Why All Brands Should Study Stanley Cup CEO Terence Reilly's Marketing Masterclass
Every so often, product marketing creates such a frenzy it becomes its own cultural moment - think Adidas Stan Smiths, Old Spice and Pokémon Go. The Stanley Cup phenomenon definitely fits the bill and is a masterclass in the power of well timed marketing and brand hype. This case study centers on one man, Terence Reilly, who was also responsible for turning Crocs into must have footwear. In this video, Forbes spoke with a number of product marketing experts to dissect what made the Stanley Cup a must have.
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The Stanley cup phenomenon should make us all pause and think, why am I such a mindless consumer.
Quality of education has gone down, or they don’t focus on how companies work to persuade you to buy their useless products.
being from a country where tiktok is banned and never having heard of stanley, looking at this american phenomenon makes me think this is too much craziness for a water container
@@prathamshenoy9840i thought the same until i got one, it’s crazy, but having cold water all day is amazing and i think the colors are just so pleasing to see that it makes u happy to have one and actually use it.
uhh, not everyone bought it 😂
Like the video said toward the end, people are desperate to belong to a group or community. Buying in is the easiest access point. Maybe if we solve the desperation/coping points, we can solve consumerism
He said “idiots are gonna be idiots” and I couldn’t agree more😂
💯
best lesson
I have the original twist top Stanley (not the fashionable one the girls trample themselves for) and I love it to death. But I do not see the point of "cool girl aesthetic" ones. But the old school Stanleys do last a lifetime.
I personally find it a bit silly but it really is a great case study.
no it isn't. it didn't really take-off. it can't be compared to Crocs
I assume they must have a beanie baby and tulip bulb inside.
i don't see the study here? thisis more of marketing for it than actually study this is a lot of fluff the comments were more helpful with all the info nuggets thou
Every behavior is studied. Big data and software/AI make it easy to do. Some companies are likely trying to figure out what the next buying mania could be that would make a quick multimillion dollar pay week or month. Some are probably seeing how this could be used in campaign commercials. @@GreatTaiwan
Well, if you benefit from its high insulation and large capacity, as well as the product's robustness, it makes some sense. Otherwise it is silly.
I love the way he talks about the brand not being owned by the company, but the people that use it. Yes, it's a company's purpose to create a brand's identity, but it's the culture created by its followers which truly give a brand its power.
What if the brand is using it's customer to propagate itself? Leveraging our mindless need to create memes and participate in trends due to herd mentality. Surely the brand is using the the phenomena of social validation to influence culture?
Very beautiful said !
Building a personality around a cup is an interesting life choice.
“People trust people more than any marketing communication.”
You missed literally the entire reason this took off: Utah moms @ the buy guide. They pitched the quencher in 2019 and anytime they would link it, they'd sell out. Then, Stanley stopped producing them in 2020, but they struck a deal with Stanley that they'd buy 5000 of them at a time if they'd produce extra -- and they sold them all. They started an affiliate system where fans could make money by pushing sales. Little fact: Utah is the state with the largest amount of MLMs in the country. The new CEO took notice of this and just pushed the snowball. Different colorways? Literally every company has done this. I don't know if "Women are buying these by the thousands, we should make more" is a masterclass in strategy. Hydroflask was huge in this space too, another water bottle, who introduced cool colorways. I don't know if there's a deep dive study here...and it's not scientifically reproduceable. It's a microtrend and there are so many factors that have to line up for it to happen. There's nothing to study here, and you should give credit where it's due: Utah moms.
This taught me more than the video. They were just vaguely and abstractly talking about the success and aftermath of it all
The company simply leveraged the fans and saw there was a demand
Yes, I also felt that this "analysis" wasn't very thorough.
You did a better job than the video. Thank you
Ty
Studying Stanley as a case for how to market a product is kinda counter-productive because they had no control over the car fire video that went viral. Stanley didn't do that. That was the algorithmic lottery. The most you can say is "the moral of the story is to monitor social media and _be ready_ to act if you ever happen to luck into some free momentum". The other thing about social media marketing is that it's a sort of a "live by the sword, die by the sword" sort of deal. Social media hype cycles burst. What does Hydro Flask do with all its sticker-covered water bottles now that Stanleys are the new thing?
