If you enjoy a refreshing drink now and then, your alcohol of choice likely says something about you. Maybe you’re a craft beer enthusiast who swears by anything made in a small local brewery. Or maybe you only drink bourbon and can tell the difference between Maker’s Mark and Knob Creek without batting an eye.
Whatever your preference, when it comes to alcohol, you likely have a favorite brand that you stick with no matter what. But what makes us so loyal to certain brands of booze? What are the trends in alcohol marketing that help to create this level of customer commitment?
Turns out, there are five key elements of brand loyalty that advertising for alcoholic products plays on: customer perceived value, brand trust, customer satisfaction, repeat purchase behavior, and commitment. This recipe works really well as a marketing strategy for the beverage industry.
It is proven that focusing on these key influencing factors of brand loyalty is where the battle is won when it comes to gaining market share and driving profits for this highly regulated product. Here are the five elements of brand loyalty in alcohol branding and marketing, broken down for you.
Customer Perceived Value
Perceived value is the overall impression of a product or service that is created in the minds of customers. It’s a huge factor when it comes to alcohol branding. If you can make your product seem more luxurious or exclusive than the competition, people will be more likely to buy it. This includes not just what they think of it in terms of quality and features, but also things like brand image and messaging. It’s a complex concept, but understanding it is essential if you want to create a product people are happy to pay more for. This is the first thing to pay attention to when following beverage marketing trends.
Brand Trust
The delicate balance of creating a likable persona for your booze, one that doesn’t cross over into becoming a full-blown cartoon character, is all handled through the proper build-up of good solid brand trust. You want to be personable and relatable, but you also need to maintain some level of authority, or else people will view your product as cheap swill. It’s an uphill battle, but when done correctly, brand trust can lead to increased sales and customer loyalty.
Customer Satisfaction
The brain is a powerful organ, and we’re learning more about how it works every day. For marketers, understanding the power of neuroscientific principles can help them to create effective marketing campaigns that resonate with their customers on an emotional level. For alcohol ads, this means playing on their thirst and craving for relaxation. Whatever that takes and whatever creative ways that can be made to happen in an ad – two tried and true examples are showing the popping of a cold beer on a hot summer day or a fancy celebratory occasion, opening a bottle of bubbly champagne. These scenes can be so quick, just a few seconds long in an ad, and yet have the greatest effect.
Repeat Purchase Behavior
You’ve got to follow the trends in alcohol marketing. You want your customers coming back and buying over and over and that is why you have to stay consistent with advertising. We know that the most popular and sought-after alcohol brands must have learned a lot about the psychology of repeat purchase behavior. If customers feel like they can trust what’s written on the bottle (whether it’s ‘low calorie’ or ‘all natural’), then chances are they will keep coming back for more. Understanding this is key to long-term success with any product in today’s world, including alcoholic drinks!
Commitment
This is the result of getting your advertising right – where brand loyalty really kicks in – when all of the above elements come together for an advertiser as a chosen marketing strategy for the beverage industry, you will have a committed following. Real die-hard fans of your product; you’ve been chosen and you are part of the household now. You never failed them before, your product stays the same, they can count on you and you can count on them. Cheers!
Restrictions of Alcohol Advertising
There is one damper to being an advertiser of alcohol – it is one of the most heavily regulated types of marketing. Every ad must comply with strict guidelines from the government in order to ensure that it does not target minors, encourage excessive drinking, or make any other harmful claims about alcohol.
Most of the restrictions that advertisers must adhere to are around the banning or limiting of alcohol ads on mediums such as billboards, paintings, banners and posters, especially in locations where youth are likely to be present. Not to mention digital marketing for alcohol brands – these are not to target younger age groups, for sure. Other examples are buses, trains, kiosks, schools and universities and sponsorship ads at community events, such as festivals, parties, rodeos, concerts and sporting events.
Despite these restrictions, alcohol companies have still found ways to develop successful beverage marketing trends and to be creative and engaging in their ads. It hasn’t stopped anyone yet!
Here’s to The Future of Alcohol Branding and Marketing!
Alcohol advertisements in the US have increased by 400% over the past 40 years, but the amount of alcohol consumption has stayed relatively the same. This is what a new study by the University of Texas at Austin recently came out with and it makes one thing clear: alcohol advertisements aren’t geared towards consumers drinking more, but instead on helping to create a connection with a brand. The noblest of trends in alcohol marketing.
We hope you’ve enjoyed learning about how alcohol advertisers have leaned into the five elements of brand loyalty while successfully maintaining a strict hold on their social responsibility around this alluring product.
We here at zo agency are doing it right with our traditional and digital marketing for alcohol brands! And we have built long-term relationships with our clients by doing so. We call it Tribe! We work diligently to discover our client’s vision, passion, your needs, their hopes and dreams for their business and then create an overall marketing plan that meets their needs and fits their budget. Visit us today at www.zo.agency
