red bull buyer behaviour
TRANSCRIPT
J19109 Buyer Behaviour BU5206
Module Title: Buyer Behaviour
Module Code: BU5206
Module Leader/Seminar Tutor: Stephanie Hodge
Assessment Number: J19109
Word Count: 3129
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J19109 Buyer Behaviour BU5206
How the symbolic consumption of extreme sports and celebrity
endorsements is utilised by Red Bull to influence motivation
Objectives
How drinking Red Bull creates an association between the public
and the sports sponsored by the brand.
How the use of celebrities influence buyers.
What could affect sales and change consumer perception of the
brand in the decision making process.
Introduction
Consumption of goods or services has been argued to define who we are or how we
want to represent ourselves. Thus in this paper we shall be looking at how buyer
behaviour has played a key impact on Red Bull, in creating the success they have had
within the market. This is due to the simple fact that the public are the ones who will
be purchasing your product or service in most cases. This can be shown by that an
individual’s identity and integration into social groups can be created by the symbolic
meanings of possessions (Belk, 1988). Meaning that an individual can view such
objects as an embodiment of meanings that will express their identity, and signify
group association (McCracken, 1988).
We shall also be looking into how the use of celebrities can impact on a buyer’s
behaviour. Such as the consumers mind-set can be altered with the use of a
physically attractive endorser (Baker & Churchill, 1977). Approaches to this can be
seen all around in today’s media with the use of sex as an appeal. Although Red Bull
hasn’t used the sex appeal to such an extent they have still used the basis of physical
ability as a focal point.
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Finally the last area I will be taking under consideration is the consumer’s decision
making process and why they would be inclined to buy into Red Bull or not. This is a
process in which the prospective buyer collects and evaluates information of a
product or service. Which in turn will allow them to be able to then make a decision
whether to purchase the goods or not (Friesner, 2000).
How drinking Red Bull creates an association between the public and
the sports sponsored by the brand.
Symbolic consumption represents how today’s society is dictated by the way in
which we relate ourselves to products and services (Miles, 1998). The way that this is
explained is, ‘whereby individuals use products as mechanisms to create, develop
and maintain their identities’ (Piacentini & Mailer, 2004). Therefore keeping this is in
mind we can see that with Red Bull attaching itself to the extreme sports sector, they
have created an ideology implanted into the consumer that if they purchase their
brand they will be associated to extreme sporting athletes. The reason for this is
because Red Bull have gone about their business by developing a high concept
strategy which puts excitement and amazement before promotion of their own
energy drink (Ratcliff, 2014). The ideal way Red Bull have put this strategy to perfect
effect is when they commenced the ‘Red Bull Stratos’ initiative. This world-record
beating attempt gained the concurrent views of 8 million on YouTube, which in turn
had the highest-ever concurrent screening statistics on the site (Shearman, 2012).
However this is not the only way it has connected itself to the sense of being
something associated to adrenaline and thrill factor. It was reported that in 2004
Red Bull had chosen to enter the world of Formula 1 (F1). They began this enterprise
by purchasing the Jaguar F1 racing team, consequently going through a complete
rebranding image of the team. This in turn brought the fruition of three constructors’
championships. Such a period of success prompted them to own another F1 team
being Scuderia Toro Rosso. Such an aggressive strategy from Red Bull to embed
them within this particular motor sport shows its clear intentions of making the
brand one associated with speed, fearlessness, adventure and style (DTA, 2012). This
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may seem on the surface of it as a great strategy employed by Red Bull for all of the
connotations they can draw to represent the brand. The basis of what Red Bull is
about is shown perfectly through Formula 1 however; they cannot predict what can
happen within this market that can affect its potential sales to customers.
Even though Red Bull are one of the most successful teams along with Ferrari
enjoying around $150m of the prize money, which is a far greater portion than any
of the other remaining teams (Davies, 2015). They cannot compensate for the
declining viewing figures. It was reported that within the six years leading up to the
2015 season, statistics showed that viewing figures had fell by 175m from 600m to
425m (Davies, 2015). Such a decline in viewing figures will no doubt affect the
potential sales of Red Bull. This is because with Red Bull pouring a lot of investment
into the sport, they will be aiming to gain new potential buyers of their product
through the sport. Nonetheless with the decline of the sports popularity it will
reduce the chance for the customer to come into contact with the brand.
This strategy falls perfectly into place with giving the public a ‘pursuit of self-esteem’
belief and the development of a self-image. With Red Bull having such a close
relation to anything adrenaline based we can see that the brand has gotten to a
position that allows them to have its own culture in a sense. This means that people
will end up choosing to drink Red Bull over other competitors for its symbolic
connection to either athletic ability or sport-based loyalty. This is represented
through such statistics gathered showing that between 2010 and 2014 energy drinks
gained a boost by 23.8%, from £1.18bn to £1.46bn (Keynote, 2015). With Red Bull in
particular recording $2,883m sales in the USA alone, with its closest competitor
Monster selling $407m less (Caffeine Informer Staff, 2015).
