Malibu launches smart bottle to build consumer loyalty

Beverage brand Malibu has introduced 40,000 NFC-enabled bottles as part of its #BecauseSummer campaign, designed to build customer loyalty within its target audience of young adults.

Scanning the Malibu logo opens up five digital experiences to consumers via their smartphone

With NFC-enabled smartphones, consumers are able to tap the Malibu sunset with no apps needed and unlock five digital experiences through their mobile browser, including:

- An instant-win competition;

- A #BecauseSummer user-generated-content competition, where consumers are encouraged to upload a summer snap and get back a personalized image and enter a prize draw to win a 7-night, all-inclusive trip to Barbados;

- Drinks recipes;

- A bar locator, which uses the consumer’s geolocation to find the nearest Malibu bar and alfresco drinking spots, if the weather is good;

- And music, where consumer are connected to playlists from Groove Armada, Marvin Humes, Clean Bandit and more, through the Malibu Play channel on online music streaming service Mixcloud

These Malibu bottles are available in 1,600 Tesco stores in the UK, and this pilot is claimed as the largest deployment of NFC-enabled bottles.

Small-scale trials involving connected bottles have been run before, but this is the first to be rolled out at this volume, with the technology to feature on 40,000 Malibu bottles in the period up to December 31. With consumers more likely to buy a particular product again if it engages them, the pilot will show the benefit of having connected products in store, said Malibu.

The trial is the result of the work that has been done through the IoT innovation lab launched at Malibu’s head office in Stockholm at the end of last year. The IoT lab is designed to test scalable growth opportunities driven by technology innovation within the Internet of Things. It has been deployed in partnership with IoT agency SharpEnd.

Malibu and SharpEnd will be able to collate data from interactions, including the time of the tap. This can then be used to give an indication to retailers of how many people are engaging with the feature before they buy a bottle and possible in-store locations for displaying the product to ensure maximum engagement.

The use of NFC also removes a barrier to uptake with consumers not having to launch an app and scan a code, instead making the process simpler and driving a higher engagement rate.

Markus Wulff, digital innovation manager at Malibu, commented: ‘By embracing suitable and scalable technologies onto our packaging, we can turn each bottle into a direct, digital touch point for consumers all across the world.’

Research carried out by SharpEnd and marketing company Mindshare has found that the retail industry is ripe for packaging to become adaptable, digital touch points that can move beyond simply providing a marketing function, with technology allowing brands to start building relationships in store and then provide services in the home. And 64 percent of consumers are interested in the idea of everyday objects, such as bottles, being connected to the internet, particularly if they receive value in exchange.

SharpEnd founder Cameron Worth said: ‘Bottles are now able to drive localized content, providing an entirely new way to communicate with consumers and bringing the brand directly in front of their target audience, presenting the opportunity to drive brand loyalty through service delivery.’

Malibu is a brand of The Absolut Company, which has worldwide responsibility for the production, innovation and strategic marketing of Absolut Vodka, Malibu, Kahlúa, Wyborowa, Luksusowa and Our/Vodka. The Absolut Company itself is owned by Pernod Ricard.