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Death to Plastic Marketing Campaign

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Meet the Team

Tate Wymer

Yuanying Mo

Cassidy Mitchell

Stephanie Chang

Tyson Shipman

Max Weisinger

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COMPANY OVERVIEW

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Liquid Death

is a tallboy canned-water company started by Mike Cessario,

who has an incredible gift and passion for combining

humorous advertising, alternative culture, and the healthiest beverage in the world, water.

COMPANY OVERVIEW

Company Overview

Campaign Analysis

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History – How It All Started

Cool ads

Unhealthy product

People in the alternative culture scene would also take water over alcohol or energy drink for health reasons.

Water brands are always about

peace, love, and harmony.

Where is the fun in that?

Plastic 👎🏻

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Insights:

People in alternative culture scene drink water.

Products with cool ads are not healthy.

Healthy products don’t have cool ads.

Mike did a project for an organic brand and the success was a turning point. → Healthy products can have cool ads too.

Save the bros - Organic Valley

Energy drink brands such as Monster and Red Bull have dominated the sponsorship of the alternative culture scene that is punk, hardcore, rebellious and exciting for decades. However, a lot of people in the scene, such as metal band members and motorbike athletes, would much prefer drinking water over unhealthy beverages.

At the moment, most bottled water brands in the market send the message of peace, love, and harmony, and in contrast, it looked like only junk food does funny marketing. (Monster, Red Bull, Cheetos, Snickers…)

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History – How It All Started

The first-ever canned-water brand that is edgy and hilarious, healthy and environmentally friendly.

“Hacking the healthy beverage market with the first hilarious water brand.”

“There’s exactly zero reasons why health and sustainability can’t be marketed with the same explosive level of fun as energy drinks, beer, candy, and junk food.”

– Mike Cessario

Save the bros - Organic Valley

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History – Major Events

Seed round funding

$1.6 million

2018

Jan, 2019

D2C

Oneline

Tattoo Parlors

Barber Shops

Bars & Clubs

Concerts

…

Feb, 2020

Aug, 2020

Company Value $700 million

Est. Annual Revenue

$130 million

Oct, 2022

(3rd Year)

Retail

The flood gates opened.

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Major events + Financials

In order to secure funding, his idea needs to be tested.

2018: FB page, creatives before product, $3k (to test the market) → Raised fundings (to make the product) →

Jan 2019: Started selling on Amazon and their website (d2c, at the beginning people are not used to buying a whole 12 pack but after explaining the value 1.6 per can and delivery, it makes sense. People even start explaining to others on the internet.) → Bars, tattoo parlors, barber shops, clubs, concert (skeptical to great sold-out) →

Feb 2020: Retail, Whole Foods (recyclable, 10 % profits clean up ocean)… August 7-Eleven →

Dec 2021: Publix and Sprouts

Financial (Scape this)

Jan 2019 seed round $1.6 million

Feb 2020 series A round $9 million

Sep 2020 series B round $23 million

May 2021 series C round $15 million

Jan 2022 series C round $75 million

Oct 2022 series D round $70 million

3 years. Oct 4, 2022 Liquid Death canned water company is now worth $700 million.

Liquid Death said it is on track to bring in $130 million in revenue this year - nearly triple last year’s revenue.

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Products and Features – Beverage

Flavored Sparkling Water

with Real Agave Nectar

It’s water. It’s healthy.

Straight from the Alps
Made by Nature, Not In a Lab
8.1+ PH// Over 2X More Electrolytes than Essentia, SmartWater, LifeWtr, Core, Aquafina

It’s in a can.

16.9 oz (473 ml) Tallboys
Infinitely Recyclable (Plastic Bottles Are Not)
Limited edition artwork on bottom of each case

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Price to Customer

$15.49

12 x 16.9 fl oz

$16.78

12 x 16.9 fl oz

$17.69

12 x 16.9 fl oz

$17.70

12 x 16.9 fl oz

$19.94

12 x 16.9 fl oz

*price is reflected for Publix in Gainesville

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Products and Features – More Than Beverage

“We are not a water company. We are a pop culture factory.”

“One in every three people who bought our water also bought a shirt.”

Merch

Country Club Membership

$125,000

Exclusive Offerings

Sell your soul to join.

Contract binding for all eternity.

Branded Entertainment

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Current Branding Strategy + Profitability

“Awesome branding for a boring product.”

