Bachelor Thesis

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Red Bull’s Mission to the Edge of Space:

The use of a viral marketing


communication strategy in the process of
reaching the postmodern consumer
!

Bachelor in Marketing and Management Communication


Henriette Wett Jessen 301767
Supervision: Line Skjødt
Number of characters (excluding blanks): 54,793
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis

Abstract
The purpose of this thesis is to examine how organisations can reach the postmodern consumer with
their marketing communication through social media and thereby electronic word-of-mouth and
viral marketing communication.

Striving to do this, a theoretical framework on the postmodern society, postmodern consumer and
postmodern marketing communication, and furthermore social media, electronic word-of-mouth
and viral marketing communication are investigated.

The theoretical framework reveals that the market structure has changed into being consumer-
oriented (Shipman, 2001, p. 132), and organisations need to cut through the clutter of
communication in order to reach the postmodern consumer (Schultz & Kitchen, 2000, pp. 14-17).
The postmodern consumer searches for experiences online (Parsons & Maclaran, 2009, p. 45), and
increasingly sees through the hype of marketing (Solomon, 2010, p. 41). Furthermore, the invention
of social media provides platforms, where the postmodern consumer can interact and create content
online (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010, p. 61). Electronic word-of-mouth is a trustworthy source of
information and a powerful form of communication, and it is therefore crucial for a viral marketing
communication strategy to succeed (Cruz & Fill, 2008, pp. 743-744).

The theoretical framework is applied through an analysis of the Red Bull Stratos mission, with the
purpose of giving a concrete example of how organisations can use viral marketing communication
in order to reach the postmodern consumer. The Red Bull Stratos mission is analysed as a viral
marketing communication campaign, and the large number of views, fans, subscribers and
followers on social media indicates that the campaign created electronic word-of-mouth, went viral
and thereby succeeded in communicating the slogan: ‘Red Bull gives you wings’. However, it has
proven difficult to evaluate on the viral marketing communication strategy, primarily because the
event took place recently and Red Bull’s objectives for the campaign are unknown.

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1. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................................ 1
1.1. PROBLEM STATEMENT 4444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444 5'
1.2. METHOD AND STRUCTURE 444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444 6'
1.3. SCIENTIFIC APPROACH 4444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444 7'
1.4. DELIMITATIONS 44444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444 8'

2. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ............................................................................................................. 5


2.1. POSTMODERNISM 44444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444 9'
2.1.1. The postmodern society !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! "'
2.1.2. The postmodern consumer!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! #'
2.1.3. Postmodern marketing communication!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! $'
2.2. SOCIAL MEDIA44444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444 :'
2.2.1. Definition of social media!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! %'
2.2.2. Electronic word-of-mouth!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! &'
2.2.3. Viral marketing communication!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!'('
2.2.3.1. Grifoni et al.’s integrated framework for online viral marketing campaign planning !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!'''
2.2.3.2. Evaluation of viral marketing campaigns!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!')'

3. CASE STUDY ANALYSIS: RED BULL STRATOS MISSION........................................................... 15


3.1. PRESENTATION OF THE RED BULL STRATOS MISSION 44444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444459'
3.2. ANALYSIS OF THE RED BULL STRATOS MISSION AND THE THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK 444444444444444444444444445;'
3.2.1. Grifoni et al.’s integrated framework for online viral marketing campaign planning !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!'$'
3.2.2. Red Bull Stratos and evaluation of viral marketing campaigns !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!*+'
3.2.3. Sub conclusion !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!*+'

4. DISCUSSION.............................................................................................................................................. 24

5. CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................................................... 28

6. REFERENCES…....................................................................................................................................... 30

APPENDIX 1.................................................................................................................................................. 32

APPENDIX 2.................................................................................................................................................. 33

APPENDIX 3.................................................................................................................................................. 34

APPENDIX 4 ................................................................................................................................................. 36

APPENDIX 5 ................................................................................................................................................. 37

APPENDIX 6 ................................................................................................................................................. 41

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APPENDIX 7 ................................................................................................................................................. 42

APPENDIX 8 ................................................................................................................................................. 43

APPENDIX 9 ................................................................................................................................................. 44

APPENDIX 10 ............................................................................................................................................... 47

APPENDIX 11 ............................................................................................................................................... 48

APPENDIX 12 ............................................................................................................................................... 49

APPENDIX 13 ............................................................................................................................................... 50

APPENDIX 14 ............................................................................................................................................... 52

APPENDIX 15................................................................................................................................................ 53

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Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis

1. Introduction
With the development of Web 2.0 and social media, organisations in the Western world find
themselves in an era where power has moved away from the producer and into the hands of the
consumer (Shipman, 2001, p. 132). Today, the postmodern consumer has the power to be critical
towards marketing communication and does not like to be manipulated (Solomon, 2010, p. 39).
Furthermore, the postmodern consumer increasingly experiences clutter of communication,
especially on social media, which means that organisations have to create messages that will attract
the postmodern consumer’s attention (Schultz & Kitchen, 2000, pp. 14-17).

The postmodern consumer’s critical attitude towards marketing communication means that
organisations need to find ways to create credibility when communicating with their audiences.
Traditional word-of-mouth has proved to be a trustworthy source of information, and with the
invention of social media, the term electronic word-of-mouth has the same advantages and
disadvantages (Firat & Venkatesh, 1995, pp. 743-744; Lin, 2011, p. 478).

Organisations can plan viral marketing communication strategies and hope that they will create
electronic word-of-mouth and thereby be a trustworthy and influential form of communication.
However, many viral marketing strategies fail to create electronic word-of-mouth (Ferguson, 2008,
p. 179). Therefore, it is important to investigate how viral marketing communication strategies can
be planned in order to create electronic word-of-mouth and thereby be successful.

Due to the changing roles of consumers and producers, it is interesting to investigate how
organisations can succeed in creating electronic word-of-mouth through viral marketing
communication strategies, in order to reach the advertising-critical postmodern consumer with their
marketing communication.

1.1. Problem statement


The objective of this thesis is to gain an insight into:

• How corporations can use social media, especially electronic word-of-mouth and viral
marketing communication, in order to reach the postmodern consumer with their
marketing communication.

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This will be done by investigating a theoretical framework based on social media, electronic word-
of-mouth and viral marketing theories. Hereafter, the Red Bull Stratos mission1 will be analysed as
a case study in relation to the theoretical framework provided. Finally, a critical discussion of social
media, and thereby electronic word-of-mouth and viral marketing communication, will be put in
relation to the Red Bull Stratos mission.

1.2. Method and structure


In this section, each chapter will be examined in order to illuminate the structure of the thesis. A
model has been constructed to illustrate the order of the chapters (See Figure 1).

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As seen in Figure 1, the thesis is structured with a problem statement, a theoretical framework that
includes postmodernism and social media theories, a case study about the Red Bull Stratos mission,
and a discussion, which finally leads to a conclusion.

The first section in the theoretical framework chapter, postmodernism, includes a short description
of the postmodern society, characteristics of the postmodern consumer, and finishes with

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5'The Red Bull Stratos mission will be referred to as a mission and a campaign interchangeably in this thesis

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postmodern marketing communication. The purpose of this section is to briefly clarify how the
postmodern consumer perceives the self and the world, in order to answer the problem statement
properly.

The following section in the theoretical framework chapter is social media, which covers a
definition of social media, electronic word-of-mouth, and viral marketing communication.
Furthermore, viral marketing communication is divided into two paragraphs, where Grifoni,
D’Andrea and Ferri’s integrated framework for online viral marketing campaign planning (2012)
and the evaluation methods of viral marketing communication are accounted for.

The third chapter of the thesis is a case study analysis where the Red Bull Stratos mission is
analysed with the theoretical framework in mind. This chapter is relevant in order to illuminate the
practical execution of a viral marketing communication strategy. Grifoni et al.’s integrated
framework for online viral marketing campaign planning is used as a tool to analyse the case study,
and the chapter ends with a sub conclusion.

