How Fireball Became The Most Popular Shot For College Students

BourbonNeat10 years ago

Everyone’s favorite cinnamon gum-tasting shot, Fireball, has seen its sales soar from a paltry $1.9 million in 2011 to $61 million in 2013, thanks to a brilliant marketing campaign.

From Business Insider:

The $61 million figure doesn’t even include bars, another popular place to consume Fireball.

Fireball, which is described as tasting like cinnamon gum, has become a go-to shot for “young hedonists,” Leonard writes.

The whisky beverage is even close to surpassing Jägermeister, another liqueur commonly consumed as a shot.

Fireball’s marketing team went to bars in big college towns such as Nashville, Tenn., and Austin, Texas, to give out free rounds of shots to the entire bar, banking on the fact that college kids would jump at the chance to get free shots.

The Fireball representatives also encouraged the bars to hold Fireball drinking contests. They thought this was a perfect way to get the college students to drink their whiskey until it ran out.

The marketing team used celebrities to help promote the hellish whiskey, such as Josh Harris from “Deadliest Catch.” However, Fireball needs to step its game up in the celebrity department. Regardless, bartenders have declared Fireball the “go-to shot” for college students, and one Austin bartender even proclaimed, “Jager is dead.” This is good, because Jager is terrible.

[via Business Insider]

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