All of this represents to us how Red Bull have gone about creating such an aggressive
campaign to gain the interest of buyers and why in turn they will choose to buy into
the brand. Such a forceful campaign can be shown through the statistic that they use
a total of 30% of their revenue in marketing the brand (Cobb, 2013).
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How the use of celebrities influence buyers
Firstly a celebrity is defined as an individual who is well known for his well
knownness (Gabriel & Boorstin, 1963). This shows that the underlying fact that an
individual who is classed as a celebrity is recognized by a good majority portion of
the public. Such a person provides any company with a great foothold in gaining the
interest of buyers. Secondly the term celebrity endorsement is one that states the
use of a celebrity for services other than what they are known for whether it is an
actor or athlete (Surana & Pandya, 2016). The use of celebrity endorsement is highly
beneficial to any major brand. With research showing that using famous people
affects a consumer’s attitude (Awasthi & Chorarla, 2015). The reason for this being
that the company uses someone who is adored by the public, which can alter the
way they perceive the product being sold. This is because if we have an attitude
towards a product or service whether it be from the product or the celebrity used to
promote it, it will determine our intentions in deciding to buy into the brand or not
(Goldsmith, Lafferty & Newell, 2000).
Such tactics are the most commonly used by all major leading companies. This can
be made clear with statistics showing that in 1979 one in six commercials had a
famous figure apparent, which increased by 25% from then to 2001 (Erdogan, Baker
& Tagg, 2001). With this increase we can determine that not only the use of
celebrities has benefited the brands image in creating an appealing nature to the
buyer, but also that this strategy will not fade away. This is due to the fact that
Western culture has become fixated with the lives of famous people. The reason for
this being that the media has filled today’s society with news about celebrities, giving
them an entertainment factor (Choi & Rifon, 2007).
In terms of Red Bull once again the use of their aggressive strategy to completely
integrate within the sporting world has allowed them to utilise the athletes
associated to each sport. Such icons can range from Blake Griffin in the NBA to Shaun
White in Snowboarding (Variant, 2016). From this we can see that using the athletes
from each sporting sector they can appeal to a vast majority of the public.
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Such methods will mean that message delivered will be highly effective as it has the
desired perceived level of proficiency and reliability of an endorser (Hovland &
Welss, 1951). A buyer will be more inclined to purchase into this brand because of
the idol that will be associated to Red Bull. However this doesn’t stop here as,
currently they are involved in 237 events year round (Red Bull, 2014). Such a
staggering amount of sponsored events will ensure they reach out to almost
everyone possible. The reason people end up buying into the brand is for the
affiliation they gain from the product. By the person purchasing Red Bull they
become associated with a lifestyle directed from the products connotation with
extreme sports (Pierce, 2011).
From this we can see that Red Bull have utilised superstars in the ideal way creating
a symbolic match between the celebrity image and the brand image, such a method
is considered to be very effective (McCracken, 1989). This suggests that by marrying
up the icon used to the brand will create a more influential marketing campaign.
Thus with Red Bull being associated with extreme sports, the use of extreme
sporting athletes will be ideal to attract interest. How this will in turn affect the
buyer’s behaviour is that someone who has a strong belief for self-enhancement will
form a connection to the brand through their aspirations to be considered as a
member of that group (Escalas & Bettman, 2005). With Red Bull mainly using
athletes as there methods of celebrity endorsement we need to consider whether
they are the right way to go. A reason being that many top athletes make more
money from endorsements than they do from their own sport related finances. This
is due to world renowned athlete Tiger Woods making around $90m from
endorsements compared to only creating $25m from salary/winnings (Badenhausen,
2008). Therefore choosing sporting athletes needs to be taken under serious
consideration as some may be perceived as “sell outs”. Suggesting they are only in it
for the money, which will have an adverse effect on the brands image for hiring on
someone who has such an image.
Thus the underlying factor to all of this is the meaning transferred from the celebrity
endorsed marketing campaign and the consumer. A meaning transfer model is one
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that suggests, the effect of a celebrity is dependent on whether implication of them
in the advert has a useful effect in the endorsement process and product
(McCracken, 1989). This shows that even if famous icon was used in an advert but
they had no relevance to the product or service being sold, it will lack credibility
among consumers. However if this is done correctly as Red Bull have done in using
the sporting athletes of the sports they are associated with it creates the correct vibe
for the consumer. This is due to the consumer seeing that the celebrity has
everything to do with what is being sold, and thus Red Bull gain the buyer’s attention
and potential sale.
