Red Bull: Lessons Learned
Lately, I’ve been thinking back on my time at Red Bull. A bit nostalgic for the freedom we had there and the creativity that came from it.
Maybe it was a product of it being the early days in the new American market? Maybe it was the leadership we had under Dan Ginsburg, David Rohdy, David Chormanski, and, for me especially, Amy Taylor and Paul Crandell. But fundamentally, I’ve been thinking about the power of the original Red Bull brand personality traits (full list at the bottom for your reference). And there are two things that stand out.
#1. The clarity of knowing who you are as a brand.
It’s never been more important to know who you are, how you should act, what you should say (or not), than it is right now. The age of social media, content and influencer marketing, combined with our political dislocation and social strife, is making the usually high-pressure job of brand marketing sometimes feel like a life-and-death tightrope walk (insert: Budweiser, Cracker Barrel, Starbucks, Target, et al.). And while I’ve worked at some amazing brands since then, no one, and I mean no one, has so well codified and communicated internally exactly who they were like Red Bull.
#2. The power of embracing “Polarizing”
While Red Bull had eight brand personality traits. The one with the most juice for me was always: polarizing. Embracing right from the get-go that we’re not for everyone. And not simply not being for everyone, but fully embracing Newton’s Third Law of Motion (For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.). We’re going to actively and strategically do some things that some consumers are going to hate… but by doing that, an equal number of consumers will LOVE us!
The freedom and brand power that come from being so steadfast in your brand beliefs that you’re willing to shun some segment(s) of consumers, I believe, is one of the most underappreciated strategies in modern marketing.
The original list of Red Bull brand personality traits:
INNOVATIVE He likes to do new things, but never just for the sake of doing them first. He likes to do them better.
INDIVIDUALISTIC He has respect for the individual. And he likes to do things in his own way, as this is how he can best express his own personality.
NON-CONFORMIST He believes in the freedom to determine unique ways of living and thinking.
SELF-MOCKING He doesn’t take himself too seriously.
HUMBLE He’s aware of his strengths and happiest when people discover Red Bull for themselves, rather than have him chasing after them.
PROFESSIONAL, YET RELAXED He believes strongly in quality and doing things right without being uptight.
WITTY He appreciates clever humor.
POLARIZING He’s not for everyone. He is who he is, and that means he can’t be all things to all people.