20 somethings had previously adored Vodka Cruiser. Identifiable with iconic neon colours, fruit flavours and single serve bottles, it had been a dance floor staple.

Now Vodka Cruiser carried social stigma, consumers were embarrassed to be seen drinking it. Loving the taste, drinkers would purchase to consume at home (definitely NOT in public) so sales were on the decline and brand health was plummeting at alarming rates.

We had a relevance problem.

Competitors Smirnoff, Tanqueray, Aperol, and Gordon’s pink gin were ahead of Vodka Cruiser in both search terms and social conversation.

Winning social kudos would be key to winning back Vodka Cruiser love with our 20 something drinkers. To become loved we needed to have social currency, we needed “insta worthy” status. If our audience weren’t proud to post it on social – did it happen?

Our mission - reignite Cruiser pride, reclaiming #1 status and lifting sales +2%.

This mission meant a “non-traditional” use of out of home media. We viewed every wall as a potential canvas – so rather than brief outdoor media partners, we designed our own billboards. Rather than scour site lists, we trawled venues that served Vodka Cruiser – so millennials could drink whilst they posed. Out-of-home needed to be more than path to purchase or branded statements - Vodka Cruiser media became their summer destination.

We planned the campaign as an event, not a product launch.

We set out to own statement locations in each key city’s hot spot, turning them into destinations to visit, snap photos, and share on social. We would approach bars serving Vodka Cruiser and paint their venues – a 360 Vodka Cruiser drinking experience.

Outdoor had to be a work of art to stop and admire, rather than an opportunity to see.

Young Australians reject traditional constructs and expect custom brand experiences – so we focused on no traditional outdoor formats, we built our own. To resonate, media couldn’t look contrite or obvious, it had to be diverse and unique.

We commissioned colourful murals that provided immersive, insta-worthy experiences at bars in Australia’s metropolitan cities. Loud, proud colour walls celebrated the flavours and colours of Vodka Cruiser. With murals installed in venues and bars serving Vodka Cruiser, we were able to socialise our product and reclaim our rightful “it-drink” status. We knew millennials use social media to express themselves– our out-of-home murals would fuel creativity and create shared pride with our brand.

We hosted events at these venues with limited edition Vodka Cruiser cocktails and generated buzz around the unmissable summer pop-ups by inviting influencers to share the love.

We dominated social media conversation for the first time in more than 12 months – Vodka Cruiser jumping from #4 to #1 most talked about brand.

Vodka Cruiser brand status catapulted to be the number one most loved once more – increasing ‘brand mana’ (brand love) status by an incredible 24%.

Every single month of the campaign sales were in growth! We smashed the 2% sales growth target and grew by 45% value and 50% volume – never before seen results, the best in VC history.

Unprompted brand awareness grew by 10% - Australians were spontaneously sharing the love and the relevance of Vodka Cruiser once more. Our insta-worthy destinations meant the “good to be see drinking” metric skyrocketed with an 8% increase (from 34% of Australians agreeing in October 2019 to 42% by February 2020).