The theoretical framework and the case study lead to a discussion chapter that includes some
critical viewpoints of social media in general, and Red Bull’s use of viral marketing
communication. This chapter is conducted in order to fully answer all aspects of the problem
statement.

The last chapter of the thesis is the conclusion, where knowledge from the previous chapters is
applied in order to answer the problem statement, and thereby clarify, how organisations can use
social media, electronic word-of-mouth and viral marketing communication in order to reach the
postmodern consumer.

1.3. Scientific approach


In this paragraph, the scientific approach of the thesis will be presented, and key concepts will be
described in order to clarify the choice of method used to answer the problem statement.

Social constructionism will be the foundation on which the thesis will examine the theoretical
framework and the case study analysis. Social constructionism takes a critical stance towards the
assumption that there is one objective truth.

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There is not one single description or founder of social constructionism, because there is not one
idea that all social constructionists have in common. However, people classified as social
constructionists all share a number of assumptions about the creation of knowledge and
understanding of the world, as described below.

The first assumption is a critical stance towards taken-for-granted knowledge. This means, that
social constructionism questions the objectivity of observations, and cautions people to be ever
suspicious about their assumptions of how the world appears to be.

The second assumption is about historical and cultural specificity. Social constructionism points to
the thought that because we live in a social constructed world, our history and culture shapes our
perception of reality and truth.

The third assumption is that social processes sustain knowledge. This means that social
constructionism believes that our understanding of the world is a product of social interaction.

The fourth and last assumption is that knowledge and social action go together. Therefore, our
social behaviour depends on knowledge and visa versa (Burr, 2001, pp. 3-5).

A key thought in social constructionism is anti-essentialism, which is in contrast to traditional


psychology. Anti-essentialism implies that people or things have no essence, and thereby no
predetermined nature. The term personality is central to anti-essentialism, because it means that
personality is not within people but between people, created through ongoing social processes.
Thereby, each person contains multiple identities, which are all equally real (Burr, 2001, pp. 5, 26-
30).

Social constructionism is chosen as the scientific approach to this thesis since the problem
statement is based on social media, which is socially constructed, as will be elaborated on in 2.2.
Social Media.

1.4. Delimitations
In the theoretical framework, postmodernism is accounted for, which is a movement away from
modernism, and includes many aspects on how to understand science, technology, and society.
However, only a brief description of the most relevant aspects of postmodernism, relating to the
problem statement, will be presented in this thesis.

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Furthermore, social media is a broad subject, which includes many different communication tools.
In this thesis, only a short description of the most relevant aspects of social media is looked into.
Moreover, most emphasis is put on viral marketing communication and Grifoni et al.’s integrated
framework for online viral marketing campaign planning. It could have been interesting to look
more into the postmodern consumer’s motivation to forwarding content online, however, this was
excluded due to limited space.

In addition, since it has not been possible to obtain internal campaign material from the Red Bull
Stratos mission, the case study analysis will be based on information that was possible to acquire
alongside assumptions, which will be clearly stated in the analysis.

2. Theoretical framework
2.1. Postmodernism
The following chapter is conducted to reach an understanding about the term postmodernism in
order to understand whom the postmodern consumer is, and how organisations should use
marketing communication to reach the postmodern consumer.

2.1.1. The postmodern society


Postmodernism is an intellectual movement away from modernism, and it can be discussed whether
it is a historical era or a new way of understanding science, technology, and society (Andersen &
Kaspersen, 2000, p. 511). Lyotard (1997), known for his critical viewpoints on modernism, claimed
that postmodernism began in the 1950s and was a movement, among others, in terms of art,
philosophy, and literature (p. 11). Whereas modernism was focused on certainty, rationality, and
universal truths, postmodernism is centred around the concept of pluralism, that, in accordance with
social constructionism, describes the co-existence of various truths, styles, and fashions (Solomon,
2010, p. 39).

Various main themes have been proposed in order to describe postmodernism. Below, Firat and
Venkatesh’s (1995) five conditions are presented to illuminate the characteristics of
postmodernism; hyperreality, fragmentation, reversal of production and consumption, decentred
subjects, and juxtaposition of opposites (pp. 252-255).

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Hyperreality is a simulation of reality (Solomon, 2010, p. 40). Hyperreality makes it possible to link
alternative meanings to products, which would otherwise have no relation. Through hyperreality,
organisations try to meet consumers’ growing demand for experiences (Firat & Venkatesh, 1995,
pp. 252-253).

Fragmentation is the notion of everything being disconnected. Whereas mass marketing approaches
earlier was the way to market products, subjects like brands, media channels, products, and
consumers are now seen as fragmented (Firat & Venkatesh, 1995, pp. 253-254; Parsons &
Maclaran, 2009, p. 39).

Reversal of production and consumption means that postmodernism considers production and
consumption as continuous processes that are occurring simultaneously, as the consumer is an
active participant in the creation of images and symbols (Firat & Venkatesh, 1995, p. 254).

Decentred subjects are related to the postmodern consumer who wishes to be ‘decentred’ and
thereby consist of multiple identities. Thus, postmodernism believes that the individual should be
freed from having to be, have, or seek a centre (Firat & Venkatesh, 1995, p. 254).

Juxtaposition of opposites means to use dissimilar terms or concepts in order to contrast their
varying attributes. This leaves room for consumer imagery and self-construction (Firat &
Venkatesh, 1995, pp. 254-255).

The change from the centred and production-focused modernism, to the decentred and consumer-
focused postmodernism also meant a change in consumer behaviour. This will be accounted for in
the next paragraph.

2.1.2. The postmodern consumer


From the exposition of the postmodernism society above, this section will look into the
characteristics of the postmodern consumer.

Fragmentation means that the consumer’s identity is fragmented in search for not one, but several
identities. These identities are created and expressed through consumption. This also relates to the
reversal of production and consumption; the consumer is an active participant in creating
consumption symbols in order to reflect the desired identity. Consumer value and meaning is

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thereby created through consumption (Andersen & Kaspersen, 2000, pp. 520-522; Parsons &
Maclaran, 2009, pp. 45-46).

Decentred subjects suggest that the consumer wants to consist of multiple identities and uses
consumption as a medium for this. Consumer symbolism is often more likely to be the motivation
for consumption than the product and its functions (Lin, 2011, p. 204).

Furthermore, the postmodern consumer is searching for experiences; a demand that organisations
are trying to meet, as described with hyperreality above (Firat & Venkatesh, 1995, pp. 252-253).
Because the symbolic meanings of products and services are increasingly important to the
postmodern consumer, so are the experiences linked to these products and services. This experience
consumption perspective also means that the postmodern consumer makes emotion-, experience-,
and subconscious-based product decisions instead of rational-, cognition-, and conscious-based. The
experience consumption perspective relates to the fact that the postmodern consumer favours value
for time above value for money. The postmodern consumer is sceptic about brand claims made
through advertising and wants to experience and discuss brands for themselves (Parsons &
Maclaran, 2009, pp. 45-46). Moreover, postmodernism has raised the question of consumers’ ability
to see through the hype of marketing communication (Solomon, 2010, p. 41).

The above-mentioned factors have challenged organisations in their communication with


consumers. In the next section, postmodern marketing communication will be looked into.

2.1.3. Postmodern marketing communication


This last section of postmodernism will look into the manners in which organisations can
communicate with the postmodern consumer.

Shipman introduced the term ‘consumer sovereignty’ and stated, that power has shifted hands from
the producer to the consumer (2001, p. 132). The introduction and development of the Internet had
a significant impact in empowering the consumer (Friedman, 2006, p. 10). One of the most
characteristic developments in postmodern marketing communication is thereby the change from
being organisation-centred to being consumer-centred. Lauterborn (1990) argues, that the marketing
mix needs to be more consumer-oriented (p. 26). In the model, Lauterborn presents a new version
of the four P’s (product, price, place, promotion) converging them into four C’s: Customer needs

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and wants, Cost to the customer, Convenience, and Communication2 (Lauterborn, 1990, p. 26). This
model reflects the movement from an organisation-centred to a consumer-centred market structure.

