What do Michelin and Red Bull have in common?

Most brands confuse attention with impact.

Here’s the truth: Spectacles don’t matter if they don’t tie back to your product.

Let me explain:

Michelin literally invented the restaurant guide—not for prestige, but to encourage people to drive more and buy more tires.
Their entire brand—from restaurant reviews to bike competitions to the Michelin Man—was engineered to push tire sales. Every story circled back to the product.

Red Bull took it further.
They made a guy skydive from space.
They have their own teams.
They sponsor extreme sports.
But it all says one thing: this drink gives you energy.
The product message is baked into the spectacle.

Then you’ve got Jaguar—a masterclass in what not to do.
They tried to reposition themselves as a luxury fashion brand.
Guess what happened?
Sales dropped 97.5% in Europe.
Meanwhile, BMW, Audi, and Mercedes kept focusing on performance—and kept selling.

Same with Bud Light.
They chased cultural buzz and forgot about actual beer drinkers.
The backlash? Massive.

Here’s the core lesson:

Marketing isn’t art. It’s strategy.

If your campaigns don’t push your product or reinforce what you sell, you’re wasting time and money.

Build your brand around the product—not away from it.

People don’t buy stunts. They buy things that solve problems.

To product-first marketing,
Eric Siu

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