Yet another boneheaded energy drink review

[puck]

Is anybody out there ever going to get it? Amp is reviewed and all they can talk about is how it tastes. Is aspirin reviewed by taste? Antibiotics? One might think they'd at least give mention as to it's efficacy.

Think, people. Nobody shells out $1.99 for 8.3 oz based on taste. It's a functional food category. Refreshment doesn't enter into the equation.

[sodasommelier]

With all due respect, Puck... if taste doesn't enter into it at all, why don't we all just swallow a pill and wash it down with Afri-Cola or something else that we like?

Anyway, although I'm not personally a fan of Red Bull I think that your customer base has developed a loyalty to its taste because they associate it with the whole aura that your company promotes: energy, popularity, necessity, etc. Actually, I think that all of these "stupid" copycat thimble can drinks are only making your brand stand out all the more.

On the other hand, I cannot make heads or tails out of most of these drink reviews; alot of them are on the money but many of them just seem to be either random or guided by some sort of outside force.

So have you moved to Brentwood yet? Ready to get set up as a home delivery account for exotic soft drinks, waters, and nectars?

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Always remember... Don't follow the can drinkers to the chicken bone recycling bin!

[Ron Swedelson]

I have yet to try it. But the few people who have told me it tastes good and works aswell. I try to drink all of the drinks on the market just to know the competition, but with all of them out there, Ill go broke before I get half way done.

[sodasommelier]

Ron, don't forget how much it'll cost to have your stomach pumped!!!

Better yet, just wait til Amp ends up in the 99¢ Store. Then you don't have to buy it 'cause once it's there that is a testimony to its quality.

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Always remember... Don't follow the can drinkers to the chicken bone recycling bin!

[SURGE]

With the way Pepsi is pushing Amp you may have to wait awhile till it gets to the 99¢ bin. As for RedBull I agree with Danny if people didnt like the flavor they would save alot of money and just take a few herbal pills and a caffine pill. If they did that they could save 95% of their money and still have the same buz or whatever. I have tried every energy drink I can find. Redbull ranks near the bottom in flavor for me but it is distinct it feels powerfull and that is what people are looking for. I think RedBull has a bright close term future but I think that unless they diversify once people grow tired of energy drinks they will fail. I have no hate for RedBull as a company and infact some of the foregn Redbull is actually fairly good I just doubt that this fad will continue to much longer.

-Avery

[Crimson Bovine Missile]

Puck,

they still don't get it, they just don't get it

[sodasommelier]

Wow, what a name! If Piccolo Pete were working for you folks I suppose his handle would be "Magenta Buffalo Butt".

Anyway, I think Red Bull has somewhat peaked. It's kind of like Snapple in that it's no longer the big hype in town but it's got its place and it'll continue with about this percentage of popularity and continue to be copycatted for quite some time. Just like Snapple, I can't imagine ever going to buy a Red Bull but many others will continue to do so.

I think that the age of good-tasting, bottled energy drinks has arrived; although I think Red Bull will still be around, you'll see some of the glass stuff rise to the occasion. Some day, let's look back at this and see if I was right!! [img]smile.gif[/img]

[Mr. Budrell]

SS,

On what do you base your assumption that Red Bull has peaked? (And unless I'm mistaken, didn't Snapple's peak come about by a gross mismanagment of its brand strategy once it was initially bought out by Quaker?)

Also, is taste really the reason why people shell out $2.00+ for an 8.3 oz can? Time and time again I see in these forums Red Bull getting trashed for its taste. Yet it does have a monopoly on the category (and it is beginning to branch out and grab a larger share of the New Age category in general on an almost daily basis.) Surely then the functionality of the brand must come into play.

What about the brand's image and the brand's presence? When was the last time you remembered a brand that could illicit so much loyalty and so much hatred simultaneously among people who have nothing to do with the company? (In stark contrast to the Jones' debate that seems to rage within the confines of these beverage specific forums, while the general population seems quite unaware, and uninterested.)

Finally, if Red Bull is such a fad, why is it beginning to outsell Coke 20oz, Pepsi 20z, Mountain Dew 20oz combined, in older Red Bull markets in the US? The Nielsen numbers don't lie and all trends indicate that the absurd success Red Bull has had to date, pales in comparison to what is to come.

Let's look back some day and see if I wasn't right...

-- Ruby

[sodasommelier]

I never said Red Bull was a fad. Also, of course people buy it for its functionality. In fact, I think the whole idea behind Red Bull's marketing is to promote its functionality and to attempt to make the working class feel that it is a necessary part of their daily sustenance.

As far as taste goes, of course people do not buy Red Bull for its taste. The only reason a bunch of us bring up the taste is because last time I checked, it appears that Red Bull is intended to be consumed orally. So for that reason, taste can always end up being a factor. I've found that many people who want to drink an energy drink who taste one that tastes better than Red Bull and works as well will often switch. However, not to worry on your end because of that virtual monopoly that you have; even if many people might prefer a substitute, most of the good ones are only sparsely and regionally available. Most of your copycats (if not all of the canned ones) are horrible; the bad ones only help to strengthen your name.

My point about the peak is based perhaps on the fact that I'm in Los Angeles where Red Bull has been available for a few years already. Roaming around town it seems like most people know what Red Bull is, and there are those who buy it and those who do not. There is some minor fluctuation between brand loyalties but basically, I think the L.A. market is aware. I don't see anyone who has heretofore decided not to consume Red Bull as likely to start now.

Anyway, I could be right, could be wrong... nobody's paying me for my comments. This is all in good fun. As for our comments on Jones, the uninterested are not those for whom the comments are intended. Those who have never heard of Jones are the luckiest in the land!! [img]smile.gif[/img]

[Ron Swedelson]

Let me try and re-word a lot of this. Red Bull is reaching its peak in many areas, not as a company. You cant say it has a Monopoly, cause there are many other states that Red Bull is just starting in, or still working up the ranks. In the established areas, yes. A report taken from 7-Eleven just over a year ago showed Red Bull being 4 out of ever 10 purchases in the New Age section. Pretty damn good. But here is why you are starting to peak and why taste is so important. (This is not a true number taken from anywere other than my mind) Lets say out of 100 people who buy Red Bull, 60 say they like the taste, 40 say they drink it cause it works. When talking to the 60 even more, only 35 or 40 actually likes the taste, and the others just got used to it. Here is were your problem lies. If you get a first time purchace from any of the 65 people who dont like the taste, chances are you will only retain a very small protion of them are true customers. Now when AMP is or other energy drinks are ratted as tasting good, many people will try them first. And if it works, and they agree with the taste, you will loose that customer. And with other Energy packed beverages such as Bawls, Lollies Cherry Pop, New Jolt Flavors, etc. people will start trying the lower costing, better tasting beverage loaded with Caffinee. So they will definatly feel the effects, and will enjoy drinking for the upscaled glass bottle look so they don't apprear to be just another one of the sheep. This wasnt a slam, just a pretty realistic look of whats going on. No ones saying you will loose your number one spot any time soon. Its just that huge gap is slowly shrinking.