The hyperreality condition of postmodernism suggests that marketing should distinct the product
from the original meaning and provide a new meaning in order to appear attractive to the
postmodern consumer (Andersen & Kaspersen, 2000, pp. 524-527).

Furthermore, consumers experience marketing messages everywhere they go as technological


development has made it possible to communicate anytime and anywhere. Therefore, organisations
need to cut through the clutter of communication and create a message that will attract the
postmodern consumer’s attention (Schultz & Kitchen, 2000, pp. 14-17).

After investigating postmodernism, the next section will look into social media.

2.2. Social media


This section is made in order to define and give a theoretical overview of social media, with special
focus on electronic word-of-mouth and viral marketing communication.

2.2.1. Definition of social media


Rust and Oliver (1994) declared nearly twenty years ago that advertising was dead due to new
technologies, which resulted in empowered consumers and fragmentation in media and markets (p.
71). Fox (1994) argued, as a response to this, that advertising was not dying; it was simply having a
crisis due to a changing business environment with highly focus on the bottom-line (p. 79). This
was a continuing development, and ten years later, Leonard and Burke (2004) argued that
marketing was changing drastically due to new technology – this time mobile phones, DVD’s,
iPods, among others (p. 93). The invention of the Internet and the development of digital
technology have had an immense impact on the change in advertising and marketing
communication in general. In 2004, O’Reilly and his colleagues introduced the concept of Web 2.0,
which was based on the new and interactive ways of using the Internet (in McAfee, 2009, p. 3).
With the introduction of Web 2.0, the Internet was no longer simply a channel for content, but a
platform for interaction, collaboration and creation of user-generated content. Web 2.0 can be
defined as the platform for the evolution of social media (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010, p. 61).

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2
See appendix 1

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It is difficult to find a single clear and common definition of social media as it covers so many areas
and functions. Blackshaw and Nazzaro (2004) describes social media as:

‘… a variety of new sources of online information that are created, initiated, circulated and used by
consumers intent on educating each other about products, brands, services, personalities, and
issues.’

And they continue:

‘Social media encompasses a wide range of online, word-of-mouth forums including […] social
networking sites.’ (in Mangold & Faulds, 2009, p. 357).

This definition highlights social media users’ ability to create and share content online.

Through social media, users have the opportunity to engage in self-presentation of identity and
interact with friends, family and colleagues (Noor Al-Deen & Hendricks, 2012, p. 4). Whereas
discussions used to be centred around face-to-face interactions, social media makes it possible to
share and discuss opinions online with a broad range of people (Noor Al-Deen & Hendricks, 2012,
pp. 39-40).

Researchers have suggested different motivational factors for using the Internet, which include
information search, entertainment, social interaction and community development, self-
actualization, and self-expression (Shao, 2009; Courtois et al., 2009, in Heinonen, 2011, p. 357). A
theory regarding users’ behaviour on social media suggests that online behaviour is ‘… a
positioning of self, communicating who one is or what one believes or how one views the world’
(Noor Al-Deen & Hendricks, 2012, p. 50).

With this general social media overview, the following section will look further into electronic
word-of-mouth.

2.2.2. Electronic word-of-mouth


Word-of-mouth3 is identified as ‘all interpersonal communications’ and the perceived objectivity
and thereby credibility makes it a trustworthy source of information and a powerful and influential
form of communication (Cruz & Fill, 2008, pp. 743-744; Lin, 2011, p. 478). Traditional WOM has
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3
Word-of-mouth is from now on referred to as WOM for convenience

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turned in a new direction due to the technological development and the ability to communicate
through Web 2.0 and social media, called electronic word-of-mouth4.

eWOM is defined as:

‘ [. . .] any positive or negative statement made by potential, actual, or former customers about a
product or company, which is made available to a multitude of people and institutions via the
internet.’ (Hennig-Thurau et al., 2004, p. 39 in Chan & Ngai, 2011, p. 489)

One of the advantages of eWOM is that the communication can reach far beyond local
communities, since consumers connect with people all over the world online (Chen & Xie, 2008, p.
479). Furthermore, today’s consumer has both choice and voice; choice between numerous media
channels, and voice on social media to express opinions (Noor Al-Deen & Hendricks, 2012, p. 51).

Opinion leaders are an important element of traditional WOM, and likewise in eWOM where the
term ‘Efluentials’ are used to describe the group of people, who affect other people’s opinions.
They are described as: ‘… active users of email, newsgroups, bulletin boards, listservs and other
online vehicles when conveying their messages . . . their families and peers regularly approach
them for information, opinions, and advice on a wide range of subjects.’ (Cruz & Fill, 2008, p.
747). This group of people is important for organisations to reach with their communication, since
they are the ones, who make sure that the content is shared and listened to.

While this section focused on eWOM, the next will look into the theoretical framework of viral
marketing communication.

2.2.3. Viral marketing communication


In this section, viral marketing communication and the relationship to eWOM will be presented, a
framework for viral marketing communication planning is presented, and the evaluation methods of
viral marketing communication will conclude on the theoretical framework.

Before conceptualising viral marketing, the difference between eWOM and viral marketing will be
specified. Ferguson (2008) describes the difference as one of cause and effect (p. 180). Viral
marketing is seen as the cause that builds awareness and buzz, for example through a viral video.
Viral marketing can therefore be seen as a strategy created by the organisation. eWOM is the effect,
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Electronic word-of-mouth is from now on referred to as eWOM for convenience

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which means the positive or negative judgement given by the audience of for example a viral video.
eWOM is thus created by the audience (Ferguson, 2008, p. 180).

Wilson (2000) defines viral marketing as:

‘… any strategy that encourages individuals to pass on a marketing message to others, creating the
potential for exponential growth in the message’s exposure and influence.’ (in Cruz & Fill, 2008, p.
745).

Viral marketing is a way for organisations to use the power of eWOM as a trustworthy and
influential form of communication to communicate with consumers. Furthermore, successful viral
marketing can attract the attention of audiences through minutes rather than just seconds (Kotler et
al., 2009, p 704). Another advantage is that viral marketing is a dynamic process; the message is
shared, reacted on, shared again or discussed (Girboveanu & Puiu, 2008, p. 223).

Viral marketing can prove to be an useful communication strategy because organisations need to
find new ways to communicate with the postmodern consumer due to media fragmentation, inflated
media prices, falling returns, increased consumer marketing and advertising literacy, and new
advertising blocking technologies (Kirby and Marsden, 2006, in Cruz & Fill, 2008, p. 743). Thus, in
order for viral marketing to be successful, it must both attract attention and create an incentive for
the viewer to share. Therefore, when planning a viral marketing strategy, it is important to
investigate the motivations for the target audience to share content (Ho & Dempsey, 2010, pp.
1004-1005).

In continuation of this section on viral marketing and its relationship to eWOM, the next section
presents Grifoni et al.’s integrated framework for online viral marketing campaign planning
(Grifoni et al., 2012).

2.2.3.1. Grifoni et al.’s integrated framework for online viral marketing campaign planning
Grifoni et al. have developed an integrated framework for online viral marketing campaign
planning (2012). The elements and actors of a campaign are divided into four phases (See figure 2).
Below, each phase will be described.

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Figure 2: Grifoni et al.'s integrated framework for online viral marketing campaign planning

In phase one, the company, business context, and previous virtual campaigns should be analysed.
Thereby, the internal factors such as products, strategies, and resources are identified. Products

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should be described in terms of features and benefits, pricing, accessibility, promotional programs
and advertising strategies, and support offered to final users. Strategies are described in order to
look into the long-term direction of the company. These include corporate strategies, business unit
strategies, and operational strategies. The last internal factor, resources, often depends on the
company’s business performance, and advertising spending. The business context is important to
take into consideration, as well as identifying competitor products, market share, promotion, and
reputation. Furthermore, as being a great part of the business context, consumers need to be
identified, and the organisation should consider the current and future brand position. Finally, phase
one also identifies the previous virtual marketing campaigns in order to determine, what the current
trend is, which strategies were successful, and which were not (Grifoni et al., 2012, pp. 25-26).