It's about timing.
It's about luck and timing but you probably can pay to make a video go viral.
What if the incidence was staged.
Mass ignorance has momentum? Thanks, now I'm not going to sleep tonight. Schlock will make us free!
Are you absolutelly sure that "Stanley didn't do that"?
We live in the "viral & trending" culture. And that's heaven for marketing.
Bruh is it me or was this video very light on real details. Like sure CEO made the most of the fire incident and they worked with influencers in some manner. I feel like there was very little info on how the campaigns were designed, ran, and maintained
It was extremely light on details. They just regurgitated the same talking points by using different words each time.
Stanley had help from a mom blog that started the others buying their cups. Then others started talking about how good the cups were. If they didnt have the internet, this craze would not have grew that fast.
MLM vibes
But we do have the internet. We will always have the internet. We have had it for ages.
@@oopsySeason The public internet started around 1995.
@@arfriedman4577 29 years ago... that's longer than my entire lifetime.
I read about this and how the blog begged Stanley to bring back the quencher cups
It's a status symbol now that they have pretty colors and have a cuter shape. There.
Exactly. All this talk about diversity or being geniuses is totally non-sense. It's just a random fire video went viral. Guess what? Stuff goes viral for many reasons.
That's LITERALLY all it is
It’s a great way to identify the dumbest person in the room
@@mrarfarf I'm sure 100+ years old company is more than just successful cuz of a recent viral video
Wait til John Deere starts making pretty pink lawn mowers and 🚜❣️ i’ll be right there wanting one
😂😂
John Deere is super anti repair and one farmer even lost his crops because they wouldn't fix his tractor. If you try to fix it your self the computers will shut down your tractor or that feature. They are A number one for mindless consumersism. They have also screwed over farmers by leaking all if the farmers private data
John deere is super anti repair and shut down the tractor if you try to repair it. One farmer needed repairs and John Deere had not techs available so he lost his crops. They also screwed over farmers by leaking their customers private data that they collected using the computer software for the tractors various features
They failed to mention the driving force and influence of Ashlee LeSueur, Taylor Cannon, and Lindley Hutchinson - the founders and bloggers of an online market and product review website , The Buy Guide
The relatively smaller diameter of the bottom of the Stanley Cup lets it fit into the cup holder in automobiles. A large capacity cup by other manufacturers does not fit into the smaller diameter cup holders. This makes the Stanley Cup more useful.
This is a phenomenon quite concentrated maybe even limited to US... Maybe a little in Canada..
I would likely disagree. I live is Australia. Seeing same thing happening.
Mostly popular in anglophone country but still heavily concentrated in the USA, USA loves water bottles for some reason, like any hype products it spreads worldwide but still not on USA level , it cought on in Brazil but i bet they are all counterfeits😂 with some European countries added to the mix
stanley is big deal in brazil too.
Its a big deal in UAE
I guess Americana culture is still going strong world wide!
A CEO sits in a room once a week [ or month] with a bunch of very smart people the company pays to come up with ideas. They pitch their ideas to the CEO. The CEO ask their closest people what they think. Then the CEO picks one of the pitched ideas. If the idea is a success the CEO gets all the credit as if they came up with the idea and implemented all by themselves. If it fails, everyone else gets blamed.
You've really never heard of a CEO getting blamed for things at their company? I'm sure you can find many, many cases of CEO's blamed, including for things they didn't really have anything to do with.
