Vodka Cruiser reconnects with younger consumers via category-first Facebook Live campaign

Vodka Cruiser says its decision to partner on a cutting-edge content series specifically for Facebook Live has helped the brand reconnect with its young consumer base.

Vodka Cruiser TV was a six-part branded content series that aired weekly on Facebook at 8pm. The 15-30 minute series of content was produced in partnership with online comedian team, SketchShe, who have a following of 1.9 million Facebook users, and was branded ‘discovering your spirit’. Each episode focused on key consumer interest areas including dating, careers, travel, food and summer fun and includes guest interviews as well as panellists.

According to the brand, the campaign reached 1.35 million Facebook users, 90 per cent of which were in Vodka Cruiser’s target demographic of women aged between 18-24. The activity also chalked up 3.2 million content views, with several videos achieving more than 200,000 views. During the live screenings, fans were able to get involved by sharing comments, photos and hacks.

Facebook data also suggested an increase of 23 per cent in campaign recall, compared to an average of 8 per cent, along with a 9 per cent increase in brand favourability, against a regional benchmark of 1.8 per cents. Importantly, the brand saw a lift in sales of 9.3 per cent.

The FMCG company claims its decision to launch a Facebook specific content series was also a category first, and is also reportedly the campaign shot in HD specifically for Facebook Live by any company in Australia. Vodka Cruiser has previously undertaken some paid advertising on the social media channel.

Asahi group category manager of ready-to-drink and spirits businesses, Virginia Woodger, said the collaboration was about ensuring Vodka Cruiser remained in touch with its consumers. The business objective in launching the new campaign was driven by market indicators that showed younger drinkers were leaving pre-mixes behind in favour of more grown up beverage options.

“Our aim was to find out what our audience wanted, what their lifestyles encompass, what is important to them, what their idea of humour is, and how as a brand we can embody that,” she said.

“Live video content represents higher organic engagement- Facebook Live offers the best opportunity for consumers to be exposed to the content both during live screenings as well as post-event.”

The campaign was produced in partnership with Vizeum, Cummins & Partners and The StoryLab and ran during November/December.

Facebook Live debuted to the masses in mid-2016. But while many advertisers have been singing praises for Facebook’s targeting abilities as a whole, ad buyers have expressed concerns about controlling what content their ads will be next to, the lack of third-party verification of metrics, and the fact that video views are counted from as little as 3 seconds into video content.

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