What could affect sales and change consumer perception of the brand
in the decision making process
One key factor that Red Bull would have needed to consider was the Decision
Making Process (DMP) a person goes through upon coming into contact with a
product or service. The reason for this being a crucial factor for them to take into
account is because throughout the set stages in the DMP a potential buyer can be
swayed for or against purchasing a product. This process can be broken down into
five sections, which as follow are:
1. Need Recognition
2. Information Search
3. Evaluations of Alternatives
4. Purchase
5. Post-purchase Behaviour
By developing this into such a format will allow marketers such as Red Bull, to
understand consumer’s behaviours and effectively promote their brand to
prospective clients (Lombardo, 2016). However even with such tactics it is still not a
definite plan to determine why people purchase the things they do. The first stage of
this process is the need the consumer creates for a product. This is where a
consumer will develop the idea that the product they have come into contact with is
something that they need or want (MSG, 2016). The way in which Red Bull have
tackled this was to create the brand as one that is associated with a thrill factor. By
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making it stand as a leader in “super human” abilities it creates the want from
consumers to aspire to such ideologies. Callum McGuigan reported how the strategy
of Red Bull’s brand marketing tactics perfectly suggests such ideologies, by saying
how one of the world’s historic feats can be associated with the brand. He suggested
how Neil Armstrong’s famous quote, “One small step for man, one giant leap for
mankind” can be related to one historic achievement the company is associated with
the Red Bull ‘Stratos’ initiative. This being that he says how such an achievement can
be quoted as, “One small step for man, one giant leap for Red Bull” (McGuigan,
2012).
The next step is the information search process is where the consumer has now
identified that he or she needs the product that was advertised to them, and begins
to develop research into possible products that all relate to the need they have
established. The way the go out about creating this is by using the internal and
external information gathered. The internal information search is by using memories
in ways like past experiences with the product. The external information search is
whereby they create a basis for the products usefulness from third parties not
related to the product internally (Lombardo, 2016). A potential consumer would thus
be inclined to see Red Bull through how they have impacted them personally, and
how other perceive the brand as well. Once again Red Bull will have already
established themselves to create the perception of their product to that of one that
provides adrenaline and energy boosts.
In terms of it as an energy drink it does provide you with the ingredients that give a
consumer an energy boost, these being caffeine and sugar. One study showed that a
typical energy drink had around 80 milligrams of caffeine, which is about that same
amount as a cup of coffee (Watson, 2006). However the amount of sugar that Red
Bull contains makes the product something that is very unhealthy for you, even
though the product is one that is related to athletic people. It is stated that a 16oz
can of Red Bull will include 52 grams of sugar, which is an alarming amount relatable
to 11 Oreo cookies (Harvey, 2013). Such disturbing amount will raise cholesterol
levels, which in turn increases the chances of heart disease (Gunnars, 2013).
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Therefore the consumer will be now presented with a dilemma, as the internal
information they have will be pro Red Bull, but the external information is against
the brand product. At this point the buyer can choose to not follow through with
purchasing a product because of the research they have gathered. However if they
still opt to follow through, this will then progress into the next phase of the decision
making process which is the evaluation of alternatives. A consumer will now begin to
consider what the other options are within this market. Causing an individual to
determine which product best meets their needs (MSG, 2016). Within the market
there isn’t much to differentiate in terms of what the product provides you with.
Therefore it will come down to preferences of goods available. Considering that in
2014 Red Bull had the largest portion of the market share with 43%, would suggest
people buy into this brand over its competitors (Caffeine Informer Staff, 2015).
Upon coming to this decision the consumer will finally purchase the product that
they had initially established a need for. Once this stage has been achieved for Red
Bull, they have done what is needed in order to create a strong brand that influence
and makes a consumer to buy into the product being sold. However after someone
has purchased a product they begin the final phase of the decision making process,
the post purchase evaluation. This is basically where the buyer determines whether
the product was what they wanted and if it matched in fulfilling their need (MSG,
2016). This is where Red Bull’s aggressive marketing strategy comes to fruition, as
the product bought may not always fulfil the need of the buyer in terms of providing
them with the energy boost they wanted. It will still nonetheless maintain its
association to extreme sports and athletic ability, making the consumer to be seen as
part of this lifestyle whether they are athletic or not.
Conclusion
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Thus from this we can see that Red Bull have accounted for all basis of a buyers
perception of the brand and influencing them to buy into it. They have appealed to
the symbolic consumption that consumers want when creating their own image.
Such a concept of selling the idea of what Red Bull stands for rather than the drink
itself has made Red Bull establish itself as something valuable making them gain
valuable consumers buying into the company (O’Brien, 2012).
They have also utilised the use of celebrity endorsement to great fashion by creating
a purpose of them being within the advertisement, rather than just simply putting a
famous icon in for the sake of it. However this is not to say that controversy isn’t a
good approach as Red Bull had done when they enlisted Eminem. The reason for this
being that Eminem in the past has always sat on the edges of controversy (Corbett,
2011). Obviously with this particular icon he is not associated to extreme sports.
However his nature of rebelliousness and fear factor within his own industry can
transgress into the ideology of Red Bull’s brand.
Furthermore the way in which Red Bull’s aggressive marketing strategy was
employed has enabled them to meet the requirements of a consumer’s decision-
making process. The philosophy of the brand has implanted itself into the buyers
thinking process making any drawback from purchasing the product be due to a
result of a third party influence. Such an influence can be a result from the
government imposing a sugar tax. It is suggested that a tax between 10% and 20%
will be put in place that will, significantly reduce marketing strategies shown to
children and taking away special offers from supermarkets on such goods (BBC,
2015).
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