Phase two of Grifoni et al.’s framework involves the objectives and selection of target audience
(2012). Objectives are important to determine, because they influence the entire campaign from
start to evaluation. Cuz and Fill (2008) divide objectives into three categories: Cognitive,
behavioural, and financial objectives (in Grifoni et al., 2012, p. 25). Cognitive objectives are
evaluated in terms of reach and awareness, behavioural objectives are evaluated in terms of hits,
views, or downloads, and financial objectives are evaluated in terms of brand building. Brand
building can be argued to be an important objective because ‘… increased brand awareness comes
with three main advantages: the ability to influence consumer learning, consideration, and choice.’
(Keller & Berry, 2003, in Grifoni et al., 2012, p. 26). When objectives are identified, the next step
of the planning process is to determine the target audience. The framework defines that the
organisation can either identify and target a niche audience or target the masses (Cruz & Fill, 2008,
in Grifoni et al., 2012, p. 26).

In the third phase of Grifoni et al.’s framework, the creation of the message and the tools used to
communicate the message are identified (2012). With the objectives and target audience in mind,
the message should be designed and the motivations for the target audience to share the content
should be taken into account. Lindgreen and Vanhamme (2005) state that emotional appeals
motivate consumers to share (in Grifoni et al., 2012, p. 27). Ho and Dempsey (2010) found that the
interpersonal need for inclusion, individuation, and affection plays a large role in their research on
motivation to forward online content (pp. 1003-1004).

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If the viral marketing communication is overtly branded, it may stop the consumer from sharing the
content since it seems too much like advertising. However, if the branding is too subtle, the
company risks not getting enough exposure or credit from the campaign (Chaffey, 2006, in Grifoni
et al., 2012, p. 27). Hseih et al. (2012) agree that the viral marketing message is more persuasive
when consumers believe that the sender has nothing to gain from encouraging their behaviour to
share content (p. 205). Furthermore, when consumers receive information, they review, interpret,
and draw inferences beyond the information received. This is also true with regard to information
like viral marketing, for example online videos. Consumers therefore interpret the video and
develop interferences about the sender’s intention. If the video is overtly branded, it might cause
consumers to be irritated, reject the communication, or develop a negative attitude towards the
brand (Hsieh et al., 2012, pp. 205-207). When planning the message, it is therefore important to
take motivational factors into consideration, but also remember that an overtly branded strategy can
create negative attitudes and will therefore not be shared.
After creating the message, the tools used to communicate it should be chosen. The tools depend on
consumer needs and usability (Lindgreen & Varhamme, 2005, in Grifoni et al., 2012, p. 27). Tools
include emails, newsletters, websites, blogs, forums, social networking sites, and videos, among
others.

In the fourth, and final, phase of the framework, testing, realising, and seeding are conducted. It is
recommended that the campaign is tested on a small segment of the target audience in order to
cover expectation, likes and dislikes, and reactions (Spencer & Giles, 2000, in Grifoni et al., 2012,
p. 27). After testing the campaign, it should be released and seeded. Seeding is ‘… the act of
planting the campaign with the initial group who will then go and spread the campaign to others.’
(Hollesen, 2007, in Grifoni et al., 2012, p. 27).

After this exposition of a viral marketing campaign planning framework, evaluation of viral
marketing will be clarified for.

2.2.3.2. Evaluation of viral marketing campaigns


One of the biggest challenges of viral marketing strategies is the task of measuring and evaluating
the outcome, because there is vague consensus about what should be evaluated and the criteria used
to measure effectiveness, failure or success (Cruz & Fill, 2008, pp. 746-747).

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Counting the number of hits or impressions has been criticised as a measure of success, because it
only indicates the level of activity, and not the actual outcome (Bazadonna, 2006, in Cruz & Fill,
2008, p. 746). Therefore, like suggested in phase two in the framework above, Cruz and Fill (2008)
claim that success should be evaluated on cognitive and behavioural changes (pp. 746-747).
Furthermore, viral marketing should also be evaluated in terms of financial outcome. However, it is
very difficult to isolate viral marketing effects from other advertising effects, and thereby quantify
and measure them. In addition, viral marketing should be evaluated with regard to long-term effects
because it serves as brand building. It is therefore very difficult to evaluate viral marketing in terms
of financial outcome, as with the evaluation of marketing in general (Cruz & Fill, 2008, pp. 751-
752). Nevertheless, considering branding theories, Keller (2003) argues that brand awareness is
created by increased brand familiarity through repeated exposure of brand name, logo, or slogan
(pp. 66-69). This is an advantage, since customers do not have to engage in a lot of additional
thought to make a product decision when recognising a brand (Keller, 2003, p. 9). Thus, when viral
marketing is successful in reaching a large audience, brand awareness is increased through higher
brand recognition, and this could potentially show improved financial results.

From this clarification of the evaluation methods of viral marketing, it is concluded that a viral
marketing campaign should be evaluated according to the objectives set in the planning phase (Cruz
& Fill, 2008, p. 754).

This section ends the theoretical framework. The next chapter is a case study analysis on the Red
Bull Stratos mission.

3. Case study analysis: Red Bull Stratos Mission


The following chapter aims at analysing how Red Bull GmbH5 use a viral marketing strategy in
order to create eWOM and reach the postmodern consumer with their Red Bull Stratos mission6.

3.1. Presentation of the Red Bull Stratos mission


The Red Bull Stratos mission was made by energy drink giant Red Bull and included Austrian base
jumper Felix Baumgartner7, a Mission to the Edge of Space and a 39,045 meters supersonic freefall.
''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
5
Red Bull GmbH is from now on referred to as Red Bull for convenience. GmbH indicates that the firm is privately
owned.
6
The Red Bull Stratos mission is from now on referred to as the Stratos mission for convenience

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The planning of the jump began in 2005 and was completed seven years later, on 14th October
2012. The official team behind the mission consisted of experts in medicine, science, and
engineering, who’s mission it was to keep Felix alive in space by building a pressurised capsule,
designing a space suit to minimise high altitude risks, and conducting high-altitude training. Red
Bull have refused to reveal how expensive the mission was, however, it is assumed to be a two-digit
million U.S. dollars amount. The jump was a success, and Felix Baumgartner was the first man to
break the speed of sound without technical support8.

The above was a brief summary of the Red Bull Stratos mission. Below, the theoretical framework
will be applied in order to analyse the mission as a viral marketing communication strategy.

3.2. Analysis of the Red Bull Stratos mission and the theoretical framework
This section will elaborate on the connection between the theoretical findings and the Red Bull
Stratos mission, in order to investigate to which degree Red Bull acts in relation to the theoretical
framework.

To begin with, the match between social constructionism and postmodernism will be looked into,
c.f. 1.3. Scientific approach. Social constructionism has its roots in the cultural and intellectual
background of postmodernism, c.f. 2.1. Postmodernism. Decentred subjects and the individual’s
search for identities is a condition of postmodernism. This can be related to the anti-essentialism
aspect of social constructionism, where people have no predetermined nature, but create and consist
of multiple identities. The postmodern consumer uses consumption to express identities and create
value, and the social constructed symbolism is often the motivation for consumption. The
postmodern consumer is thereby able to socially construct a desired self-image or identity through
sharing content online, because friends, family, and peers will experience it and define the given
person’s identity from these experiences.

Looking into social constructionism versus social media, and especially eWOM, which is the
foundation for the success of viral marketing, social constructionism claims that knowledge is
sustained by social processes, and our understanding of the world is a product of social interaction,
c.f. 1.3. Scientific Approach. This fits with social media, because the meaning behind the concept is

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
7
Felix Baumgartner will be referred to as both Felix and Felix Baumgartner interchangeably
8
www.redbullstratos.com

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to create value through social interaction, c.f. 2.2.1. Definition of Social Media. Furthermore, social
constructionism and eWOM are thereby connected because participants create and share knowledge
through interpersonal communication. A motivational factor for sharing content is individuation
and the need to be unique and create identity online. This can be related to the anti-essentialism
aspects of social constructionism, which claims that personality is created through ongoing
processes between people.

