Forget art, PepsiCo sports drink Gatorade makes driving “brand love” one of the core goals behind its marketing communications.
In a Warc report Kenny Mitchell, Gatorade’s senior director/consumer engagement, has told a digital and social media conference in New York that communications are intended to do two very simple things.
“One is to drive equity … to drive brand love,” he said.
The brand typically puts athletes at the heart of its marketing efforts, and utilises these high-performing sports stars to help emphasise attributes like its on-going commitment to innovation.
Gatorade’s campaign Your Game is Our Lab, is a future-focused content play featuring sprinter Usain Bolt, basketball player Elena Delle Donn and baseball all-star Bryce Harper.
“We are constantly looking to deliver unconventional and unique storytelling, and we are always thinking platform-first,” Mitchell said.
These platforms can include anything from Snapchat activations where consumers pour virtual buckets of Gatorade over themselves in videos to virtual-reality experiences showing users what it is like to step onto the sports field.
“We have a certain approach to our communications which is to make sure that they are relevant, meaningful and smart,” Mitchell said.
More specifically, he reported that the acronym “CASE” – standing for “creative”, “authentic”, “strategic” and “emotional” – underpins Gatorade’s marketing output.
“It’s important for folks to know what the game plan is, putting people in a position to win, utilising talent the best way possible and keeping your team business-minded and focused,” he said.
“Beautiful work without a strategy is art … And we are not in the business of making art.”
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