drink consumers in
"epal, there are several factors that affect potential target market of this
drink. Among these factors is the gender of the consumer. "epal is
culturally a uni(ue country where boys and girls have e(ual rights legally,
however girls rarely go outside for eample in concerts, music, or any type
of public events. 4ontrasting scenarios are found in the contet of boys in
"epal especially in sports and athletics where boys are more involved than
girls. #hat is why &ed 'ull is naturally preferred more by males than by
females. $imilarly, this drink is a type of youth drink which is mostly
consumed by people of age groups <DS;H years old. #hese groups of people
are mostly engaged outside the homes because they are college- or
university-goers and are more likely involved in parties, music, concert and
public events. #hey have many friends outside and en.oy taking various
drinks to satisfy their thirst by energising their body via drinking energy
components, for eample &ed 'ull. 6eople above this age, though outside
the home, are mostly responsible to their lives and do .obs for their families
and are less likely to involve in those events. #herefore, they are less likely
found drinking energy drink. /n this contet, marital status may also directly
affect the &ed 'ull drinking habit. 8arried people may be more responsible
than unmarried in the contet of staying inside homes, therefore, even
psychologically married people think they should not consume energy drink
because these types of energising drinks are not for them. /n contrast,
unmarried or single persons believe that they are freedom to decide anything
and to drink anything. #his can be analysed by a fact that when a person
starts growing up, he:she gets more inclined towards drinks like tea and
coffee for refreshing the mind and predominantly prefers consuming energy
drink for body and mind revitalization. However, it is difficult to predict the
cause of this differentiation as it may depend on personal daily life and
personal behaviour and characteristics.
"ot only se, age and marital status play a role in determining consumption
of &ed 'ull in "epal, but also household or personal income plays a crucial
role in this contet. #he current research suggests that the &ed 'ull brand is
a drink for $54 A and ' type of people. /n other words, it is a category for
the high income group because not all individuals are able to afford an
energy drink. A ;H=m* &ed 'ull can costs 3$K =.HB which might be
epensive for the poor people who have low income and do not have money
to complete their own basic needs. #herefore, &ed 'ull is a drink for the
rich people.
Red Bull brand in customer loyalty
&ed 'ull brand is also able to keep customer satisfaction and customer
loyalty though various responses were obtained in the current research.
#hese two points are the important issues to gain a great competitive
advantage for a business )&eichheld <AAG+. #herefore, measuring customer
loyalty to &ed 'ull in an effective way is important in business is a key
(uestion of the current thesis )&eichheld <AAG+. #herefore, measuring
customer loyalty to &ed 'ull in an effective way is important in business is
a key (uestion of the current thesis )&eichheld <AAG+. /t has been measured
by different factors such as &ed 'ull brand perceived (uality, 3$6s or
uni(ueness of the brand, identity and positioning of this brand, &ed 'ull
consumers perception about future purchase or retention and &ed 'ull non-
consumers perception about future purchase after this research.
/nterestingly, &ed 'ull has created the desired image and perception about
itself in the minds of the target market as they are associating &ed 'ull with
the right elements. &ed 'ull being an energy drink has made it clear in the
minds of consumers that it is all about energy and taste or energy, taste and
packaging and this company with an ecellent or good brand in the market.
#his product is ma.orly responsible for the energy revitalization of the body
and mind. #he taste of the &ed 'ull seems to be different from the usual
beverage drinks even from the newly introduced energy drink, $ting which
has a sweeter taste. #aurine is one of its key ingredients that separate &ed
'ull from other energy drinks. &ed 'ull consists of uni(ue packaging with
two &ed 'ulls colliding head to head and the tag line of E&ed 'ull Gives
Lou 0ings and its functionality of being an energy drink is attractive
enough. 3nlike an ordinary traditional soft drink, its not packaged in a <;-
ounce can, nor sold in a bottle. /nstead, it used an D.G-ounce slim can.