Hence, organisations need to strategically plan their social media initiatives, in order to reach the
postmodern consumers, who increasingly create their identities through online consumption,
creation and sharing of content. In the next section, the Stratos mission will be analysed with
Grifoni et al.’s integrated framework for online viral marketing campaign planning (2012) in order
to investigate how Red Bull strategically planned viral marketing campaign.

3.2.1. Grifoni et al.’s integrated framework for online viral marketing campaign planning
Grifoni et al.’s framework is based on four phases of viral marketing campaign planning, c.f. 3.2.1.
Grifoni et al.’s integrated framework for online viral marketing campaign planning. In the first
phase, the company, business context, and previous virtual campaigns will be analysed.

The company behind the Red Bull Stratos mission were the Austrian energy drink producer Red
Bull. Red Bull sell energy drinks, which are soft drinks containing a high amount of caffeine. Their
product line is rather limited and includes four variations of energy drinks. Due to a high pricing
strategy, Red Bull are seen as a premium brand of energy drinks and are accessible in 165
countries9. Red Bull’s advertising strategies and brand are built on the slogan ‘Gives you wings’.
This slogan relates to the high amount of caffeine in the energy drink. However, Red Bull have
managed to create a whole other meaning to their brand and slogan. Red Bull have based all their
communication strategies on the symbolic meaning of ‘Gives you wings’ and have invested heavily
in sponsorships of extreme sports from Formula 1 and American football, to skydiving and base-
jumping10. Lifestyle magazine Outside wrote in 2011: ‘… without Red Bull, it’s unlikely that the
extreme sports boom would have happened at all.’11. Thus, Red Bull brand themselves as ‘Gives
you wings’ and being young, edgy, adventurous, and outdoorsy. Furthermore, the name Red Bull is

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9
http://energydrink.redbull.com/company
10
http://www.redbull.com/en/browse-all-athletes
11
http://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/celebrities/1-Dietrich-Mateschitz.html

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synonymous with energy drinks in many western markets, which is Red Bull’s advantage of being a
first mover.

The last internal factor to look into is resources. Red Bull sold approximately 5.2 billion cans of
energy drinks in 201212, and although it is a privately owned company and their financial records
are inaccessible, it is estimated that Red Bull spend 30-40% of their revenue on marketing costs and
promotional activities13. Therefore, it can be anticipated that Red Bull have the resources and are
willing to spend them on marketing communication. In addition, Red Bull own Red Bull Media
House, which was founded in Europe in 2007 and expanded to the U.S. in 2011. Red Bull Media
House create Red Bull’s videos, movies, magazines, mobile, and web outlets14.

Looking into the business context of Red Bull, their biggest competitor in the energy drinks
category is Monster Energy. In 2012, Red Bull had 39.8% market share, and Monster Energy had
21.6%. Monster Energy have a lower pricing strategy, and their product contains natural
ingredients, which can be a desirable attribute for health-interested consumers. Monster Energy
focus their marketing spending on sponsorships of sporting events like motocross, BMX, and
skateboarding15. Moreover, Monster Energy, as part of Hansen Natural, made a distribution
agreement with the Coca-Cola Company in 2012 and is therefore threatening Red Bull’s North
American and Western European markets.

Moving on, consumer needs and branding position will be identified. The traditional core
consumers of Red Bull are young men between 16-29 years of age, and it can be discussed whether
Red Bull are losing its brand status with this group because it is becoming mainstream. However, it
can be assumed that the new trend of mixing Red Bull with spirits in nightclubs may preserve Red
Bulls’ status of being ‘trendy’. Thereby, Red Bull should strive to retain their ‘edgy’ image and
avoid becoming too mainstreamed in order to keep their core consumers.

In accordance with the last part of Grifoni et al.’s phase one, previous virtual marketing campaigns
will now be examined (2012, p. 26). Due to the fact that Red Bull spend most of their marketing
resources on sponsorships, their previous virtual marketing campaigns are focused on sponsored

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12
http://energydrink.redbull.com/company
13
See appendix 2
14
http://www.redbullmediahouse.com/
15
www.monsterenergy.com/sports'

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athletes, and the Red Bull logo is visible on all items from parachutes to helmets, caps, and
skateboards. Red Bull sponsor count trial cyclist Danny MacAskill has more than 26 million views
on Red Bull’s YouTube channel video ‘Way Back Home’ and 223,000 likes on Facebook16.
Furthermore, ‘Red Bull Kluge’ is a combination of Red Bull sponsored athletes and complex
machinery patched together. The YouTube video ‘The Athlete Machine: Red Bull Kluge’17 has
more than 13 million views. From these two examples, it can be concluded that Red Bull have
positive experiences with sponsoring extreme sports athletes and teams, and creating virtual videos
which receive large amounts of views on social media.

Phase two of Grifoni et al.’s framework is focused on objectives and selection of target audience
(2012, p. 26). Red Bull communicated that the purpose of the Stratos mission was to ‘… transcend
human limits’, ‘Improve our scientific understanding of how the body copes with the extreme
conditions near space’, and ‘Advance scientific discoveries in aerospace for the benefit of
mankind’18. However, it will be argued that Red Bull had some unofficial marketing
communication objectives alongside with these, which means that the analysis of the first part of
Grifoni et al.’s phase two will be based on assumptions. Cruz and Fill (2008) divide objectives into
cognitive, behavioural, and financial objectives (in Grifoni et al., 2012, p. 25). The cognitive
objectives relate to how many people Red Bull anticipated that the Stratos mission would reach and
how many people would become aware of the mission through either YouTube, Facebook, Twitter,
Instagram, or the Stratos mission’s website. The Stratos mission was a big project and has probably
been expensive. Therefore, it can be assumed that Red Bull strived to reach millions of people and
catch their attention. In terms of behavioural objectives, Red Bull probably set a goal about how
many YouTube views they strived to get on the live stream of the jump, on other campaign videos
on the day of the jump, the days that followed the jump, and afterwards. Furthermore, Red Bull
probably also set some behavioural objectives in terms of actual Facebook likes, comments and
shares, Twitter followers and tweets, Instagram followers and hash tags, and traffic on the Stratos
website. The last category of objectives, financial gains, is related to brand building, because
increased brand awareness can influence consumer choices in purchase situations (Keller & Berry,
2003, in Grifoni et al., 2012, p. 26). Furthermore, in accordance with the experience consumption

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16
See appendix 3
17
See appendix 4
18
http://www.redbullstratos.com/the-mission/what-is-the-mission/

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aspect of postmodernism, the postmodern consumer makes emotion-, experience-, and


subconscious-based product decisions, c.f. 2.1.2. The postmodern consumer. Red Bull might
therefore hope that the Stratos mission made an impact and created enough brand awareness to
show improved long-term financial results.

In the second element of phase two, the target audience should be identified (Grifoni et al., 2012,
pp. 26-27). Red Bull strived to reach the masses with the Stratos mission, since they used highly
popular media channels like YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and broadcasted the jump live
on 30 television networks in 40 countries. Based on the number of views on YouTube and the
television networks, it can be assumed that a two-digit million amount of people experienced the
jump live.

Phase three of Grifoni et al.’s framework is next, which focuses on the message and the tools used
to communicate the message (2012, p. 27). The message should be created with the target audience,
the objectives, and the motivations to share in mind. Furthermore, the message should not be
overtly branded, because it may stop consumers from sharing or it may create negative attitudes
towards the message (Chaffey, 2006, in Grifoni et al., 2012, p. 27). Red Bull chose to communicate
the message ‘Gives you wings’ in an extreme way by sponsoring and live streaming a man who
wanted to jump from the edge of space. Thereby, Red Bull distinct their energy drinks from the
original meaning and provide a new meaning, in accordance with the postmodern condition of
hyperreality, c.f. 2.1.3. Postmodern marketing communication. The possibility of viewing the jump
live gave the viewer the opportunity to experience the jump front row. Since the jump was a
success, it may has left the viewer amazed that it is possible to jump from space and survive. This
all enhanced Red Bull’s slogan and the campaign’s message that Red Bull ‘Gives you wings’, and
left the viewer with the experience of being part of the jump.

