It’s a Friday afternoon in April.

I just watched this incredible video on YouTube of reigning 3-time Formula 1 Champion Max Verstappen racing the world’s fastest camera drone.

The Japanese Grand Prix in F1 is happening this weekend.

I also listened to the Founders podcast episode on Dietrich Mateschitz a few days ago, so Red Bull is entirely on my mind.

I’ve come to realize one thing:

They’re the best marketers in the world.

Since I started watching Formula 1 in 2012, one team has always played its own game above all others: Red Bull Racing. They’ve picked up many accolades, from Sebastian Vettel to Max Verstappen and several constructor championships.

The team has pushed itself from an upstart squad with promising potential to the top echelon of racing within 15 years, not without its controversies.

It’s not just the F1 team that operates like this, and it seems to be part of Red Bull’s modus operandi:

RB Leipzig, Red Bull’s German football team, has received criticism for finding ways to skirt the famous 50+1 rule and advancing the team to multiple league levels higher, becoming a top-five team in the German Bundesliga and entering Champion’s League competition.

The flagship product, the Red Bull Energy Drink, initially had no market. Dietrich Mateschitz, one of the principal founders, reportedly told initial investors that there “was no market” for the product and that they’d have to create it.

One of the initial marketing strategies was to push a rumor that the drink was made with “bull semen” with the full intention of ensuing controversy. To Red Bull, there’s no such thing as bad publicity.

Mateschitz placed little emphasis on the product and its manufacturing. He stated that most companies focus on improving the product while outsourcing marketing and advertising. Red Bull is the opposite: they primarily focus on marketing and advertising and outsource manufacturing.

They always want their brand in your face, coupled with extreme sports and fun, and as a result, they’ve found immense success in sports and business.

Before Dietrich died, his estimated net worth was around $27 billion.

Red Bull exceeded $10 billion in revenue for the first time in 2023.

They’ve never been bigger.

I have one question to ask, though.

How?

Everything is Marketing

Every team they buy or start in sports is an additional arm for the marketing department.

Red Bull Racing Team in Formula 1, with their 7 Driver’s Championships and 6 Constructor’s Championships, solely exists to market the energy drink.

Winning is a nice byproduct.

RB Leipzig in the German Bundesliga, a team perennially near the top of the standings, exists to eventually win a Champions League trophy and Bundesliga title with the singular goal of furthering the Red Bull brand.

They’ve sponsored Felix Baumgartner, an Austrian skydiver who jumped from the stratosphere over 127,000 feet and broke the sound barrier, reaching a free-fall max speed of 843 mph.

That’s Mach speed.

And you know what?

It was an incredible marketing plan.

They set a world record: Baumgartner would be the first human to break the sound barrier without using engine power.

Red Bull uses every event, race, and match as potential publicity and advertising for the company.

Even falling from the sky.

Surprising Risk Aversion

Considering the extreme sports it loves sponsoring, you would think a company like Red Bull would be risk-takers in business.

Mateschitz was adamant about his company carrying zero debt and financing through cash flow.

He hated banks, and the company has famously done all of its banking with only one Austrian bank since the beginning.

Since its inception, it’s remained a privately owned corporation, with Dietrich refusing to allow Red Bull’s unique culture to be influenced by external forces and dictated by shareholders.

By remaining privately held, Red Bull can stay Red Bull.

Framing the Product

Remember how I mentioned that they had to “create the market”?

They also positioned it as a premium, upscale soft drink, which meant it would be expensive.

They framed the product as something special.

It wasn’t just another drink, it was the drink.

Red Bull is probably the first energy drink that comes to mind for many people, myself included.

And, to be honest, it tastes like shit.

I’ve never liked the original flavor, and the one I used to drink was discontinued.

However, due to Red Bull’s framing and branding, it has a whopping 43% of the energy drink market share.

There are plenty of better-tasting energy drinks out there.

There’s only one Red Bull.

Closing Thoughts

If you’ve seen my X account or my most recent newsletter about Ayrton Senna, you can tell I’m a big racing fan.

I love F1. I’ve been starting to watch NASCAR lately, too.

The first driver I watched was 4-time champion Sebastian Vettel for Red Bull (pictured above), and I love watching the cars dance around the track at insane speeds.

The brand has always fascinated me, and only recently have I learned about their company strategies and philosophies.

Dietrich Mateschitz, the founder, is the biggest inspiration and takeaway for me:

• Started Red Bull at 41.

• He had extreme self-belief and knew his ideas would work.

• Dietrich lived the culture that the Red Bull brand would represent in its extreme sports and racing.

• He maintained an intensely private life to his deathbed at age 78.

Thanks for stopping by.

(P.S. Watch the Japanese Grand Prix this weekend)