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‘Less noisy’ vodka space presents opportunities for New Amsterdam
The vice-president of spirits at Gallo, Brandon Lieb, spoke to us about moving away from a traditional marketing approach for New Amsterdam Vodka.
Speaking to The Spirits Business, Lieb explained how New Amsterdam has gradually moved away from traditional marketing and advertising methods in favour of unique and different ways to integrate itself into things that its consumers are already actively participating in.
“I think there are opportunities to carve out your own niche within [the category], so you can be a decent-sized brand and play in a territory where everyone else isn’t tripping over each other,” he said: “I think vodka is pretty competitive in the sense that there’s a lot of large brands. What is different is that there are fewer small brands entering the category than in years past.
“It’s a little less noisy, but then you have the opportunity to have your own space. You’re seeing increased attention being put on the vodka space now, whereas maybe in the last couple of years, that wasn’t the case.”
The vodka brand recently partnered with YouTube Series Hot Ones, the National Hockey League (NHL) and the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
On these partnerships, Lieb said: “For us, it’s all grounded in an understanding of who our consumer base is and what is of most importance to them.”
The brand conducted market research to gain a better understanding of what its consumer base was looking for. That research found a demand for competitions and wins in life, whether big or small. Lieb noted that this led New Amsterdam “down a path of where we position our brand”.
Understanding its consumers
In order to interweave itself in its consumers’ lives through finding ‘everyday wins’, the brand said it needs to ‘show up where they are’, and in a way that is also meaningful to those consumers.
Lieb explained: “One of the ways that allows for that to happen is through partnerships. When you use that lens of finding wins, it takes you down a path of opportunities that are really focused on competition, whether big or small.
“If you look at things like the NHL, which we partner with, that certainly provides opportunities like that. If you look at UFC, it’s the same again, in a big way.
“Then also in fun ways. If you look at Hot Ones and what that show is all about, it’s trying [to conduct an interview] in a light-hearted, fun, entertaining way. These are all things that our consumers are passionate about.”
Lieb added that this approach has to come from a place of authenticity. For example, New Amsterdam hasn’t just partnered with Hot Ones, but instead worked with it to develop the concept of its spicy vodka, which it released earlier this year. Lieb said: “They were very involved in the liquid development. We looked at them as the people who know spice and heat. They were with us creating the look, the feel… all of it. It was a true collaboration all the way through, and that’s going to continue to be the case.”
Meanwhile on the UFC and the opportunities that partnership provides, Lieb said: “There’s great visibility there, certainly with the tent-pole events that they have. But I think it also extends beyond that. We’re able to leverage it at retail; we’re able to do social content around it. There’s events, there’s watch parties, there’s things like that. So it extends beyond just watching UFC on TV, or pay per view.
New Amsterdam is one of the many vodka brands that’s changed it marketing approach to put some energy back in the category. Along with Lieb, SB spoke with other insiders on how these brands are harnessing the power of modern marketing for the September issue of The Spirits Business magazine.
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