#herefore, energy and taste production and packaging are the factors that
determine the uni(ueness of &ed 'ull among the consumers and keep on
customer loyalty among these populations in "epal. "otably, many
responses regarding uni(ueness of the brand, to no surprise, were ?High
6rice@. #his may be an important issue of customer loyalty. #he current
market is price-sensitive and customers keep looking for cheaper
alternatives and substitute to fulfil needs. #he same notion may be applied
for those respondents who thought &ed 'ull as a Ehigh price drinks leading
the lack of future retention on the drink.
0hile customer loyalty comes in mind regarding &ed 'ull customers,
respondents felt themselves enumerating various adverbs for this drink such
as Eenergy, Eathletic drink, Ea good drink for late night study, Esports
drink, Ehigh profile drink, Ehigh priced drink, Emusic drink, Eparty drink
and Econcert drink. #his indicates that these perceptions play a great role in
starting, engaging, and retention of this drink among students, youths,
sportsmen, and customers who feel themselves energetic and high profile in
the society.
#he customer loyalty was also measured by the consumers and non-
consumers perceptions about future purchase of &ed 'ull. 0hile lots of
&ed 'ull consumers enumerated that they would keep on purchasing this
drink in future, still many consumers were either not sure about purchasing
or not wanted to purchase again. #his indicates that &ed 'ull consumers are
not fully satisfied related to the drinks and many of them do not want to fall
on customer loyalty. /n the same way, during this research half of the
population who never drank &ed 'ull wanted to be a new customer of this
drink. #his suggests that "epalese customers want to eperience new energy
drink in future.
Effecti'eness of Red BullDs marketing strategy in
customer loyalty in Cepal
"et, the effectiveness of &ed 'ulls marketing strategy in customer loyalty
in "epal was analysed. &ed 'ulls marketing campaigns are unconventional
and '#* however the competitors are reaching out the mass target audience
but using both means of marketing conventional as well as unconventional
marketing strategies in order to reach out to the maimum target audience
and capture greater market share )#homas et al. ;==D+. #he brand &ed 'ull
is being perceived differently in different cultural aspects )#homas et al.
;==D+ and "epal might be an important place for this drink.
Among '#* techni(ues, sampling and are the usual ways of measuring
effectiveness in customer loyalty. #hough ma.ority of respondents were
unaware of eperiencing free sampling, &ed 'ull seems to be not fully
successful in sampling enough people. #his may be because of the failure of
the &ed 'ull brand in proper sample selection that may include persons with
defined gender, age-groups, marital status and monthly income. /n addition,
the free &ed 'ull sampling strategy might not been fully reliable strategy in
"epalese markets because ma.ority of people did not purchase even after
trying free samples. #his indicates that people are though associated with
free sampling &ed 'ull, they may take it for granted and and look at it as an
opportunity for free drinks rather than utilizing it with the intention of
eperiencing its energy. #herefore, it can be clearly stated that this method
of unconventional marketing is not generating the desired result. #his can be
depicted from the result in which ma.ority of the respondents are in view of
unsuccessful strategy regarding the sampling techni(ue.
0hile sampling techni(ue might not be effective in customer loyalty
regarding &ed 'ull, the role of promotional events in &ed 'ull marketing
was analysed. /t has been found that &ed 'ull is not gaining full success
rates to communicate to its target audience about the things they were doing.
/t also shows that certainly there is a problem with the way they are
promoting themselves. /f they impose so much emphasis on promoting
themselves through events, there should be ade(uate amount of promotion
for these events so that people at least know about what is happening and
can go and eperience these events. Among many campaigns, &ed 'ull,
2enny 'alaey #our of "epal, &ed 'ull Air &ace 6arty, &ed 'ull 1oodle Art
4ompetition, &ed 'ull $treet $tyle !ootball, &ed 'ull #um #um 6a,
musical concerts and gigs, cricket, football and volleyball, ehibitions and
concerts seem to be popular among people who took part in &ed 'ull
campaigns. 5ven during these campaigns, ma.ority of people did not buy
&ed 'ull indicating these events are not successful in marketing strategy of
this drink. #herefore, alternate mechanisms of '#* activities can be
organised to enhance customer loyalty. !or eample, popular celebrities,
like the young and hot cinema actors or actresses or models, or sportsmen
should be involved to represent the brand ambassador as a symbol of the
young sensation for an official endorsement of &ed 'ull. /n addition,
campaigns of &ed 'ull can be organised in sports such as crickets and
football which are gaining popularity in "epalese youths. !inally, as
suggested by the respondents, A#* marketing strategy that involves the use
of conventional media like television, print, and radio cannot be ignored in
future.
