Session Overview
In today’s competitive environment, Brand
Ambassadors have become critical to building
premium beverage brands for both large and small
companies alike. Brand Ambassadors add value for
the suppliers, the distributors and the on and offpremise operators. This session will provide a
detailed overview of the importance and role of an
effective Brand Ambassador program.
U.S. Drinks Conference 2011
Contents
 The Need For Brand Ambassadors
 The Role Of Brand Ambassadors
 Effective Brand Ambassador Programs
 Brand Ambassador Program Case Studies
 Summary
 Questions And Answer Session
U.S. Drinks Conference 2011
The Need For
Brand Ambassadors
The U.S. Three-Tiered Distribution System
All beverage alcohol products are required to flow from suppliers to
distributors to retailers to and then to consumers.
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Today’s Market Realities
 Consolidation has resulted in the top 10 suppliers and distributors
controlling over 60% of beverage industry volume.
 Suppliers need distributors to get their brands to on and off-premise
retailers and ultimately to their target consumers.
 Historically, suppliers focus their sales resources building their
brands in the most important on and off-premise retailers.
 However, today’s distributors have grown so large that suppliers
now focus their sales resources on managing distributors.
 Suppliers have turned to specialized Brand Ambassadors to for retail
account management and consumer activation.
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Distributor Changes And Implications
Yesterday’s Distributor World
Today’s Distributor Reality
 5-8 distributors in all states
 Only 2 major distributors per state
 Local active ownership
 No local distributor ownership
 Very few multi-state distributors
 Large distributors control > 30 states
 Distributors fight for brands,
including small / new brands
 Suppliers struggle just to get
presentation opportunities
 Distributors make promises to
suppliers on volume and
distribution
 Distributors focused on big
suppliers leaving no time to for
small brands
 Suppliers monitor distributor
results with threat of moving to
another distributor
 Suppliers must show how they will
help sell and promote their
brands with very limited assistance
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Distributor Criteria For Brands
 Quality Of Liquid
 Unique, Attractive Package
 Product Point Of Difference
 Distributor Salesperson incentives
 Merchandising – POS Support
 Consumer Sampling (Product & People)
 Dedicated Local Manpower
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Brand Ambassador Account Management
Directly managing the most influential on and off-premise accounts in
key markets allows brands to control their own Brand Building Destiny
“Influence The Few To Impact The Many”
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9
The Role Of
Brand Ambassadors
Why Suppliers Have Brand Ambassadors

Help identify and target key accounts at the grass roots level.

Provide a local, expert source of brand information.

Take the time required to hand-sell the brands at the account level.

Program brands on the feature drink menus.

Conduct staff trainings in key accounts to drive recommendations.

Sample the consumers to build brand awareness and trial.

To influence and inspire the local distributor sales reps.

To manage special, local community events.

To provide real time feedback on what does / doesn’t work.
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Brand Ambassador Profile
Permanent extensions of the
brand placed strategically in key
markets to focus on brand building
and volume driving activities that
enhance the efforts of field sales
and the distributor teams.





