Spotlight: How Red Bull puts brand at the heart of its digital strategy

The way a brand positions itself and the messaging that it communicates can be the difference between success and failure of the business. This is why having a solid digital strategy in place in 2019 should be a priority of any business.
Brands are benefiting almost as much from the digital revolution as consumers are, as new digital platforms and technologies allow a lot more opportunities. There are more channels available now than ever before that allow enhanced exposure and the built to engage with and build a closer relationship with consumers.
It is important for brands to be as innovative as possible when it comes to creating a digital marketing strategy as it is no longer enough for brands to follow trends – success means being one step ahead. One brand that is particularly good at staying ahead of trends and using its digital marketing strategy to create a personality that its audience and target market can relate to is Red Bull.
Red Bull has been innovative since the start of its journey, promoting a way of life, not just a product. Its brand identity of being both stimulating and reviving is fully reflected in its digital strategy and promotes a trendy and modish image. Even the Red Bull logo incorporates the brand’s identity and image – the red represents passion and lust, whilst blue is the colour of strength, confidence and youth. 
Read on the find out more about how Red Bull puts its brand at the heart of its digital strategy.

Video content

Red Bull has become a thought leader and a storyteller within its sector – as said before, the brand pushes experiences, not its products and their digital content strategy fully incorporates this. 
Red Bull understands one of the most effective ways to establish and strengthen a brand is through content, and has positioned itself as the master of that. Whether it be a blog post, video, or a podcast, the brand promotes and produces content which develops a stronger impression of its company and lasting value.
The Red Bull YouTube channel generates millions of impressions, allowing a positive effect on brand recognition. Some of the brand’s top videos have reached tens of millions of people; this is the kind of reach that would potentially cost hundreds of thousands of pounds using paid media. Red Bull has used video content to generate almost 1.5 billion impressions across its total library of videos and has the YouTube channel at circa 8.5 million subscribers.

 
But how is the content of Red Bull’s YouTube videos in line with their brand? Unlike most other brands, it’s YouTube videos don’t promote their product, instead the content is revolved around the sports and events that the brand sponsors. Red Bull identified that their main target market would be more engaged by video content as opposed to any other form, and have built a community on the world’s most popular video-sharing website. It puts its audience and branding at the heart of its digital strategy and focuses on adding value to consumers, rather than pushing sales. From Red Bull Motorsports to Red Bull music the content they promote is exciting, current and fresh – the brand identity we have come to know and love. 
Take its cliff diving series for example. These extreme and exhilarating clips allow viewers to engage, create a community and encourage viewers to share the content. Their videos often tend to be informative as well, adding value to the viewer.

It personifies the brand

It’s understandable that many marketers forget about the value of branding when it comes to tracking conversions and using the biddable features offered by Facebook Ads and Google Ads. While branding doesn’t produce the immediate results of a PPC campaign, it’s one of the most valuable marketing assets around.
A trusted and reputable brand is not something you can pay for, it’s something you earn and Red Bull has most certainly manage to achieve this. But how? As mentioned before, Red Bull has created a strong online community and takes the time to immerse in conversation with their audience and customers, which increases customer engagement and personifies the brand. Relating to a person, story or feeling is far easier than relating to corporation, which is why tone of voice and social activity is an important aspect of branding within a digital strategy.  
Community management is a tactic that’s becoming increasingly important as social media dominates our lives, so a well thought out social media and community management strategy has the ability to transform a brand. Personifying a brand isn’t an easy thing to do, but Red Bull have nailed it. It has a solid brand reputation, as well as loyal advocates and has truly bought the social back to social media though debate, conversation and engaging content. They are often seen replying to their followers and creating conversation on Twitter.

Consistent visual branding and tone of voice

Red Bull’s logo appears everywhere and is consistent throughout all channels – whether it be social media, event promotion, videos, sponsorships or actual products. So, in addition to having a strong brand personality, Red Bull has a consistent and effective visual identity.
Consistent visual branding creates a strong sense of familiarity, which in turn gains trust, while memorisation provides recognition. Red Bull is a household name, whether people drink the product or not –  and this is a result of their branding efforts within their marketing strategy, both online and offline. The famous ‘Red Bull gives you wings’ slogan appears on just about all of their products as well as merchandise, marketing and event props, adverts and any other promotional items. 
Red Bull’s tone of voice is also consistent which helps with personifying the brand and allows it to be recognised even when the logo isn’t present. By utilising informal, conversational language Red Bull allows itself to make a connection with its audience.

Red Bull are innovators

It’s true, Red Bull is not afraid to take risks when it comes to its digital marketing strategy. As a result, it’s one of the most talked about brands in the world. Its digital marketing approach is reflected in the message it sends out to its audience – be daring and different. 
Over 30 years ago it invented a product for a market that didn’t even exist. This is exactly how it has dominated that market, and it has innovated and stayed ahead of the game ever since.
The brand breaks through the noise and stands out above competition and Red Bull’s branding falls into every aspect of their digital strategy. Red Bull has not just created a product and a brand, it has created a community and an experience for people, which is not limited to its consumers. Every aspect of its branding and identity is communicated through all elements of its digital strategy.
So, to innovate and stay ahead of the game within your digital strategy ensure you are creating and pushing out exciting content that adds value to your audience, ensure your branding and tone of voice is consistent to allow your customers to relate to your brand and most importantly, don’t be afraid to take risks.