Social Media Marketing for Beverage Brands - Are you following?

Whether you’re preparing to introduce a new beverage to the world, or want to increase sales of your existing products, marketing is a critical part of your brand strategy. Online outreach must be a central component of your campaign.

Utilizing all channels at your disposal - from social media to viral videos - is key for beverage marketing success in 2021. It’s critical that you’re aware of the latest beverage marketing trends so that you can effectively reach your target audience and keep up with your competition. 

Check out these innovative beverage marketing techniques that will help you boost your bottom line and attract as many eyeballs as possible to your brand.

RESEARCH your audience

Your first step should be identifying your target audience. In order to craft a campaign that will resonate with your target market, you need to understand your demographic. Once you determine whose attention you want, you need to figure out where they hang out online.

Not all platforms are created equal. Some audiences are super active on Facebook, while others spend hours on Instagram, TikTok, or Pinterest. The same goes for the devices they use - are they surfing from their laptops, or mobile phones?

Maintain momentum

So your first few social media posts have been a hit, and you’re getting showered with compliments, likes, and comments. Some users are even resharing your posts. Great! But don’t get too comfortable - consistency is key. Without a continuous flow of new content, your campaign will lose steam. Create scheduled posts so that your pages are always updated with fresh content.

Don’t forget to be very specific about where customers can find your product. At the end of the day, the central goal of your beverage marketing campaign is to get your drinks into your customers’ hands.

Promote engagement

Social media users crave interaction -- they want to express themselves in a community setting and engage with the brand’s content, by liking, sharing, or commenting on it. Creating an environment where engaged users thrive is extremely important.

Here’s how you can encourage engagement:

• Sharable content - Create enticing and attractive content that’s perfect for going viral. Try real-time marketing, in which your brand hijacks the latest news stories to jump into the wider conversation. Consider corporate memes, which have been embraced by industry giants including Taco Bell. Aim for eye-catching, visually pleasing posts that users are eager to share.
• Paid outreach - The more people see your posts, the more likely they are to engage with them. If you have an important post that needs as much exposure as possible, you can pay to boost it. Consider a paid follower campaign to help establish your presence.
• Create a hashtag - Introducing a hashtag that’s unique to your brand is an innovative beverage marketing practice that can win you big results. A brand hashtag quickly connects users to your product and generates name-recognition and buzz.
• Use popular hashtags - Often, the more popular and relevant the hashtag, the more views your post will have. Try using this site to see how popular a hashtag is.
• Special deals and offers - Consider offering a sweet online only deal. Also think about giveaways, where users can tag friends (effectively delivering them to your page) in order to win a prize.
• Find your voice - Use social media to showcase your ethos, products, and story. Stay consistent with your brand’s identity and values. 
• Behind the scenes - Intrigue your followers with an exclusive behind-the-scenes peek into how your beverage is made.
• Guest appearances - Invite relevant influencers in your space to “take over” your account for the day, contribute to the page, or share their own content.
• User Generated Content (UGC) - Feature content that your users have created. Enable them to share reviews, tips, stories, comments and photos.
• Stay plugged in - Posting isn’t enough. It’s critical that you monitor campaigns and listen and respond to feedback.

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Real world examples

Fast food giant KFC has launched several quirky marketing campaigns to stay relevant, embracing the wacky and weird side of the internet, to the delight of fans and followers.

KFC deftly utilized social media to stave off bad publicity when their UK stores experienced a chicken shortage. Their out-of-the-box “apology” campaign earned them the Grand Prix Prize for Campaign of the Year at the Marketing New Thinking Awards.

The fried chicken chain also rewards customers for creatively generating their own content featuring the brand. KFC is definitely doing new marketing right, winning over a new generation of customers via the power of social media.

RC Cola Tajikstan’s Instagram page boasts an impressive 14K followers, thanks to its giveaways, visually exciting posts, and engagement with users.

Similarly, RC Cola Nigeria’s leveraging of guest appearances from local celebrities and influencers, consistent voice, and highly shareable content have helped generate buzz for Royal Crown Cola.

There are countless ways to connect with your customers through social media, but it’s critical that you build a strategy that’s the right fit for your audience and your company’s capabilities. Be in touch with RC Cola for more advice on beverage marketing - we’d love to help guide you.