Evans 1

It Really Does Give You Wings: The Red

Bull Stratos Campaign
Monica Evans
Challenge
The energy drink company, Red Bull has a reputation for hosting a
wide variety of extreme sporting events since its founding in 1984. The
Austrian company seemingly invented the energy drink category and
primarily uses physical activities such as dance and sports to promote
its brand.1
Its famous slogan, Red Bull gives you wings has become synonymous
with the company. Moreover in 2005, Red Bull along with professional
stuntman Felix Baumgartner decided to take the slogan seriously and
began to plan an event that would change the face of guerilla
marketing. 2
The Stratos event was a stratospheric free fall from 120000 feet, which
would be broadcast live via YouTube. The campaign sought to
transcend human limits while simultaneously increasing Red Bulls
international brand awareness, sponsorships, product sales and social
media presence.3
Solution
Red Bull decided to use extreme marketing, in the form of a 23-mile
free fall from the stratosphere. To make such an extreme event
possible, most of the technology had to be manufactured for the very
first time.
According to Forbes Magazine, the David Clark Company made the
fully pressurized suit Baumgartner wore; with the help of aerospace
veteran Mike Todd, the suit was tailored to Baumgartners comfort by
venting both warm air and cool air as well as being fire retardant. The
capsule that made the jump possible was a pressure sphere made of
insulated fiberglass. Also, ATA Technology produced the high-altitude
balloon that carried Baumgartner to the edge of space.
In addition to the new technology developed, a large portion of the
Stratos campaign involved partnering with varying photography
agencies to capture the big jump. Flightline Films, Airborne Images,
Cineflex and GoPro Cameras were all involved with the Stratos
Campaign to provide still photos and video feeds. Also, to ensure the

Evans 2
success of watching the video in real time, Red Bull hired Riedel
Communications to act as a video control system. 4
---------------------------1

Red Bull. Fun Facts. Home. Red Bull, 2014. Web. 06 Apr. 2014.
Red Bull. "Mission History." The Mission. Red Bull, 2012. Web. 04 Mar. 2014.
3
Red Bull. "What Is The Mission?" The Mission. Red Bull, 2012. Web. 06 Apr. 2014.
2

Meanwhile, according to the official Red Bull Stratos timeline, from the
years of 2009-2012, Baumgartner underwent a variety of training
sessions, including practice jumps at altitudes of 27,000 feet and over,
chamber training, as well as
psychological and physical
training with Dr. Andy
Walshe. Also, Baumgartner
also obtained a hot air
balloon license during this
time.

proceed.

After one unmanned test and

an additional two manned
tests, the equipment was
deemed safe for use and the
Stratos campaign was to

Execution
On October 14, 2012, Felix Baumgartner participated in the official
stratospheric jump. He performed the free fall from about 120,000 feet
and reached a speed of 833 miles per hour. This made him the first
man to break the speed of sound in a free fall.
According to The Huffington Post, the jump was broadcast live on
YouTube, 130 other digital outlets and over 40 television stations. More
than 8 million viewers tuned in to watch the space jump live.6
On Twitter, at around 12:20 MDT, over half of the worldwide trending
topics were in some way related to Red Bull or the space jump. Also,
Red Bulls Facebook post of Baumgartners photo after the jump gained
over 200,000 likes, 10,000 comments and 29,000 shares.7
Yet, the Stratos campaign did not end with just a live video feed of the
trek into space, the jump and the afterwards. The campaign also
featured a user friendly interactive website designed to engage the
audience at all stages of the jump.

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The website starts with the launch and at the bottom there is a panel
of buttons for the Ascent, the Jump, the Stratosphere, the Descent, and
the Landing. Each page of the website features pop-up facts that you
can click on for more information, along with most of the pages
featuring changing graphs and statistics pertaining to each stage of
the space jump. Moreover, the Landing page provides opportunities for
sharing the website on Facebook, Twitter and Google Plus. 8
---------------------------4

Knapp, Alex. "The

Technology
Red Bull Stratos Logo Space
Behind Red Bull's
Jump." Forbes. Forbes
Magazine,
16 Oct. 2012. Web. 04 Mar. 2014.
5
Red Bull. "Mission History." The Mission. Red Bull, 2012. Web. 04 Mar. 2014.

Panels for more

information

Space Jump
Phases Panel

Interactive
Graphics

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---------------------------6

Red Bull. "Red Bull Stratos - Space Jump LIVE Stream Video [FULL] - Felix
Baumgartner - Oct 14,2012." YouTube. YouTube, 14 Oct. 2012. Web. 06 Apr.

Yet, the results were indubitably favorable and increased product sales
across the world. Due to the remarkable success of the Stratos
campaign, Red Bull will likely host similarly extreme events in the
future, while other companies will most likely follow in its footsteps and
try more daring events to gather buzz about their brands.
Although more daring stunts may garner large publicity for a company,
not every company is cut out for extreme marketing. Brands known to
host and or sponsor sporting events, such as PepsiCo or Toyota, are
more likely to benefit from extreme campaigns. Whereas tremendous
stunts from companies such as Proctor and Gamble, may be seen as
irresponsible and have a negative effect on the brand.
---------------------------7

Chun, Janean. "Red Bull Stratos May Change Future Of Marketing." The Huffington
Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 15 Oct. 2012. Web. 04 Apr. 2014.
8
Red Bull. "Red Bull Stratos, a Mission to the Edge of Space. One Man. One Balloon.
One Jump from the Edge of Space Breaking the Speed of Sound." Red Bull Stratos.
Red Bull, 2012. Web. 06 Apr. 2014.
9
Pearlman, Robert Z. "Red Bull Stratos 'Space Jump' Suit, Capsule on Display in
Houston." Space.com. Space.com, 6 May 2013. Web. 06 Apr. 2014.
10
Swan, Sarah. "Explore the Edge of Space with 'Red Bull Stratos' Exhibit at National
Museum of the U.S. Air Force." Explore the Edge of Space with 'Red Bull Stratos'
Exhibit at National Museum of the U.S. Air Force. National Museum of the US Air
Force, 08 Jan. 2014. Web. 06 Apr. 2014.
11
Hamedi, Jehan. "Stratos Mission Impact on Red Bull Brand Affinity."
Crimsonhexagon.com. Crimson Hexagon, 27 Aug. 2013. Web. 4 Mar. 2014.