Branding Strategy

Human Brand
Creates Social Interaction & Experience
Multi-channel strategy

Why is it special?

Overcame marketing myopia
Experiential water brand that consumers enjoy
Internal & external consistency (FIT)

On track to make $130M, Triple 2021’s revenue.

Profitability

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CAMPAIGN ANALYSIS

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Death to Plastic Campaign

Purpose

Bring awareness to plastic bottle harm
Show aluminum cans as better alternatives

How?

Using shock humor
Concisely state the main points of the problem
Working with accredited organizations

CAMPAIGN ANALYSIS

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Recommendation

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Why was the campaign unique and effective?

Combines cause marketing with shock humor

Unhinged & aggressive imagery

Humorous approach to serious topics

Partners with accredited organizations

Marketing brand NOT product

Provides clear info on why theirs is better

“Plastic recycling is a myth. And most plastic is sent to landfills.”

“We donate a portion of the profits from every can sold to help kill plastic pollution.”

“Aluminum is infinitely recyclable. Plastic is not.”

“If plastic pollution isn’t curbed, plastic will outweigh fish in the ocean by 2050.”

“Of all the aluminum produced since 1888, over 75% of it is still in current use.”

CAMPAIGN ANALYSIS

Company Overview

Campaign Analysis

Recommendation

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Shock Humour

“Shock humour is a style of comedy intended to shock the audience. This can be achieved through excessively foul toilet humour, overt sexual themes, mocking of serious themes, or through the use of death and other violent themes”

Sexual themes

Mocking of serious themes

Death and Violence

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Who did they target?

Millennials

Environmentally Conscious

Adult Comedy Fans

Metalheads, Punk Rockers, Bikers

Easy Going People

Other water brands like Dasani, Zephyrhills, and Evian don’t seek to target a particular consumer segment with their marketing

Partner with music festivals and other events where their target market is typically present

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Company Overview

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Recommendation

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Success Factors

Good Fit

Offensive Strategy

Experiential Brand

Storytelling

Social Initiative

Non-Myopic

CAMPAIGN ANALYSIS

Company Overview

Campaign Analysis

Recommendation

-Good Fit: the message of killing plastic is consistent with the rest of the brand’s mission,vision, and actions of reducing plastic and being a sustainable company. The “death” is consistent with the brands use of shock humor. The campaign overall would make it very hard for competitors to copy their style.

-Offensive Strategy:

- unique in that they market the brand and have a target segment unlike other water companies

-Comparative advertising: mention and show all the plastic water bottles being sold by other companies that are ruining the planet

-First mover advantage:

-Differentiation: took a complete different approach then competitors to target water drinkers

Experiential Brand:

-Customer feels like a “badass” killing plastic, give customer a sense of power and making an impact on the environment by killing the plastic. “Punks still need water”.

-#deathtoplastic trending hashtag on social media , get consumers engaged

-make drinking water “cool”, still feel included when others are drinking at parties, bars, concerts, etc.

Storytelling: Good stories are ones that inspire/make people take action.

-Targets water drinkers

-Highlights the major conflict of plastic ruining the earth/environment

-Inspire them to take action to save the earth/fix this problem by drinking liquid death

Use tools such as: irony(shock humor), romance/sex, fear(fear of planet being destroyed)

-Social Initiative: a clear very strong social initiative is used in the campaign, being sustainable and recycling to save the earth

-Non Myopic: the campaign’s main focus is on the well being of the planet and the hydrating the consumers that live on it. Sole focus is not on profits.

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Results - Social Media Engagement

Instagram

CAMPAIGN ANALYSIS

Company Overview

Campaign Analysis

Recommendation

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Results - Brand

“Fastest Growing Non-Alcoholic Beverage Of All Time”
It took Liquid Death 3 years to reach the level of success that Celsius has built up the last decade
Amazon’s Top 10 Best Selling Water Brand
Campaign corresponded with their Series A funding, raising $9M with 8 investors

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Company Overview

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Recommendation

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RECOMMENDATION

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Focus, Emphasize, & Balance

Emphasize Advantages

Focus on how Liquid Death’s aluminum cans are infinitely recyclable

Create a Balance

Increased brand awareness & sales
Heightened customer engagement & loyalty

Focus More on Liquid Death

Ads are good at spotlighting their focus of killing plastics
Can takeaway from why Liquid Death is better

RECOMMENDATION

Company Overview

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Recommendation

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Co

Thank you!