This year's viral drink trend was the result of a bullish marketing campaign that landed an Aperol Spritz on the menu at every hip restaurant and being drunk by 20-something year old women in trendy bars across Australia.
It's bold orange colour became synonymous with summer, but now Beafeater Gin is looking to scrape away some of Aperol Spritz' market share and have millennials glugging down its new pink product.
To launch the Beafeater Pink Gin product in Australia, the booze brand has has teamed up with Blue449 for a significant outdoor campaign that gave Bondi Junction the scent of strawberries. The takeover outdoor execution aimed to connect the scent of the Beafeater Pink Gin, which is combination of its dry gin base and strawberry flavours.
Speaking to AdNews, Pernod Ricard Australia marketing director Eric Thomson said Beefeater wanted to enter the local market with a bang, which is why it selected scented panels - a medium that hasn't been used extensively in Australia.
The Bondi takeover outdoor activation with Adshel
Pink gin is quickly becoming a trend mainly across the UK with millennials to thank (or blame) for the rise of the pastel colour.
Looking across the alcohol category, there has been a rosé-ification of the industry, where photogeneity often trumps quality and each drink needs to suit the aesthetic of influencer Instagrams.
Thomson said the brand is looking to "curate a visual identity that is distinct and ownable" and appeal to the "hip, modern, young professional woman".
"We feel pink is definitely the colour of summer. Not only does Beefeater Pink Gin better express the Aussie lifestyle, it brings together the trend towards rose and the gin boom. We think it’s the right way to go."
Thomson revealed the media spend around the pink product is the largest Pernod Ricard has done in Australia for some time, also including an influencer element.
The brand has teamed up with popular Instagram personalities Pia Meuhlenbeck, Megan Marx, Jessie Khoo, Matt Tully and Nathan Tito.
Beefeater teamed up with Aussie influencers sich as Pia Meuhlenbeck
While the influencer activity hasn't been running long enough to track sales uplift yet, Thomson said there has definitely been a spike in conversations around the brand.
"We are trialling different influencers and measuring the level of impact of their posts and either dialing up or down the support based on those results," he said.
The creative rolled out for Beafeater Pink Gin is created by its global team, but Thomson said as Beafeater scales up in Australia, it could look to appoint a local creative partner.
As for future marketing efforts, Thomson said he hasn't ruled out TV but is focusing solely on outdoor and digital this summer.
"We didn't want to spread our dollars to thin across too many channels. TV is potentially interesting down the track as is catch up TV, but this year we want to drive the message home closer to the point of purchase."
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