Electromixers Branding & Marketing
Client: Maril LLC
Role: Brand and Marketing Strategy, Creative Direction, Graphic Design, Project Management
“Quentin is the most creative graphic designer I have ever worked with. His ideas go beyond design. A marketing genius, always giving more than it's asked. Every time my partner and I received his email attachments we were thrilled on the direction our company image was going. He always over delivers, and I highly recommend Quentin to anyone who wants to take their company's aesthetic to the next level." — Fabiola Avelino, Chief Marketing Officer and Co-founder
Introduction of Brand
Alcohol and energy drinks dehydrate the body, greatly increasing the possibility and severity of a hangover. Electromixers is a premium non-alcoholic cocktail mixer, containing an innovative blend of electrolytes and caffeine that hydrate and energize the body. The mixture of the unique ingredients helps to keep the drinker awake and alert while replenishing vitamins depleted from alcohol consumption, greatly reducing the probability of a hangover.
Product design including label and capsule design plus a neck hanger.
Key Learnings
Having a brand strategy is not obvious to all
Don’t expect all businesses to have a brand or marketing strategy in place, even if they say they do. Start every new client meeting by reviewing their plan for the brand. Electromixers did have a plan but not a comprehensive strategy. I took the opportunity to ask those crucial questions needed for a clear direction on all branding and marketing projects. As a result, I created materials that supported the goal and strengthened the brand.
Valuable team members go beyond the creative staff
To eliminate the need for reprinting the bottle labels, we added a consumer law lawyer to the team early on in the process. I worked with him to ensure what I created adhered to the incredibly strict FDA requirements for beverage labels. Even though finalizing the labels took multiple rounds, we eventually saved time and money had we moved forward with production minus the lawyers' involvement.
Remote teams require a communication strategy
To ensure the project stayed on schedule, maintained brand consistency and a high standard of production quality, I had to create a communication strategy. With the project team spread across three cities, I established frequent check-ins with the team and vendors. As a result, we produced a range of promotional materials, error free, and on schedule—keeping the client and production facilities happy.
Campaign design employed on street furniture, transit stop billboard.
The Background
Electromixers contain an innovative blend of electrolytes and caffeine that hydrate and energize the body, keeping consumers active while greatly reducing the probability of a hangover. According to Charles Gibb, CEO of North America at upscale mixers company Fever-Tree, “If three-quarters of the drink is the mixer, then you should care about the mixer as much as you care about the spirit.” Consequently, consumers today are paying closer attention to the mixer when making cocktails at an off-premise establishment more than they did two years ago, resulting in a considerable growth in the premium mixer category. According to Steve Lewis, a third of drinkers enjoy a premium mixer with their cocktail. However, there is a need to educate consumers who may never have paid attention to the mixer used in their cocktails.
Final website user interface design.
Alternative website user interface design.
Alternative website user interface design.
The Challenge
Electromixers is the invention of two Las Vegas entrepreneurs envisioning a cocktail mix containing caffeine and electrolytes to help increase energy while minimizing dehydration. When I first met with the duo, they only had a product name, an established recipe, and a logo needing an update. While they came to me with the challenge of designing the product packaging, business cards, and a sales sheet, the real challenge was buried beneath the surface. The CMO, who was my primary contact, shared their business plan which had minimal brand strategy. It was clear the entrepreneurs needed a more comprehensive strategic plan for the Electromixers’ branding and marketing efforts if they were going to achieve their goal and objectives.
With Electromixers being a new product set to disrupt the mixer category, there were a couple of creative challenges needing solutions.
First, given the product ingredients provide energy, hydration, and a decrease in hangover effects—what makes Electromixers unique—it was important to educate the consumers on these benefits.
Second, while the mixer solves the problem of dehydration and lack of energy, the challenge was to not make the product or its promotional materials look like an energy drink, sports drink, or a fruit juice.
What started off as only a small design opportunity turned into a full fledged strategic branding and marketing effort with a full array of integrated marketing and promotional materials, as well as sales documents and their Strategic Brand Positioning & Communications Plan.
On-premise campaign design employed on table tents.
