How Red Bull Uses Psychology to Sell 15k Cans a Minute
Red Bull’s growth is a masterclass in customer psychology
Since Red Bull launched in 1987, it’s sold more than 100 billion cans. Every year, it sells about 15,000 cans every single minute (that’s about 8 billion a year). Its logo is recognized around the world, not only on its cans but also on its Formula 1 team cars.
But it wasn’t always so successful.
In 1982, an Austrian marketing executive named Dietrich Mateschitz had flown to Thailand for a business trip. He was suffering from the frequent flyer’s curse — jetlag — but he needed to bounce back for an important meeting.
On a whim, he tried a local drink, called Krating Daeng. His jetlag disappeared almost instantly.
Mateschitz knew if he could adapt this product for the Western market, he would have a hit on his hands.
One small hurdle: the category was completely new. There was no such thing as an “energy drink” in the US or Europe (despite their popularity in East Asia).
