The Sweet Life(style)

I like Dallas. A lot. But I have to admit that there are a few things I miss about Austin; the laid back lifestyle, Barton Springs on a really hot day, drinking margaritas at Polvo's with friends and delicious food from unique places like P. Terry's and Moonshine. One of the things that I miss the most however, is Sweet Leaf Tea. Oh and Sweet Leaf with Tito's of course. Yes, you can find bottles here, but it just doesn't seem to taste quite the same...

Sweet Leaf Tea is an Austin based company that I had the fortunate opportunity to work at my last semester of grad school (hook 'em!). If you know me at all you know that I completely fell in love with this brand, and it wasn't just because of the great tasting tea or the awesome people that work there. It was just refreshing to work for a place where they got it. The founders, Clayton Christopher and David Smith were brewing tea in pillowcases and filling bottles with garden hoses only a little over a decade ago. Now, the Sweet Leaf brand is spreading like fire and they are hotter than ever. And to imagine their growing success has happened without one billboard, radio spot, TV ad, newspaper inch or magazine layout proves that they are doing something truly unique. A brand that defies (traditional) advertising? Love it.

Speaking of love, Sweet Leaf began with it and grows because of it. Each person that works there believes in the brand and its mission. Their consumers are die hard fans (we are talking engagement photos taken in the office types) and they are the key ingredient for growth. Sweet Leaf recognized this early in their humble beginning, and has stood by maintaining a consumer centric business ever since. Their mission to become the #1 best tasting, best selling, organic tea is not far from reach and it is because they completely understand how, where and why consumers buy their product that they are able to witness dramatic evolution of their brand across the country. Their marketing dollars are spent mostly on giving away their product through tastings, sponsorships and events. Who would have thought that actually giving consumers the product would help gain their loyalty? Everyone loves free stuff, especially when the product is as delish as Sweet Leaf's.

Music is common thread that you might not think would ground a tea brand. It is a passion of not only the "tea-mates" at Sweet Leaf, but it is a common thread throughout their varied consumer base. So, sponsoring music festivals like ACL in Austin and Lollapalooza in Chicago is of course, right on brand. No music festivals across the country is off limits to Granny (their mascot) stickers and branded guitar tattoos. It seems like such a simple connection right? Good music, hot weather, great bottled tea, but it is a cue that so many brands have yet to tap into; living alongside your consumers. You can always guarantee that Clayton (Sweet Leaf CEO) can be found at a concert or music festival, especially in Austin, dancing and drinking Sweet Leaf with the rest of them.

And this is just one example, Sweet Leaf also just stands alone as a "trendy" tea that is popping up in various hands of pop culture (i.e. your favorite celebrities in Hollywood). It isn't easy to accomplish a smooth transition of fitting into consumer's lives, but it is what brands need to strive for. As social media has taken flight over the past year, it is making it convenient for brands to have a dialogue with consumers and find out what they are really thinking. We have witnessed a number of brands fail miserably at this (too many to choose from here), but it is because they are trying to talk to their consumers through a medium they don't use or they try to be cool instead of being relevant. Twitter seemed to explode during the months that I was at Sweet Leaf, so we all hopped on board with @SweetLeafApril (their rocking CSM), but not without consideration. We sent messages about the happenings around the office, posted pictures of the trouble the office dogs were getting into, and asked consumers their thoughts about the brand (not always awesome) to gain more insight. It was an effort that was guaranteed a good response because we already knew it was where the consumers lived online. MySpace, Facebook and a company blog had already been established and the following for all three is huge. As we all know, you can't force social media, but you must do it right and with a style that is believable to the audience. Everyone from @SweetLeafCEO to @SweetLeafInterns can be found spilling out their love for the brand online and it only works because it fits with the brand's identity.

Because Sweet Leaf knows their consumer, they don't need to spend wasted dollars on traditional advertising methods because 1. their consumers wouldn't care about it (in fact they might claim they are "selling out"), and 2. it doesn't fit with their brand. Sweet Leaf is on the move and is visible. They don't need to rely on static advertising to gain new consumers... you can find them at the latest show, event or just riding around the country giving out samples of the tea to soon-to-be lovers of their product. Drinking Sweet Leaf means that you have a lifestyle that is fun, filled with music, laughter, friends and happiness and the brand is no different. It exudes these characteristics in a consistent way across all of its promotional efforts that hit consumers in all the right ways.

So next time you want to rock out or just be refreshed, grab a Sweet Leaf Tea...you'll become addicted.