It can be argued that the Stratos mission and its message were not overtly branded. Red Bull was
part of the mission name, and the name was therefore visible in everything that was communicated
about the mission. Furthermore, the Red Bull logo was on the capsule, Felix’s space suit, helmet,
and parachute. Everyone present in the control centre on the day of the jump, including Felix’s
family and girlfriend, were wearing Red Bull shirts, key hangers, and caps19. Nevertheless, besides

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19
See appendix 5

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from this, the energy drink was not mentioned once during the campaign material, and the benefits
from drinking Red Bull are not directly communicated, only through the symbolism of ‘Gives you
wings’. This is an advantage for the campaign, because the postmodern consumer demands
entertainment, but does not like to be aware of manipulation, c.f. 2.1.2. The postmodern consumer.
Furthermore, marketing messages are more persuasive when consumers believe that the sender has
nothing to gain from encouraging behaviour (Hsieh et al., 2012, p. 205). According to branding
theory, the recognition that consumers experience through the repeated exposure of Red Bull’s logo
on the campaign material may result in increased brand awareness, which may influence consumer
learning, consideration, and choice (Keller & Berry, 2003, in Grifoni et al., 2012, p. 26; Keller,
2003, p. 9).

Investigating the viewers motivation for sharing the message, the discrete branding may have a
saying, since the Stratos mission reflects interesting content more than advertising (Hsieh et al.,
2012, p. 205). Red Bull made an impact with the Stratos mission, which is crucial when cutting
through the clutter of communication online. Furthermore, considering the viewer’s motives for
sharing the Stratos mission, the postmodern consumer wishes to reflect a desired self-image and
identity through consumption, c.f. 2.1.2. The postmodern consumer. By sharing the Stratos mission,
the postmodern consumer created a self-desired image and used Red Bull’s edgy, young,
adventurous, and outdoorsy brand to do so. Furthermore, because most of the viral activity about
the Stratos mission was centred on the jump day and the life stream, the postmodern consumer
could have been motivated by public individuation and the need to be unique online by creating an
image of being updated.

Accounting for the tools that the Stratos mission used in communicating with the masses, the most
significant element was the live-stream of Felix’s jump. Eight million people watched the mission
being live-streamed on 14th October 2012 on Red Bull’s YouTube channel. The video with
highlights from the jump has more than 33 million views20, the video from the test jump in March
2012 has almost 12 million views21, and the video that presented the mission in July 2012 has more
than five million views22. The number of total subscribers on the Red Bull YouTube channel grew

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20
See appendix 6
21
See appendix 7
22
See appendix 8

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rapidly, and on the day of the jump, the channel received 87,801 new subscribers.23 Furthermore, 30
television networks in 40 countries carried the live stream of the jump, which means that a larger
amount of people than the views on YouTube saw the jump live. Besides from videos, the Stratos
mission has its own website with information about Felix, the mission, the science, the technology,
the team, a gallery, and a blog about the jump24. From the website, the viewer can be directed to the
Red Bull Stratos Facebook fan page, which reveals more than 800,000 likes, and that the fan page
was most popular at the time of the jump (14th October 2012) and the most popular age group is 18-
24 years of age25 which fits the identified target audience of Red Bull energy drinks. The most
engaging post on the Facebook fan page is a photo of Felix on his knees after landing, which
received more than 21,000 comments, 51,000 shares and 489,000 likes26. The mission also has a
Twitter account27 with more than 200,000 followers and 2000 tweets, and an Instagram account
with more than 21,000 followers28. In addition to the social media communication, BBC made a 90-
minute long documentary called ‘Space Dive’ in cooperation with National Geographic and Red
Bull Media House, which covered the Red Bull Stratos mission from the start and till the end29.
From these numbers, it can be concluded that Red Bull succeeded in using communication tools
with a broad span to reach the masses.

The fourth and last phase of Grifoni et al.’s framework is focused on testing, realising, and seeding
the campaign (2012, p 27). Red Bull Stratos is a rather untraditional viral marketing campaign,
since the event was live and therefore impossible to test and seed in the traditional manner.
However, other communication elements were released where the jump was presented and the
preparation was shared before 14th October 2012. From this material, Red Bull could test the
interest that the audience had in the jump. This was also necessary in order to create enough
attention to make people watch the jump live. Furthermore, the Stratos mission got media coverage
from the 30 television networks, which helped in seeding the live stream.

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23
www.analytics.socialbakers.com'
24
See appendix 9
25
See appendix 10'
26
See appendix 11
27
See appendix 12
28
See appendix 13
29
See appendix 14

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In this section, it was analysed how Red Bull planned the Red Bull Stratos mission as a viral
marketing communication campaign. In the next section, the evaluation of a viral marketing
campaign will be analysed.

3.2.2. Red Bull Stratos and evaluation of viral marketing campaigns


Viral marketing communication can be difficult to measure and evaluate, c.f. 2.2.3.2. Evaluation of
Viral Marketing Campaigns, especially since Red Bull’s objectives of the Stratos mission are
unknown and therefore only made up by assumptions in this thesis.

However, from the assumed objectives and the views, fans, subscribers and tweets on social media,
Red Bull succeeded in creating a viral marketing campaign. Besides from setting records as
sponsoring the first man who broke the speed of sound without mechanical help, they gained the
attention from a two-digit million amount of people. Red Bull reached anyone who saw, heard, or
experienced the space jump, if not through their own communication, then through eWOM when
people shared the campaign online. From its wide number of reach, it can be evaluated that the
Stratos mission was successful in Red Bull’s brand building and enhanced the slogan ‘Gives you
wings’.

In addition, through comments made by the audience online, the jump was compared to the moon
landing of our time,30 which is a flattering comparison, since Armstrong’s moon landing in 1969
had a historical impact. Thereby, the Stratos mission did not only send a man to space and created
immediate attention with the slogan ‘Gives you wings’, but can be argued to be a historic event.

3.2.3. Sub conclusion


From the Red Bull Stratos case study, it can be concluded that energy drink producer Red Bull
succeeded in strategically planning and conducting a viral marketing campaign strategy, and used
Felix Baumgartner’s space jump to communicate their slogan ‘Gives you wings’. Although Red
Bull are market leader, the campaign could be an attempt to retain their position and not loose
market share to their biggest competitor.

Red Bull have positive experiences with creating videos with sponsored athletes that attract a lot of
attention online. Furthermore, Red Bull succeeded in creating a viral marketing campaign strategy

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30
See appendix 15

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with the Stratos mission. The latter included engaging content that created attention, entertained,
and motivated the audience to share on social media. Sharing of content, and thereby eWOM, is a
credible source of information and the discrete branding in the campaign underlines Red Bull’s
stated purpose of the Stratos mission: ’To advance scientific discoveries in aerospace for the benefit
of mankind’. This is confirmed by the audience’s comparing the Stratos mission with the moon
landing. The discrete branding strategy is regarded as advantageous since the postmodern consumer
is conscious of the hype of marketing communication. Red Bull succeeded in creating a new
meaning to their brand through the slogan ‘Gives you wings’, and furthermore create an experience
for the viewer. The postmodern consumer’s motivation to share the Stratos mission can be
explained by reflecting a desired image of being updated and furthermore edgy and young like the
Red Bull brand.

Red Bull’s outcome of the campaign is difficult to measure, since the event is so resent. However,
the large number of hits and views has increased brand awareness, which can influence consumer
learning, consideration, and choice, and thus positively affect Red Bull’s long-term financial
results.

This sub conclusion ends the case study analysis on the Red Bull Stratos mission. The next chapter
is a critical discussion of the use of social media, eWOM, viral marketing and the Red Bull Stratos
mission.

