We might have mentioned it before – but Team Flourish count themselves very lucky to work with some of the most exciting names in the great British spirits industry! From the all-important signature serve to navigating different strategies for trade and consumers – we’ve supported the brightest and boldest brands to stand out in a noisy market and raise that awareness that ultimately gets their liquid on more thirsty lips.
One of our proudest moments? Launching Red Bank Whisky – an incredible American spirit co-founded by superstar actor Kiefer Sutherland. Alongside Mangrove’s #TeamPurple and Kiefer’s own PR team, we delivered a series of exclusive events, including a launch party and interviews, to generate buzz and connect with target audiences.
Journalists and trade partners got to experience the spirit at Underbelly for an exclusive launch, opened by an intimate 45-minute guitar set from Kiefer. The next day at Gibson Garage, amid back-to-back interviews, Kiefer played melodies on Gibson’s iconic guitars. Unassuming, but effective and right on brand.
That night captured everything we’ve come to value over the years – authenticity, creativity, and real connection. And after more than a decade of doing this, we’ve picked up a few tricks worth sharing. Here are just a few…
Know your audience…
Understanding your market is key to successful marketing in any industry, but when it comes to drinks PR, the routes to market make things a tad more complicated. Yes, you want to be beloved by booze lovers nationwide, but you likely also need to know whether your products are for the on- or off-trade. By understanding your routes to market, you can then assess what strategies you need. And then you have to take a different approach if you’re publicising direct to consumers.
To give you an example, many drinks PR strategies will have separate approaches – one for consumers, and one for trade, which will then be split into on and off trade. And what interests each can be very different indeed!
For trade, talk about trends, industry insights, and signature serves. Think about how it fits into a venue, or retailer’s range – and highlight any cool activations or marketing moments that have made waves amongst consumers.
If you’re talking to consumer press, think about the lifestyles of its core demographics, how they can best enjoy it, where they can buy it – as well as the all-important price point and flavour profile.
We carried out a smashing project for Aluna Rum, supporting them with PR for the launch of a new SKU, Aluna Tropica. They were pretty happy with the results, too!
…and know your media partners!
When it comes to PR – everyone has to start somewhere. Building relationships from scratch takes time but it absolutely improves your success rate. The more you nurture those contacts and get to know your media partners, the easier it is to give them what they want. It might be journalists; it might be influencers – read and look at their output to understand their areas of expertise and assess where you can fit in. It takes time to build these relationships but be patient and polite and they’ll be much easier to work with.
Understanding the PR calendar is just as important. Different publications will talk about categories, news and even compile gift lists at different times of year, so get to know what’s coming and be proactive with your content accordingly; aiming to reach journalists at least a few weeks before they’re likely to publish.
We did exactly this for our friends at FAIR Drinks – the world’s first Fairtrade spirits brand, distributed by our client Mangrove Global. We used our PR knowledge and network to search for opportunities, scanned the horizon for news and story potential, and capitalised on Fairtrade Fortnight in February and Mother’s Day to create real impact in just a few months. We got FAIR Drinks covered in BBC Good Food Magazine, the Daily Mirror, and the Daily Record – to the tune of a potential 2.5 million readership! All the details can be found in our case study.
Get your bottles in a row
The world of drinks is a competitive one – and it’s a space where brands go above and beyond to be brilliant, bold, and creative. Before you start to implement your Drinks PR Strategy, make sure you have your ducks… sorry… bottles in a row. This should include the following, at the very least:
- Professional photography: Make sure you have up-to-date, professional photography of your products, as well as ‘lifestyle’ shots of your key demographics enjoying them!
- Signature serves: Have different seasonal serves for each SKU in your range – and again capture thirst-inducing photographs of each one.
- Understand your USP: We’re not suggesting that every drink brand is doing something ground-breaking or new – but they do understand what makes them stand out. Maybe it’s the liquid, maybe it’s a sustainable focus. Or maybe it’s a compelling story behind how they came to exist. Whatever it is, know it and communicate it regularly, clearly, and powerfully.
- Samples at the ready: Samples are a great way to get journos to understand your product – there’s nothing better than getting liquid on lips. So, ensure you have different volumes available, perfectly packaged to share when the time is right. Don’t waste them though – journos receive heaps of samples so wait until you have an established relationship before you send.
Don’t be boring!
This is a big one. There’s absolutely no doubt that in this industry – you need to stand out.
Dare to be bold with all your marketing activity. Say and do things differently, stay true to your brand but try to be innovative at the same time. You don’t necessarily need to go all out either – you can make a fresh impact on all sizes of budget.
Do be consistent
We see so many viral moments these days that you’d be forgiven for thinking PR is a quick-win solution to overnight success. But that’s not the case. PR doesn’t drive sales on its own – it drives awareness and needs to be part of a wider strategic marketing approach.
Plan activity for the year ahead, be organised, be responsive to media partners, and be proactive! The smallest piece of news might be super relevant to just one partner – so get into a good habit of building PR into every milestone, event or moment within your business. It might be a slow burn – but eventually, you really will begin to reap those rewards.
If you’re a drinks brand, well-established or otherwise, and you’re looking for some PR support – even if it’s just for a product launch or big event – get in touch. We’d love to hear from you!