Hey Forbes, I believe this strategy rised when the company sympathized with the lady whose car burnt up but the cup was still. It kinda gives a feeling of belonging, Stanley doesn't feel like just a product but something that's got you backed. Some family feeling. 🎉 Stanley #africa #eastafrica #uganda
The case of Stanley is quite captivating. The storytelling about the cups and the aesthetic vibes it spread around on social media, particularly TikTok, affected me, and I wanted to purchase one for myself (I didn't eventually). The popularity of these cups is due to a marketing campaign that aims not just to present their product but to create a brand that will influence people to buy it despite high prices. Moreover, people really trust other people, and our era of influencers positively affected the sales of this product. Stanely is not just a cup for the bother but carries with it a whole new identity, such as the aesthetic girl who goes to the gym or office with her huge cup and keeps a healthy lifestyle. I remember back in 2014, we had a similar obsession with "My Bottle" bottles. These were just bottles with the label "My Bottle," but having it meant that you were cool, and I think even water felt tastier in it)). Similarly, I believe that Stanely will go on to capture young people who wish to create specific images. Great review, by the way!!!
this could be the greatest branding video i have ever seen.
Hopefully one day we will be able to marketing something better the consumerism of a cup
I’ve never even heard of these cups before this video 😂
you and millions of Americans. it's a marketing ploy, jws are at work. they need money to fund their jncd 😑
Lol
Now you did and phenomenal
Me too lol
I've been seeing the shape everywhere - just not the brand.
I need this kinda marketing for my KZhead channel and potential future business
Great information 🎉
I have a $5.00 water bottle that i got in 2008. It works fine. I didnt have the need to buy a huge, expensive stanley cup. My ceramic mug is fine for drinking water.
who goes crazy over a water container anyway? especially if it has no revolutionary design or innovation?
@prathamshenoy9840 have you seen the craziness in usa stores over the stanley cups? They showed one person stealing them in car trunk. I find the price outrageous.
you missed the whole point... people didn't buy the product for what it was. They did it out of FOMO.
@@osamedeuzzi3978 I wasn't brought up with FOMO mentality or wasting money. Thanks for the explanation.
These bottles are made of stainless steel, which are readily available in India. We have stainless steel bottles running fine for literally decades. Now what Stanley did different is pure marketing. Fancy colours, different shape, influencer collaboration- that’s it. Such is the marketing (and FOMO) that I almost messaged my sister in US to get one for me lol. But knowing it’s the durable material behind the magic, I’ll stick to the ones I get in India
I don't think the interesting case study comes from the company side, as they merely responded to a trend that was already happening organically completely independently of them. They didn't do anything new that a company like Yeti hasn't already been doing for years, the only difference in going viral is how people started the trend and then the company responded, not the other way around.
tbh, it's not the brand that's made me buy it. it was the new design of a large cup in the size of a water jug that got me to buy it before. and i am not american and have never been to the states. i simply found it before in japan and thought the design was a nice idea, even though the brand was relatively unknown to me.
Japan and south korea had that design for years and years. I'm sure the chinese copied the design and since most american companies have chinese manufacturers Stanley has that design....
@@shadow_realm47 i just saw one displayed in a shop in tokyo last year when i visited and my sister told me she knew of a friend that sold that same brand in my country but cheaper so when i went back to my country, i just ordered that from my sister's friend's shop. I think there were no other brands selling that same design in my country or at least they were mostly relatively unknown and stanley is still kind of relatively unknown in my country compared to other brands of water jugs people carry in my country
Not one of these "experts" mentioned the fact that Stanley coordinated with influencers to make their product go viral? It was mostly paid videos before it reached the masses. They did it to great success in the UK and then did it in America. The fire video was a happy coincidence. This success was basically attributed to a big budget and careful planning.
Egg-zack-lee
No, they promote each person to have more than one stanley cup. How many do you need to be sustainable? ONLY ONE!
My partner's father has one for every day of the week smh
Just help me find the ticker symbol... Cause it's not PM or PMIR... I loved crocs when terence was at the helm. I was buying as much stock as I could.
I thought this cup is related to the power tools brand. I would be happy to buy this cup if it is. 😊
Lemmings is the only word I associate with Stanley cups.
The quaaludes???
And remember, this video has been sponsored by Stanley, get yours now!
Terence Reilly is being Hip-Hop - he’s sampling and collaborating with culture.
Egg-zack-lee
The Stanley Cup case study really highlights the impact of strategic product marketing. One key takeaway for entrepreneurs is the importance of timing and cultural relevance in marketing campaigns. By aligning a product with current trends and creating a sense of urgency, brands can significantly amplify demand and visibility.
