So you want to launch a beverage?
Reports state that there are more than 362 soda production businesses alone in the US. If you include all of the alcohol, coffee, sports, and functional beverages, you’re probably looking at a few thousand brands to compete with.
If you want to stand out in this veritable sea of beverage brands, you need to know how to market beverage products effectively. If you can’t crack the beverage marketing code, your new brainchild might join the ranks of the thousands of other beverage products that fail each year.
Stats show that up to 95% of newly launched products fail.
Don’t let your new beverage become a statistic. Keep reading to find out some of the most important strategies around how to market a beverage.
Brand Positioning Is Everything
Before you start marketing beverages online, the first thing to focus on is brand positioning. And before you can position your brand in front of consumers you have to get crystal clear on your target market.
Take Time to Identify Your Target Market
Once you have zeroed in on your target market, you can start formulating your branding to appeal to them. Your target market is your future buyers, so all your marketing needs to be tailored to them.
One of the mistakes that many brands make is not spending enough time identifying their target market. Besides age and demographic, you should also analyze what their interests, needs, and values are.
Before you plow resources into marketing campaigns, you have to understand your brand and who it’s for.
Craft Your Brand Image and Voice
Once your target market is dialed in, it’s time to design a strong brand image, one that sets you apart from the crowd and makes your beverage unforgettable to consumers.
You also need to distill down your brand voice. Is it formal, nostalgic, to-the-point, quirky, young, mature, caring, or flippant?
If your brand image and voice aren’t fully dialed in, your marketing will have less impact on consumers. This can wreak havoc on brand recognition.
Distill Down Your Selling Points
Another thing you’ll want to boil down before you start marketing beverages online, or anywhere else, is your unique selling proposition. What’s the one thing about your new beverage that makes it different? What need does it solve for your target market?
For instance, let’s say you’ve come up with an electrolyte sports drink that contains zero artificial sugar and is packed with adaptogens. This is a pretty big selling point, but it won’t do anything for you unless you make these features a driving part of your branding.
Also, don’t make your selling points too complicated. Cut the fluff so you can distill your selling points into strong brand messaging.
Packaging Sells Beverages
Although consumers buy what’s on the inside, packaging is what really sells the contents, especially when it comes to beverages.
People eat, or in this case, drink, with their eyes, so attractive packaging is critical. Your packaging doesn’t only have to look good, it also needs to appeal to your specific target market.
Let’s say you’re targeting hipsters. Hipster is an evolving term, but today’s hipsters often gravitate towards retro themes. If you want to appeal to this market, you might want to design your branding and packaging around an old-world, artisanal, slow-brewed aesthetic.
If you’re selling a canned wine beverage, think traditional grape vineyard-style artwork and fonts.
On the other hand, if you’re targeting ultra slick millennials in Teslas and mansions (or aspiring to this lifestyle), you might want to go for a popping, bright color palette that’s practically impossible not to include in an Instagram pic, and which will look great next to their AirPods and iPhone.
These are just some general examples, but they illustrate how different packaging can attract or repel certain target markets.
Use Social Media to Supercharge Your Marketing
If you’re creating a new beverage brand, social media marketing can be an invaluable tool for brand building and connecting with your audience.
Social media shouldn’t be an afterthought. Whether you’re looking to learn how to market a soft drink, a hard bev, or a functional beverage, social media is the place to put yourself in front of new audiences, gain rep as a brand, and showcase your brand’s personality.
Social media can also be a goldmine for consumer-generated content. Reports state that one-third of social media users admit to ordering food just to post a pic. Beverages can be an even more powerful post-trigger.
Drinks of any kind make for the perfect prop for a social media photo. If you leverage the right branding and packaging, consumers will voluntarily place your product centerstage in their posts.
In this age of influencer marketing, nothing could be more advantageous to you, especially if your brand has a strong social media presence.
Speaking of influencer marketing, this is another powerful strategy you can implement to catapult brand building. If you use a metrics-based approach, even working with micro-influencers can put your brand in front of new eyes and compound your growth.
Make Your Target Audience Fall in Love With Your Brand Through Content
Another key strategy to get right for effective beverage marketing is content creation. If you can create engaging content that reflects your brand voice, whether on your beverage company website or on social media, this will not only build your brand, but it will also flesh out your sales pipeline.
Marketing with blogs and video isn’t anything new, but it’s still one of the most effective techniques in the game. Beverage content marketing can be particularly effective for increasing sales.
If you want to implement impactful beverage content marketing, make sure you invest some time into keyword research and figure out what type of information your target audience is searching for in relation to your offering.
