Red Bull - Advertising

Advertising

Red Bull has a diverse international marketing campaign. The numerous activities range from extreme sports like mountain biking, BMX, motocross, windsurfing, snowboarding, skateboarding, kayaking, wakeboarding, cliff-diving, surfing, skating, freestyle motocross, rally, Formula 1 racing, and breakdancing to art shows, music, and video games. In keeping with their target market of young males, Red Bull has also enlisted help from celebrities, such as Eminem that would appeal to this group (sponsoring the Red Bull "EmSee Battle Rap championships"). It also hosts events like the "Red Bull Flugtag" (German for "flight day" or "flying day") and other such contests. Red Bull also owns association football teams, with clubs in Austria, Germany, the United States and Brazil featuring the Red Bull trademark in their names. By associating the drink's image with these activities, the company seeks to promote a "cool" public image and raise brand power. Hence, this one energy drink has helped create a market for over 150 related types of merchandise, like Red Rooster and Blue Lightning.

Red Bull's slogan "gives you wings" is widely used in these marketing activities. Claims about the drink's effects and performance have been challenged on various occasions, with the UK's Advertising Standards Authority imposing advertising restrictions in 2001 in response to complaints first recorded as early as 1997. In 2011, Red Bull earned around EUR 4.2 billion in worldwide sales and was available in 164 countries globally.

In the PlayStation 3's social gaming platform, PlayStation Home, Red Bull has developed its own in-game island, specifically advertising its energy drink and the Red Bull Air Race event (for which the space is named) released in January 2009. In late November 2009, Red Bull brought out two new spaces, the Red Bull Illume space, and the Red Bull Beach space featuring the Red Bull Flugtag, both released on the same day. In January 2012, Red Bull released its first personal space called the Red Bull House of Skate featuring an indoor skate park.

In the video game Worms 3D, Red Bull allows the worms to move more quickly. Red Bull is displayed on virtual track-side billboards during gameplay and in the opening cinematic in the video game Wipeout 2097.