Abstract

The case discusses the Stratosphere campaign of Austria-based energy drink manufacturer Red Bull GmbH. Red Bull was launched in 1987, and as of 2012, it was available in more than 165 countries and sold around 5.2 billion cans. Since its inception, the company followed guerrilla marketing tactics to popularize Red Bull. In 1998, it launched the Red Bull Dolomite Man, an extreme endurance event in kayaking and paragliding. This was followed by events like ‘Flugtag’ where competitors could fly the machines they had built. Red Bull associated itself with extreme sports like biking, skating, and freerunning. Though sometimes it used traditional media like television and radio, its communication was very different and the advertisements were humorous, simple, youthful, and energetic. In October 2012, Red Bull launched an event called ‘the mission to the edge of space’ popularly known as Red Bull Stratos. It was a stratospheric freefall jump at supersonic speed performed by an Austrian skydiver and base jumper – Felix Baumgartner. Planning for the event began in 2005. The project was started and a special team was recruited for the event in 2007. The training and development program continued and in 2010, the project was finally announced. The event was held in 2012, and Baumgartner made a freefall jump from 24 miles above the earth. The event broke several Guinness world records and captured the attention of consumers worldwide. It was broadcast in 50 countries and went on to become the most watched live stream ever. It was highly popular in the social media. Through this campaign, Red Bull made noteworthy advancements in the areas of marketing, sponsorship, science, and social media. The campaign was considered as a giant leap for business marketing and was put in the category of most successful marketing campaign of all time by some analysts. Red Bull Stratos contributed to the company’s growth by gaining a large number of fans, increasing brand visibility, and bringing in new customers.

Learning Objectives

The case is structured to achieve the following Learning Objectives:

• Understand the marketing strategy of Red Bull
• Study the various benefits and risks involved in the marketing methods adopted by Red Bull.
• Discuss and debate the pros and cons of the Red Bull Stratos event.
• Understand how the Stratos event helped Red Bull.
• See how social media is used to reach the new-age consumers.

Keywords

Red Bull, Stratosphere Campaign, Stratos, Extreme Sports, Felix Baumgartner, Energy Drinks, Content marketing, Content promotion, Non-traditional marketing, Red Bull Media House, Brand placement, Global exposure, Marketing shift, Social media mentions, Social conversations,