For instance, if you want to market beverage products like kombucha, then you’ll want to answer all the burning questions your target market has around kombucha.
Enhance Brand Relatability in Beverage Marketing Through Storytelling
To make a beverage brand more relatable, storytelling techniques can be a powerful tool. Here’s how to create narratives that emotionally connect with your audience:
Explore the Origins
Dive into the origins of the beverage. Share intriguing anecdotes about how the product came to be, what inspired its creation, and the journey from concept to reality. Perhaps the recipe has roots in a small family kitchen or is inspired by a cherished travel experience. Providing this backstory can enrich your brand’s authenticity and create a connection with your audience.
Highlight Brand Values
Clearly communicate the core values that your brand upholds. Whether it’s sustainability, community support, or artisan craftsmanship, showcasing these values through stories can deepen consumer trust. For example, if a beverage is produced with fair trade ingredients, tell the story of the communities it supports and the positive impact it has.
Celebrate People Behind the Brand
Share stories about the makers, founders, or farmers involved. Let the audience meet the people who bring the beverage to life. This could resonate well with consumers who value transparency and human connection, much like
Engage with Real-Life Scenarios
Use customer testimonials or real-life scenarios to illustrate how the beverage fits into consumers’ lifestyles. A narrative demonstrating how the product helped a customer achieve a healthier lifestyle or brought friends together for memorable occasions can make your brand memorable. Brands like
Use Visual Storytelling
Complement your narrative with strong visuals. High-quality images, engaging videos, or even animated graphics can enhance the story you’re telling. A brand like
Incorporating these storytelling techniques can transform your brand from just another name on the shelf to a narrative that resonates with people and keeps them coming back for more.
How Can Hosting Events Enhance a Beverage Brand’s Marketing Efforts?
Creating Buzz and Excitement
Hosting events generates excitement and buzz around your beverage brand. These events offer potential customers a hands-on experience with your drinks, which is far more impactful than traditional advertising. From launch parties to festivals, this physical interaction can pique interest and lead to word-of-mouth promotion.
Thoughtful Event Planning
Align your event’s theme, location, and activities with your brand’s identity. Whether it’s a sophisticated cocktail evening or an energetic music festival, a well-planned event fosters a lasting connection with your audience. Creating an atmosphere that reflects your brand helps attendees connect with your products on a personal level.
Engaging Activities
Integrate engaging activities like tasting stations or mixology classes that encourage attendees to interact with your beverage. By giving them a chance to sample new offerings or witness creative concoctions, you create memorable experiences. Such direct engagement is key to positive brand associations.
Expanding Reach Through Media
To amplify the reach of your event, invite journalists, bloggers, and influencers. Their coverage can introduce your brand to a broader audience. When your event is covered on social media or by reputable publications, it enhances your brand’s visibility and credibility.
Sustained Engagement
After the event wraps up, keep the conversation going. Post highlights, snapshots, and video clips across your social media platforms. Engage with attendees by asking for feedback or encouraging them to share their experiences. This builds community and keeps your brand top-of-mind long after the event ends.
Incorporating events into your marketing strategy not only enhances visibility but also drives customer connection. By carefully executing well-thought-out events, beverage brands can create lasting impressions that resonate with consumers.
Make Sure Your Beverage Formula Is Worth Your Marketing Budget
Before we go, there’s one more tip we need to share. Before you invest resources into beverage marketing, you need to make sure your formula’s worth it.
It doesn’t matter if you’re the Albert Einstein on how to market a beverage, if the formula is flawed, you’ll have endless problems to deal with. Flawed formula development can result in:
- Products that fall flat with the target market
- Unstainable COGS
- Failure to have full formula ownership
To avoid this, you have to have a fool-proof formula. You need to have the right manufacturer on your corner, one that will work with you on beverage formulation, troubleshoot till it’s perfect, and adhere to a COGS specification.
Do You Need a Nimble Beverage Formulation and Smaller-Run Manufacturer?
Beverage marketing isn’t rocket science, but it does take planning and market savvy. Also, there’s no point in marketing beverage products that haven’t been perfectly formulated.
If you want to create a beverage that sells out, one of the secret ingredients to success is working with the right manufacturer who can work with large and small run beverage manufacturing and packaging.
Are you in need of a nimble formulation and small-run manufacturer that will work with you tirelessly to bring your vision to shelves?
MetaBrand is the answer. We specialize in creating unique formulations that are certain to be commercially viable and profitable.
Contact us today to start collaborating.