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
Brand Ambassador Profile
Prior industry experience
Strong local market knowledge
Existing account relationships
Professional and passionate
Articulate, outgoing and engaging
25-33 Years Old
Cool and sophisticated
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Next Level Ambassador Profiles
Each Brand Ambassador is specifically recruited to reflect the
personality and image of their assigned brand and market.
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The Brand Ambassador Role
The most effective Brand Ambassadors focus on far more
than promotions through a six-step brand building process.
STEP 1
ACCOUNT
RELATIONSHIPS
Directly
manage an
assigned list
of 100 key on
and offpremise
accounts.
STEP 2
PRODUCT
DISTRIBUTION
Secure
product
distribution
on the most
influential
accounts.
U.S. Drinks Conference 2011
STEP 3
STEP 4
BRAND
VISABILITY
TRAINING &
EDUCATION
Make sure
the brand is
featured on
the account
through POS
placement,
drink menus,
features ads
and displays.
Convert the
account
staffs into
consumer
brand
advocates.
STEP 5
PROMOTIONS
Bring the
brand to life
by sampling
consumers
and creating
memorable
brand
experiences.
STEP 6
TRACK &
MEASURE
Tracking and
measuring
results vs.
assigned
goals on a
systematic
basis.
1. Account Relationships
Build brand relationships with key decision makers from an assigned
list of on and off-premise key accounts.
On-Premise
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Off-Premise
2. Product Distribution
Secure brand distribution and shelf visibility in the assigned list of
on and off-premise key accounts.
On-Premise
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Off-Premise
3. Product Features & Displays
Drive consumer pull-through with Drink menu feature in the
on-premise and feature ads and displays in the off-premise accounts.
On-Premise
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Off-Premise
4. Staff Training & Education
Training and educating the key account staffs drives word of mouth
recommendation and brand endorsement.
On-Premise
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Off-Premise
5. Consumer Promotion & Events
Consumer sampling to drive product awareness and trial while securing
increased account support.
On-Premise
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Off-Premise
6. Tracking & Measurement
All Market Manager activities are conducted against measureable goals
that are tracked and measured weekly.
Weekly Quantitative KPI Tracker
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Monthly Qualitative Report
Effective Brand Ambassador
Programs
Effective Brand Ambassador Programs
Effective Brand Ambassador Programs require a structured approach to
planning, implementation and tracking.
Step 1:
Step 2:
Step 3:
Step 4:
Step 5:
Step 6:
Step 7
Step 8
Step 9:
Step 10:
Brand Ambassador Support Plan
Set Program Budget
Set Brand Ambassador Goals
Determine Brand Ambassador Placement
Define Role & Recruitment Specs
Brand Ambassador Hiring Process
Brand Ambassador Training Program
Set Brand Ambassador Account List
Quantitative Results Reporting
Qualitative Results Reporting
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1. Brand Ambassador Program Support Plan
The industry best practice is to utilize outside agency partners to
manage and support Brand Ambassador Programs.
Outside Agency Benefits
Brand Ambassador Support Needs
 Funds headcount through marketing
budgets instead of overhead.
 Team recruitment, screening
interviews and job offer negotiation.
 Lower program costs due to benefit,
recruitment and overhead savings.
 Administer team payroll, benefits,
insurance, credit cards, equipment.
 Frees the supplier from back office
administrative burden.
 Develop program policies, processes
and ways of working.
 More efficient hiring and exiting.
 Provide on-boarding training, brand
training and continuous training.
 Comprehensive results reporting.
 Shield supplier from activity liability
and potential legal claims.
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 Set clear budgets and goals.
 Monthly results and budget reports.
2. Set Program Budget
Brand Ambassador Program budgets must be planned to include all
costs including salary, taxes & benefits, T&E, equipment and activity
3. Set Brand Ambassador Goals
Brand Ambassadors are assigned weekly, monthly and annual goals
that are tied to their assigned Account Activity budgets.
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4. Determine Brand Ambassador Placement
The Brand Ambassador Program markets are determined by each
client to place dedicated manpower in the focus markets.
BOSTON
CHICAGO
SAN FRANCISCO
LAS VEGAS
NEW YORK
ATLANTA
DALLAS
LOS ANGELES
HOUSTON
MIAMI
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5. Define Role And Recruitment Specs
The role of each Brand Ambassador must be defined in terms of
expected time allocation in order to develop a comprehensive job
description with the desired recruitment specs.
Role Definition
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Job Description
6. Brand Ambassador Hiring Process
The hiring process starts with candidate screening, phone interviews,
final interviews with the suppliers, background and reference checks,