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/onclusions
5nergy drinks such as &ed 'ull, $ting, 6epsi 8a, Gatorade, 'lue %,
$peed, 'urn, 'ooster and 6ower are known to "epalese consumers,
however, &ed 'ull is popular among these people.
Gender, age-groups, marital status and income are the factors that affect
potential target market of &ed 'ull in "epal.
4ustomer loyalty is found in purchasing of &ed 'ull brand by new
customers and in retention of purchasing of this drink by old customers in
"epal. #his is attributed to the brand perceived (uality, 3$6s, and energy,
taste and packaging of this drink.
&ed 'ull is synonymously used among consumers as various names for
eample, Eenergy, Eathletic drink, Ea good drink for late night study,
Esports drink, Ehigh profile drink, Ehigh priced drink Emusic drink, Eparty
drink and Econcert drink indicating this drink has an influence by various
ways among students, youths and persons who think themselves as a high
profile candidate of the society.
'#* activity )$ampling techni(ue+ might not be a successful strategy to
enhance marketing strategy of &ed 'ull in "epal. Another '#* activity
)promotional event+ though popular among "epalese youths is not gaining
advantage of marketing target in this country.
Recommendations
#here are certain new ways of going about things that we think &ed 'ull
needs to adopt if it is to thrive in the up and coming years considering the
ever increasing amount of competition.
&ed 'ull needs to start promoting through A#* activities. #hey need to
make full use of mass-media like its biggest competitor $ting is doing. 0ith
the help of television, radio and print communication they will be able to
reach out to a much larger audience. Holding promotional events might
work wonders for them outside "epal but the target market in "epal cannot
relate to etravagant club partying, etreme sports, and 1Ms totally. %nly a
small percentage can relate to such kinds of activities. Hence, it is important
that &ed 'ull use mass-media and start communicating through television,
radio and print so that it can reach out to a sea of audience that are yet to
learn about the brand &ed 'ull in "epal.
#o attract more customers, it is imperative &ed 'ull make intelligent
celebrity endorsements so that it can create associations with the brand. &ed
'ull can also start financially support sports events as well as student
pro.ects in order to create good will and positive associations for &ed 'ull.
#his way they will also be able to get a lot of eposure in front of their
target market.
&ed 'ull should invest heavily to improve its distribution network in "epal.
4urrently, it is only available at either posh cafes or restaurants or at
epensive retail outlets in posh areas. #he edge $ting has over &ed 'ull is
that it is backed up by 6epsis strong distribution network. &ed 'ull also
needs to make sure that it is made available in all parts of the city and hence
heavy investments should be made to improve its distribution network.
#he marketing epertise should be hired or increased in future and not rely
completely on the team of $tudent 'rand 8anagers. /n todays etra
ordinarily competitive world, there is a dire need of epert people handling
your operations. Hence &ed 'ull should hire more staff for its marketing
department who can dedicatedly work to improve and further enhance the
current situation of &ed 'ull in "epal.
/t should be kept in mind while planning any marketing activity is that
"epalese consumer differs from that around the world. Hence everything
planned should be in sync with "epalese culture so that people can relate to
it. /f they are able to do this successfully, it will automatically be able to
create several associations with its brand.
6uture outlook
#he staff currently handling marketing operations right now is clearly
inade(uate and not much can be epected from the $tudent 'rand 8anagers
as they are still students.
&ed 'ull is not available to all parts of the country. #herefore, planning to
get distribution agencies on board who can make sure that &ed 'ull should
be made available in all parts of the city.
/mproving and organising own &ed 'ull warehouse and store facilities as
well as own means of transportation should be done in future.
4urrent marketing strategies should be reviewed and changed if it is
possible.