4. Discussion
Throughout this thesis, theoretical concepts of postmodernism, social media, and especially viral
marketing, have been investigated. The theoretical framework has been applied in order to analyse
the case study of the Stratos mission. The purpose of this chapter is to combine the previous
chapters in a critical discussion of the risks involved when using social media, eWOM, and viral
marketing, in order to draw generalisations and thereby answer how organisations can use these
communicative tools effectively in the strive to reach the postmodern consumer.

The empowering of the consumer means that the classic marketing mix has changed into the four
C’s, c.f. 2.1.3. Postmodern marketing communication31. Hence, the clutter of communication
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31
See appendix 1

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experienced by the postmodern consumer means that organisations do not only have to promote
products through advertising, public relations, personal selling, and sales promotion. They also have
to communicate broader with the consumer. Social media can be used in this regard, because they
provide organisations with the possibility to create a two-way communication relationship between
brand owner and users (Simon, 2001, p. 245). This can be successful for organisations when
consumers receive the content positively, and therefore share and discuss the content positively
online.

Nevertheless, there are disadvantages for organisations when communicating with consumers
through social media. One disadvantage is what Fournier and Avery (2011) named the Age of
Criticism, because the empowered online consumers are much more critical of organisations and
their brands (p. 200). Furthermore, social media made criticism much easier, it can be shared fast
and far, and negative critiques are often more interesting and shareable (Fournier & Avery, 2011, p.
200). Hence, organisations risk negative reactions from consumers when they communicate online,
as the postmodern consumer has both choice and voice (Noor Al-Deen & Hendricks, 2012, p. 51).

eWOM is a trustworthy source of information due to its perceived objectivity, and can therefore be
powerful and influential, c.f. 2.2.2. Electronic word-of-mouth. This is, unfortunately for
organisations, also the case with negative eWOM, where negative opinions are just as credible and
also reach and influence peers around the world. Furthermore, due to the fact that eWOM is the
reaction on viral marketing strategies, organisations can plan a viral marketing campaign and only
hope that it will be positively received. Thereby, when an organisation incorporates a viral
marketing strategy in their marketing communication, they also acquiesce that consumers are in
control of the success of the content.

It was concluded that Red Bull succeeded in reaching a large audience with their message ‘Gives
you wings’. Red Bull created engaging content, which caught the postmodern consumer’s attention,
and thereby produced eWOM, c.f. 3.2.3. Sub conclusion. However, Red Bull took an enormous risk,
when they decided to sponsor Felix on his mission to the edge of space. First of all, there were a lot
of practical risks: Would Felix survive the jump, would there be any mechanical or technical
problems with Felix’s gear, cameras, or the live-stream in general, and would the weather be
appropriate on the day of the jump. And as experienced, the jump was delayed five days due to bad

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weather conditions32, which could have cost Red Bull the attention of the masses. But there was
also a risk of how the viewers would receive the jump. Viewers could have been very critical of the
event, and could have questioned Red Bull’s participation in such a dangerous experiment. If some
viewers started being critical online, and especially the group of efluencers, c.f. 2.2.2. Electronic
word-of-mouth, they could have influenced peers, and the criticism could have spread fast and far.
Thereby, by using social media and hoping for eWOM, Red Bull took the risk of letting go of the
control of their brand. Thereby they made it possible for consumers to react in accordance with the
postmodern condition of reversal of production and consumption, where consumers act as active
participants in creating brands, c.f. 2.1.1.The postmodern society. Nevertheless, by taking these
great risks, Red Bull attracted enormous attention to the Stratos mission, which they may not had
been able to do with a campaign that included less risk. Consequently, it can be deduced that
organisations may advantage from taking great risks when conducting viral marketing
communication. The Stratos mission proved that Red Bull risked both a man’s life and their popular
brand name. However, it will be argued that the success of the mission and grand attention it
attracted made the risk worth it.

It would have been difficult for Red Bull to withdraw the Stratos mission if something went wrong
with Felix or if viewers received the communication negatively in other ways. Furthermore, as
eWOM is such an influential and therefore powerful form of communication, Red Bull would have
to make extensive crisis communication if people received the Stratos mission negatively. On the
other hand, it is assumed that Red Bull made a crisis communication plan before the day of the
jump, and they took the necessary precautions by having experts in medicine, science, and
engineering involved in the Stratos mission.

However, the Stratos mission proved to be a success, and because it was not overtly branded, Red
Bull succeeded in communicating the purpose to be: ‘To advance scientific discoveries in
aerospace for the benefit of mankind.’. The audience even compared the Stratos mission to the
moon landing in 1969. Nevertheless, it can be questioned whether the audience realised Red Bull’s
big role in the Stratos mission. It could seem as though Red Bull and Felix were conducting a
traditional sponsorship, which is defined as: ‘A cash and/or fee paid to a property (typically sports,

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
32
http://www.redbull.com.au/cs/Satellite/en_AU/Article/Red-Bull-Stratos-Mission-delayed-due-to-gusty-winds-
021243268388398

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entertainment, non-profit event or organisation) in return for access to exploitable commercial


potential associated with that property’33. However, because the Stratos mission is not a separate
property that Red Bull paid to ‘access exploitable commercial potential’, but was planned and
conducted by Red Bull from the start, it is a rather untraditional sponsorship. It can therefore be
questioned, whether the Stratos mission would have been just as successful if viewers knew that it
actually was intended as a marketing plan from Red Bull from the start.

The postmodern consumer increasingly sees through the hype of marketing and does not like to be
manipulated , c.f. 2.1.2. The postmodern consumer. It is therefore argued that the Stratos mission
would not have been just as great a success if the postmodern consumer knew that the mission was
a marketing strategy conducted by Red Bull. The postmodern consumer would presumably not have
been as willing to share the content and involve in the Stratos mission, if they knew how large a
role Red Bull had in the mission. However, some viewers may have recognised Red Bull’s large
role in the mission, but strived to reflect some of the Red Bull brand’s attributes of being young and
edgy. Nevertheless, it is argued that the Stratos mission’s large success is due to the discrete
branding, which makes the postmodern consumer believe that it is not marketing communication,
but perceives the campaign as entertainment instead.

Furthermore, Red Bull have made viewers believe that the purpose of the mission was ‘to advance
scientific discoveries in aerospace for the benefit of mankind’34 and not to sell energy drinks.
Thereby, Red Bull mix the genres of entertainment, PR and advertising in order to attract the
attention of the postmodern consumer. This is in accordance with the four C’s, where ‘promotion’
in the four P’s is changed into ‘communication’ because organisations need to communicate about,
and not just promote, their products. Furthermore, Red Bull creates an experience which is what the
postmodern consumer demands from organisations, c.f. 2.1.3. Postmodern marketing
communication. Nevertheless, it can be questioned whether it is ethically correct of Red Bull to
communicate the purpose to be ‘for the benefit of mankind’ and let a man put himself in a life-
threatening situation in the process of building a brand and thereby selling energy drinks. On the
other hand, marketing communication, public relations and advertising have always had an agenda
of selling products or services; Red Bull just takes it to the next level in order to cut through the

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
77'http://www.sponsorship.com/Resources/IEG-Lexicon-and-Glossary.aspx'
34
http://www.redbullstratos.com/the-mission/what-is-the-mission/

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clutter of communication and strive to reach and make an impact on the postmodern consumer,
which they clearly did.

From this discussion, it can be concluded that Red Bull took big risks with planning and conducting
the Stratos mission; Felix life was in danger, the live-stream could have failed with eight million
people watching, viewers could have received the campaign badly and made negative eWOM, and
Red Bull risked that their brand would suffer from all of these factors. Nevertheless, the Stratos
mission was a success; Felix survived and people received the campaign positively with a massive
amount of views and subscribers on YouTube, fans and posts on Facebook, and followers and
tweets on Twitter. Hence, although the Stratos mission was a strategy full of both practical and
social media related risks, it was beneficial for Red Bull to take all of these risks as they managed to
catch the attention of the postmodern consumer. Furthermore, the campaign may have been
positively received because the postmodern consumer is unaware of the Red Bull Stratos mission
being a marketing campaign from Red Bull. This may have affected the willingness to share the
content, because the Stratos mission is seen as entertainment and not advertising.

