Red Bull gives you wiiinnggss

Red Bull has long since dominated the energy drink category as we know it today. Often considered the founder and major catalyst for distribution of highly caffeinated energy beverages, Red Bull was originally created in Austria in 1987. Throughout the next five years, Red Bull rapidly gained popularity in Austria’s neighboring countries in Europe, eventually storming the U.S. market in 1997. Red Bull became the quintessential model for all energy beverage marketing. It has come to be an all-pervasive, billion-dollar conglomerate, sponsoring major professional sports events globally; creating “spin-offs” of the original drink itself; and producing marketing memorabilia for aficionados.

Today, Red Bull advertising campaigns take on several formats: they can be seen on any given number of television channels; banner ads being toted in the sky by massive blimps; in magazines; or on billboards. However one of the primary methods used by the company is the idea of cartoon advertisements on TV. These ads vary in their storylines, but ultimately give off impressions of light-hearted, humorous, and encouraging ideals for consumers.

In this particular example of a cartoon ad, Red Bull targets the younger community, more specifically college students, using a riskier, more controversial approach. The characters in the ad consist of two “typical” college students- a boy and his girlfriend. The boy is panicking due to a final exam he has to take the following day. His girlfriend meanwhile tries to coerce him to focus on her and to disregard studying. These values are basically represented by two young, college-aged types: the more laid-back, pleasure-seeking character pitted against the anxious, uneasy student who is overwhelmed with the expectations and demands of college life.
The “story” takes place in the boy’s bedroom-and more specifically his (rather suggestive) bed. This setting implies not only the references and motivations made by the girlfriend, but also represents the fears and pressures which the boy is experiencing. The setting is quite universal, and could represent a room in a house, apartment, or a dorm-room, broadening the audience’s ability to relate to the situation. The notion of final exams is also a prevailing source for anxiety among students in all four years of college.

The scenario, or plot of the ad is one which most teens and young adults can relate to easily: a couple sit in a bedroom, one is a student attempting to focus on schoolwork while the other tries to deflect his or her attention. The stress overwhelms the college student and he or she usually ends up abandoning his/her studying to spend time with their significant other. Ultimately, the conflict in this ad is stated directly by the boy: he is too stressed out and incapable of covering both the theory and “practice” of biology in one night (the meaning of this should be pretty self-explanatory).

However, Red Bull energy drink comes to the rescue and steps in to resolve this conflict, as it promises “revitalization of body and mind,” retaining the proposal that the drink will improve performance not only in terms of physical ability, but will also assist in concentration and intellectual stimulation. In other words, the ad states that without Red Bull, it would be difficult, if not impossible to perform physically and mentally all of the things which a student aims to do in any given night. This sends the message to the consumer that it’s possible to be both responsible and free-spirited, provided they drink a Red Bull (naturally). The ad demonstrates that it is in fact possible for one to productively study for a final exam and in the same night acquire heightened energy for the more exciting aspects of college life.