The Creative Leadership
While I was the primary creative on the Electromixer project, I am not solely responsible for any of it. Every project I work on is a team effort and it would be wrong to not recognize the efforts of the other team members. For this project, I worked with a small team, managing everyone’s involvement and the project’s overall delivery schedule. Initially, the project team consisted of the CEO, CMO, and myself as I led the two through developing the details of their Strategic Brand Positioning & Communications Plan.
From a creative and production standpoint, I served as the point person for the client as well as the contractors including a web programmer in Las Vegas, copywriter in Kansas City, multiple printers and production facilities in Dallas and Las Vegas including merchandisers. I also partnered with a Las Vegas consumer law lawyer to ensure the product nutrition label passes strict FDA requirements.
This project took place before COVID and many of the virtual resources we have today, were not readily available. As a result, I implemented a communication strategy to give continual updates to the client regarding various areas of the projects. Ultimately, the project was delivered on time with no errors.
On-premise campaign design employed on coasters.
Brand Positioning
Marketing Electromixers was as a premium non-alcoholic cocktail mixer with a unique combination of ingredients providing consumers with additional energy and hydration while not sacrificing quality—creating an envious cocktail experience.
The Maverick archetype best forms the foundation of Electromixers’ positioning. As a Maverick, the brand is poised to disrupt the marketplace by breaking the mold of the typical cocktail mixer. By including caffeine and electrolytes, along with premium quality flavoring, drinkers will have more energy and a greatly reduced severity of hangover effects resulting in the optimal cocktail experience that no other mixer can offer.
The brand’s positioning statement is “The only cocktail mixer to provide consumers additional energy while greatly reducing the severity of tomorrow’s hangover effects with its unique combination of caffeine and electrolytes for millennials at resorts, in nightclubs, and at home with friends who are seeking a pleasurable, envious communal experience.”
Excerpt from Electromixers' Strategic Brand Positioning & Communications Plan presentation.
Excerpt from Electromixers' Strategic Brand Positioning & Communications Plan comprehensive report.
Brand Personality
Electromixers is a hedonistic brand and it shows in its personality. The premium cocktail mixer is primarily a brand that is:
Influential
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Positively affecting its audience.
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Not following conventional norms.
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Takes bold steps in achieving what most believe is unattainable.
Spirited
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Full of energy, enthusiasm, and determination, acting on impulse.
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Rebellious but loveable.
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Enjoying life in a fun and lively way.
Inviting
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Offering the promise of a pleasurable and envious experience.
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Tempting consumers with its benefits.
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Appealing to the consumer's inner desires.
Sell sheet for potential distributors.
Developing the Brand Icon
When I began developing the brand icon for Electromixers, the client shared with me an icon and logo that had already been developed. These initial brand components did not live up to expectations. Therefore, a new icon and logo was needed. We wanted to focus on the concept of the product greatly reducing hangover effects. The combination of the circle and the tilted “e” creates a prohibited or a “no” symbol, as in “no hangovers.” The brand icon works with and without the wordmark. It is used in the design of the bottle capsule, backgrounds of promotional creative, and as design elements on merchandise.
Original logo icon.
Logo icon after redesign.
Visual Signifiers
Electromixers are “Providing an envious cocktail experience.” This inspirational statement verbalizes what makes up the heart and soul of the brand. It is the mindset of the brand, drinking a cocktail mixed with Electromixers will make others envious because the unique cocktail mixer provides energy while greatly reducing the severity of tomorrow’s hangover effects. This mantra forms the basis for the brand’s marketing communication strategy.
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Logo
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Tagline
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Icon
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Digital product rendering
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Visual branding guidelines
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Strategic Brand Positioning & Communications Plan
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Street furniture
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Brand website user interface design
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Table tents
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Coasters
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Promotional hat
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Promotional t-shirts
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Internal sell sheets
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Responsible drinking campaign logo
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Bottle neck hanger
Merchandise design for promotional events.
Skill Set
Skill sets employed throughout this project includes, creative direction, copywriting, graphic design, project management, brand strategy, marketing strategy, team leadership, and print production management. Technical programs used to build the creative are all Adobe Creative Cloud products, InDesign, Illustrator, and Photoshop.
Cause marketing logo graphic.