When watered bottle first started appearing, I thought, who would pay for bottled tap bottle? I was so wrong, humans are dumb!
People pay for comfort, convenience and in Current times the image of being a class apart.
For the gym or the office it's convenient
... all this, and also driving NHL Hockey fans berzerk with the mere mention of the product name
i had these insulated cups for over 3 years but never heard of stanley lol guess i scored knockoffs popular for iced tea in SEA
This is a great crash course in marketing and consumer manipulation.
Interesting video!! Still don't really get hyped though
Same thing with Crumbl Cookies. Instead of being a megaphone in your marketing focus in peer marketing was such a good way to put it.
I am from Europe and have just recently find out for the existence of such brand and cup. Have never seen anyone around me own such cup, although I found out that is relatively easy to find it and buy it. It’s just not desirable here. I really don’t understand the mania around it. Honestly it doesn’t seem very useful. It’s too big, how do you go anywhere with it. It would not fit in a regular bag. What you need to hold it non stop whenever you go? Not my cup of tea. I like my hands free and small bags with minimum stuff in them.
I love stanley for their Thermo hot water bottles 1:35, our parents and grand parents had these. Dont know about these gen z hype tho
I love case studies
I could listen to Dr. Collins teach all day!
I swear yeti was bigger but w/e or am I missing some info
in my country, yeti is not being sold so nobody knows about that one. stanley is just that brand to us in my country that brought that kind of big jug-sized cup to market in my country. its not that popular as well as of yet, but we just hear from americans that its popular in the states.
I still don't understand! And why would you want to be exactly the same as every other person out there?
Bc many ppl don’t want to stand out prob due to insecurities and low self-esteem. They just want to be accepted by the group. Sad.
The CNBC Make It YT channel has a better explanation of Stanley’s popularity. In short, it was a mom blog group that had a lot of interest in Stanley and that started the shift to marketing it to women.
Very good
Amazing, I concur with that diversity in marketing mediums
Seriously, this is pure luck. A random video of a Stanley Mug that survived a vehicle fire is how it started. Social media made it famous, not some marketing campaign.
If it makes you happy do it as long as it never hurts anyone.
Main lessons :) - “People trust people more than any marketing communication.” - “idiots are gonna be idiots” What an amazing marketing strategy execution 🧠
In my opinion, covering different diverse colors on the stainless is the key of the brand's marketing... because people are possessive on some colors they like.
In January 2024, a spokesperson for Stanley Cup maker Stanley confirmed that the cups contain lead.
And?
@@etaesu83and not anywhere that you can touch on the cup
I want to buy it now that I've seen the video I didn't know thermos cups were so strong.
I love this
Have a large old school one in my car forever, other than that, a Hydro-Flask on the go
Dr Marcus Collins hit it right in the center with his remarks about brands
Awesome
🎉bestest Quality!!!
"Express who we are as individuals" by buying the trendy thing(tm) that every other sheep is
..and the FAMOUS Hockey Trophy..NHL FINALS!!😊
"Brands are not owned by the company, they are stewarded by the company. Their meanings are co-created by the people." - Couldn't agree more. Brand Co-Authoring is vital
"As long as it makes you happy and doesn't hurt anyone, do it"
The MSP bottle has thermostat stainless steel, which are readily available in India. We have stainless steel bottles running fine for literally decades. Now what Stanley did different is pure marketing. Fancy colours, different shape, influencer collaboration and of course the fire incident that bought Stanley to limelight. Such is the marketing (and FOMO) that I almost messaged my sister in US to get one for me lol. But knowing it’s the durable material behind the magic, I’ll stick to the ones I get in India.
Still u fall for it😂
This video itself contributes to the ‘hype’
I have two old thermos, the best for camping. Remember the movie the account he used a thermo to kill the other inmate 😮
I wanted a cheap vacuum thermos and found stanley at walmart (not this 'cup' type, the big green cylinders) and I actually used it less because of all this dumb hype around them in the following years. It's just a thermos lmao, and these popular ones aren't even technically thermos, they are just thermos shaped-mugs.
