Social Media Strategies for Alcoholic Drinks Companies

The report profiles the current social media landscape, explaining how it has developed and what the main areas of interest to alcohol marketers are. It contains data covering the market size for various aspects of social media among people of legal drinking age, with data breakdowns for key regions. The report presents key case studies and uses industry interviews and qualitative research.

• Understand from an analytical perspective what social media actually is and how it relates to marketing alcoholic drinks.
• Identify the regions and demographic groups that represent the most important opportunities within social media marketing of alcoholic drinks.
• Use data on mobile network usage to quantify the opportunity available.
• Understand the impact of technological shifts in mobile and tablet platforms, interactive TV, and new social networks.
• Use case studies to establish best practice methods of securing consumer connection.

Consumers’ time spent browsing websites (excluding Facebook) on computers fell by nearly 9% between March 2010 and March 2011, with Facebook taking much of the traffic. This has impacted alcohol brands’ websites and forced a switch in digital spend to social media.

As social media becomes increasingly mainstream, the dominance of network use by younger groups is declining. Already, the largest single age group on social networks is the 25-34 group, and more than half of social network users are over 35. By 2015, these trends will have intensified.

By 2016, smartphone sales will be more than double those of notebooks, so mobile apps and sites will become even more important in future years. At the same time, fast share growth in netbooks and tablet devices will also promote mobile usage.

• How can I develop a social media strategy that will benefit my business?
• How can companies adopt successful social media strategies without generating regulatory or ethical concerns?
• How will innovation in mobile and interactive TV affect social media strategies?
• Which regions and age groups will be the most important growth areas in social media?
• Which social media networks are the most important to utilize?

Table of contents

Executive summary
Introduction
Overview of the social media landscape
Social media user profile
Social media and alcoholic drinks marketing
Regulatory environment
Case studies
The future of social media in alcoholic drinks

Introduction
Summary
Introduction
Who is this report for and what is it about?
Definitions of social media
Notes on data and sources

Overview of the social media landscape
Summary
Introduction
Development of the social media landscape

Historical evolution

Recent key advances

Current social media types
Factors driving and restricting social media growth

Positive: social network growth
Positive: demographic trends
Positive: emerging platform opportunities
Negative: concerns over trust and security
Negative: social media fatigue
Negative: competitive market for user attention

Social media user profile
Summary
Introduction
Social media user numbers and spending power

Broadband users
Mobile broadband users
Number of social network users

Age splits for social media users
Social network platform analysis

User numbers and geography
Demographic breakdown by platform
The launch and impact of Google+

Social media and alcoholic drinks marketing
Summary
Introduction
Importance of social media in alcoholic drinks

Alcoholic drinks and social media are natural companions
Online and digital are an increasing priority for alcohol marketers
Social media is superseding the web in alcohol marketing

Alcohol marketers have not yet fully built on fans’ engagement
Structure of social media in alcohol marketing
Smaller brands often have more effective social media engagement strategies
Combining social media with real life experience is a growing trend
Social media is an effective way of enabling customization
Targeting non-traditional demographics is becoming increasingly important

Mobile and location-based services fit well with alcohol and social media
Risks associated with social media marketing of alcohol

Lack of honesty and transparency can create a media backlash
New technologies can lead to accidental breaches of ethical rules
The ROI of social media efforts in alcoholic drinks has not yet been quantified

Regulatory environment
Summary
Introduction
Current regulatory environment

US
EU
Rest of World
New risks associated with online content
Clash between global Internet and national regulators
Targeting key groups without promoting to minors

Case studies
Summary
Introduction
BrewDog
Budweiser – Grab Some Buds
Carlton Draught – Any Excuse
Heineken – Star Player
Rosé Revolution
Smirnoff – Tea Partay

The future of social media in alcoholic drinks
Summary
Introduction
Demographic evolution

Increasingly good fit between core alcohol consumers and social networking
Growing importance of senior consumers

Social media and drinking trends in the developing world
Use of new platforms

Mobile will become the primary access medium
Interactive TV will drive further cross-media integration

Competition between platforms will improve targeting opportunities
Regulation and responsibility in marketing

Pressure for regulatory changes
Improved ability to tailor campaigns to appropriate groups

Appendix
Scope
Methodology

Secondary research

List of tables
Use of social media by the US’s leading private companies, 2007–2010
Fixed-line broadband penetration and growth in OECD countries, 2010
Global 3G subscribers and penetration, 2010-18
Internet access device shipments (units, m), 2010-18
Number of social network users over the legal drinking age, by country (millions), 2010–2015
Number of social network users over legal drinking age, by age group (millions), 2010-2015
Demographic breakdown of leading western social networks by age group, 2010

List of figures
Internet access device shipments (units, m), 2010–18
Facebook and Twitter are the only two platforms with a significant multi-regional presence
There is no global competitor to Facebook, with all other players confined to particular niches
Google+ early adopters are dominated by the 25-34 age group
Absolut’s I’m Here promotional film campaign is closely integrated with Facebook
Alcohol has one of the highest fan engagement rates but a low company response rate
The Jameson Cult Film Club combines online competitions and real-world cinema screenings
Heineken’s Facebook page lets consumers purchase customized bottles
Freixenet’s Very Impromptu Parties Facebook campaign targeted women aged over 35
The Smirnoff Experience Secret Party was accessed by solving clues on social media
MGD 64 Pedometer ties the low-calorie beer brand into healthy lifestyle marketing
BrewDog’s controversial niche products attract the microbrewer attention on social media platforms
Budweiser’s Grab Some Buds Facebook app helps consumers trace potential drinking partners as part of its promotion
Carlton Draught’s Any Excuse campaign ran into trouble on taste grounds
Heineken’s Star Player iPhone app integrates mobile gaming with the brand’s soccer sponsorship
The Rosé Revolution campaign targeted a specific wine variety rather than being based on a brand
Smirnoff’s Tea Partay campaign was one of the first to use YouTube
YouTube’s brand pages are heavily customized to brand designs

Related research categories

By sector: General alcohol, General drinks