5. Conclusion
The purpose of this last chapter is to gather the knowledge from the previous chapters in order to
answer the problem statement asking how organisations can use social media, eWOM and viral
marketing in order to reach the postmodern consumer with their marketing communication.

In the theoretical framework it was found that the invention of Web 2.0 and social media have
changed advertising and marketing communication in general. The postmodern consumer uses
social media in order to create an identity, because the postmodern consumer is decentred and thus
consists of multiple self-desired identities. These identities are created and shared through
consumption, and thereby also through the use of social media and eWOM.

Consumer sovereignty is a term used to describe how the market focus has changed from being
organisation-centred to consumer-centred, and since the postmodern consumer is in search for
experiences, organisations increasingly try to meet these expectations online.

The postmodern consumer experiences communication anytime and anywhere, especially online
and on social media. Therefore, organisations need to cut through the clutter of communication.

' ' 6:'


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Furthermore, the postmodern consumer is critical towards brands and organisations, can
increasingly see through the hype of marketing, and does not like to be manipulated. Therefore,
when organisations plan a viral marketing strategy, it is important that the campaign is not overtly
branded, because this will stop the postmodern consumer from sharing the content. A successful
viral marketing strategy attracts attention and creates an incentive for the postmodern consumer to
share, for example by reflecting some characteristics that the postmodern consumer wishes to shape
identity around. If a viral marketing strategy is successful, it achieves to keep the postmodern
consumer’s attention for minutes rather than seconds, which can increase brand awareness and
potentially also consumer choice.

From the case study analysis it was concluded, that Red Bull succeeded in using a viral marketing
campaign to communicate with the postmodern consumer. Red Bull created engaging content and
attracted attention with a mission to the edge of space, which made the postmodern consumer share
the content. Although the campaign was not overtly branded, Red Bull gained a lot of attention and
brand awareness, which in the longer run could influence the postmodern consumer’s product
choice.

It was discussed how the practical and social media-related risks involved in the Stratos mission
have helped Red Bull in attracting attention. Furthermore, it is argued that the campaign would not
have been as great a success if the postmodern consumer was more aware that the Stratos mission
was a marketing campaign from Red Bull. From this it is concluded, that the Stratos mission was
such a viral marketing success because Red Bull took a lot of risks and did not overtly brand the
campaign, which made the audience see it as entertainment and not as advertising.

Consequently, Red Bull succeeded in reaching the postmodern consumer with their message ‘Gives
you wings’ and it is therefore concluded, that a way for organisations to communicate with the
postmodern consumer through social media, eWOM and viral marketing is by taking the risk of
letting go of control, not overtly branding their campaign, and thus communicating with the
postmodern consumer by creating an experience on social media that does not seem like
advertising.

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Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis

Appendix 1
!
Lauterborn’s four C’s
(Lauterborn, 1990)

)&*($+,#!-,,%*!
"#$%&'(!
.-%!/.-(*!

)$*(!($!(1,!
"#0',!
'&*($+,#!

"2.',! )$-3,-0,-',!

"#$+$(0$-! )$++&-0'.(0$-!

! ! 32
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis

Appendix 2

Euromonitor International: Passport Red Bull GmbH in Soft Drinks (World)


Report from March 2012. Page 26: ‘Marketing remains central to the brand’s success, with 30-40%
of sales invested in marketing and promotion activity.’

BRAND STRATEGY

All round marketing

All round marketing


ƒ 5HG%XOO¶VHSRQ\PRXVEUDQGKDVDFKLHYHGUHPDUNDEOHJOREDOVXFFHVV0DUNHWLQJUHPDLQVFHQWUDOWRWKH
EUDQG¶VVXFFHVVZLWK-RIVDOHVLQYHVWHGLQPDUNHWLQJDQGSURPRWLRQDFWLYLW\5HG%XOO¶VPDUNHWLQJ
has historically been a 3-pronged approach incorporating buzz marketing, sponsorship and TV advertising.
Buzz marketing, including handing out free samples at campuses and events where under 30s gather, is
often used as a way of initially raising consumer awareness when entering new markets. This helps to
generate a sense of underground excitement about the brand, in contrast to more mainstream approaches
to advertising. The launch of the Red Bull Magazine (Red Bulletin) helps the Red Bull community to connect
and engage and it is a clever strategy to retain consumer loyalty. The company recently introduced Red
BullshopVHOOLQJVSRUWVZHDUFDUU\LQJWKH5HG%XOOWUDGHPDUNVWUHQJWKHQLQJLWVFRUHDXGLHQFH¶VVHQVHRI
community and increasing revenue streams.

© Euromonitor International SOFT DRINKS: RED BULL PASSPORT 26

! ! 33
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis

Appendix 3

Red Bull-sponsored Danny MacAskill communication material


Youtube clip ‘Way Back Home’ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cj6ho1-G6tw

! ! 34! !
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis

Danny MacAskill Facebook fanpage


https://www.facebook.com/DannyMacAskill

! ! 35! !
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis

Appendix 4

Red Bull Kluge communication material


Youtube clip The athlete machine – Red Bull Kluge
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0jmSsQ5ptw

! ! 36
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis

Appendix 5

Red Bull logo on the Red Bull Stratos Mission material

The Red Bull logo on the Red Bull Stratos Mission capsule

! 37!
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis

The Red Bull logo on Felix Baumgatner’s spacesuit and helmet

! 38!
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis

The Red Bull logo on Felix Baumgartner’s parachute

! 39!
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis

Felix Baumgartner’s mother and girlfriend with Red Bull Stratos caps, t-shirts and key hangers.

! 40!
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis

Appendix 6

Red Bull Stratos jump highlights


Youtube clip Felix Baumgartner’s supersonic freefall from 128k’ – Mission highlights
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHtvDA0W34I

! 41
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis
!

Appendix 7

Red Bull Stratos test jump July 2012


Youtube clip Felix Baumgartner’s Test Jump – Red Bull Stratos
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-TCO2IdoTA

! ! 42
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis
!
!

Appendix 8

Presentation of the Red Bull Stratos mission March 2012


Youtube clip Supersonic freefall – Red Bull Stratos CGI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VCqnQq86fkY

! ! 43
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis
!

Appendix 9

Red Bull Stratos website


www.redbullstratos.com

Homepage

About Felix

! 44!
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis
!

The mission

Science

Technology

! 45!
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis
!

The Team

Gallery

Blog

! 46!
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis

Appendix 10

Red Bull Stratos Facebook page


www.facebook.com/redbullstratos

Facebook statistics

! ! 47
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis

Appendix 11

Red Bull Stratos’ most popular post on Facebook


‘Felix has landed safely from his jump from the Stratosphere. Preliminary figures, official data
TBC: Altitude: 128,097 ft, duration of freefall: 4:19. Total jump time: 9:03. Speed 1137 kmh’
489,912 likes
50,195 shares
21,074 comments

! ! 48
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis

Appendix 12

Red Bull Stratos Twitter account


www.twitter.com/redbullstratos

! ! 49
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis
!

Appendix 13

Red Bull Stratos Instagram account


www.instagram.com/redbullstratos

! 50!
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis
!

Smartphone Instagram app

! 51!
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis
!
!

Appendix 14

BBC, National Geographic and Red Bull Media House Red Bull Stratos TV documentary ‘Space
Dive’ (2012)

! ! 52
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis

Appendix 15

Red Bull Stratos Facebook comparisons to Armstrong’s moon landing in 1969


www.facebook.com/redbullstratos

‘Wow, dude, amazing!! For days I was waiting, told all my friends about you. Yesterday I was
watching the live streaming, it was truly amazing! You wrote history for man kind. Lots of respect!
We couldn’t match the first man landing in the moon live, so now our generation has seen
something just as amazing as that! Thanx!!’

! 53!
Henriette Wett Jessen BaMMC Bachelor Thesis

‘You were our man on the moon moment, my god how courageous, how trusting in your science
and in a greater power to bring you back safe. Congratulations Felix. How proud must your family
be x’

‘thank’s a people like him we conqurred the moon…’

! 54!

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