I wish I could have one
I always found brand loyalty for water bottles to be strange. I've always had whatever Costco gets in, and only buy new ones when the old one breaks or no longer fits my needs (like too small, or has a filter, etc). I'll probably be using my Thermoflasks for the next decade. I like people sharing online what works for them, but I don't do things that work for others, I find what works for me. That's why I still wear Vibram toe shoes, sew my own pants, and thrift a lot of things.
You are all missing the fact that this brand had a huge success in mate users. it became like a status product in Argentina 10 years ago.
i still find it weird how I love my Hydroflasks because they're so good, but I don't connect with Stanley, nor understand the people around it.
The most ridiculous product to become popular ppl really do buy anything that's popular
Humans are so easily influenced 😅
Good
As someone who always buy new bottled water everyday, the Stanley Cup Phenomenon makes me realize there's alternatives to carry your water.
The fact it contains lead is crazy😢
I love Stanley. Their tape measures are lifetime guaranteed against any and everything. Just take it to a Stanley dealer like Lowes or Home Depot(idk if they both have it) and theyll give you a brand new one. It can be shattered, rusted, torn to heck. As long as it says Stanley theyll give you a free one.
Those are two completely different companies. The Stanley company that is now part of Black and Decker, has absolutely nothing to do with Stanley thermos, coolers, and cups etc
I prefer Yeti 😊
Good thing I don’t use TikTok. Useless products for sheeps. But big W for the Company.
Interesting way to think on this. The "other girls who have one in their hand" Crazy but it's so true today.
People will waste their time and money because they saw some cheap junk on tiktok and really want to take a selfie with it. 😆
More bottles in the ocean. A complete waste of time. All these expensive go to the same place water bottles go...the ocean. Nobody needed this garbage when we were younger.
I learnt something.
Working in PR and comms for over 20 years, this video is missing one of the biggest key factors, either the producers ignored it, just missed the mark. WOMEN. This phenomenon is 100% bolstered by women's herd like and hive minded behavior. Oh my friends have it so I must have it. If we took the demo if Stanley cup buyers it would 99 women or females. Ain't no dudes would be caught drinking out of this cup. Guys still use Yeti or Hydro. Yes Stanley was super smart to pivot and see that, hey females are buying these. Let's make them pink and shiny. To completely ignore the power of female buyers in this "case study" is beyond bad. Not a complete picture and not addressing the main customers that made this such a viral hit.
Both yeti and hydro already had their usa bottle water hype moment, the usa seems to have a lot of sath mom’s in the midwest
How about all brands study how to sell useful & quality products instead? Oh right, no market for that today.
My goal is to do the same with another product. People will always be people, people will always mindless things one way or the other, we can't change people's habit into buying this, so might as well make the most of it. People with same ideology feel free to connect, I have some ideas and would love to collaborate. Cheers!
It’s not people wanting to buy into a community necessarily, but a trend. The same thing happened with hydroflasks. They were nowhere, then huge, and now you don’t see them as much as you used to. Sure they’re better than where they left off, but it was a trend nonetheless.
I assume they must have a beanie baby and tulip bulb inside.
imo the stanley phenomenon is incredibly similar to taylor swift's marketing and branding -- allowing her fans to create what she means individually and be part of a larger community
I wouldn't use this cup if it were given to me for free.
Thought it was some prize for sporting competition 😅
Lead?
Ugh I can’t stand hype. I hope we can talk more about longevity.
I bought just bc of its reliability durability and the history to back it
Cope
3:13
That cup is the definition of convenience.
If it is Stainless steel then even I would want to get one because of the ease of carrying it around.
I don't like the messages at 8:00 yes, it's wrong to peer pressure people into "wanting" something, it's wrong to push people needlessly into wasteful consumerism of overpriced stuff because "status". It's a cup! All work the same!
What about the fact that it contains toxic lead
I’m not sure anyone cares. It’s not in the stainless steel.
And it's not anywhere you or your drink can touch
Why all people should distrust marketing and social media messaging and comments.
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