and ends with the negotiation of the job offer acceptances.
Interview Schedule
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Job Offer
7. Brand Ambassador Training Program
Brand Ambassadors must receive comprehensive job training and
brand immersion training as part of their on-barding process and
then be provided with continuous training and development.
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8. Set Brand Ambassador Account List
Brand Ambassadors work to defined list of 75-100 key accounts that
are assigned to them by their client sales team leader.
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9. Quantitative Results Reporting
Brand Ambassador results are tracked weekly with 24/7 client access
to measure results vs. goals and to measure volume impact.
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10. Qualitative Results Reporting
Brand Ambassador results are tracked monthly on a qualitative basis
to provide key lessons learned and share best practice feedback.
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Brand Ambassador Program
Case Studies
Ultimat Vodka Ambassador Case Study
The Situation:
When The Patron Spirits Company acquired Ultimat Vodka
Vodka it had little on-premise development or brand call.
The Challenge:
Building long-term, on-premise brand call would require
time consuming hand-selling and distract the Patron sales
team from selling Patron Tequila.
The Solution:
Developed a permanent team of 11 dedicated Ultimat
Ambassadors to drive on-premise brand building:
• 15,000+ account calls per year
• 1,200+ new distribution placements per year
• 1,000+ drink menu features per year
• 100,000+ consumers sampled
• Driving 60-80% of brand volume in their markets.
U.S. Drinks Conference 2011
Ultimat Ambassador Case Study
Mount Gay Ambassador Case Study
The Situation:
Mount Gay had a strong consumer following in the seasonal
sailing community with little development beyond this base.
The Challenge:
Strengthen consumer and trade endorsement in base
markets while expanding reach to new accounts and markets.
The Solution:
Developed a permanent team of 5 dedicated Mount
Gay Ambassadors to drive year-round brand building:
• 10,000+ account calls per year
• 600+ new distribution placements per year
• 1,000+ drink menu features per year
• 6,000+ bar staff trained
• 60,000+ consumers sampled
U.S. Drinks Conference 2011
Mount Gay Ambassador Case Study
Skyy Luxury Brand Specialist Team
The Situation:
Skyy Spirits portfolio of ultra-premium, agency brands
required on-premise hand-selling in a lean sales structure.
The Challenge:
Skyy had limited experience with the Brand Ambassadors
but was facing pressure from their suppliers to deploy
Separate Brand Ambassador teams.
The Solution:
Created a permanent team of 7 Luxury Brand Ambassadors
To focus on brand building for the Skyy luxury portfolio.
• 6,500 account calls per year
• 1,925 new distribution placements per year
• 1,175 drink menu features per year
• 10,000 bar staff trained
• 150,000+ consumers sampled
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Skyy Luxury Brand Specialist Team
Midori Brand Ambassador Team
The Situation:
Midori is a relatively small agency brands competing for
sales time against Skyy’s larger company owned brands.
The Challenge:
To create on-premise buzz and excitement, strengthen
bartender support and increase consumer call for Midori.
The Solution:
A team of 7 dedicated Midori Brand Champions focused
on increasing brand visibility:
• Developed Midori branded cars for team
• 9,000+ account calls per year
• 1,000+ new distribution placements per year
• 600+ drink menu features per year
• 200,000+ consumers sampled
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Midori Brand Ambassador Team
Remy Louis XIII Brand Ambassador Team
The Situation:
Rémy Louis XIII Cognac is the epitome of luxury with a retail
price of $1,500 and up to $200 per glass on-premise.
The Challenge:
Selling Louis LXIII requires a great deal of sophistication that
can only come from a dedicated Ambassador.
The Solution:
Created a three person team of experienced, passionate,
highly trained Louis LXIII experts to manage the most
Prestigious accounts throughout the country:
• 3,000+ account calls per year
• 5,000+ waitstaff trained per year
• 15,000+ LXIII Consumer Experiences created
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Remy Louis XIII Brand Ambassador Team
Summary
Summary
 Today’s distributors can place products at retail but they can’t
make them sell or succeed without supplier support.
 Suppliers must control their own destiny with local manpower
focused on key account management and consumer engagement.
 Brand Ambassadors are the most effective and long-term way to build
brands in the most important accounts and with the influencer
consumers to impact the entire market.
 Brand Ambassadors Programs must follow a disciplined approach with
clearly defined goals, budgets and results reporting.
 The most successful Brand Ambassador Programs are fully integrated
into both the supplier sales teams and the distributor sales teams.
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Thank You!
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Question And Answer
Session