For Rocco, a company specializing in stylish, smart minifridges, this approach has helped it stand out in a field of indistinct appliances. The Shopify Masters podcast recently sat down with Alyse Borkan, co-founder of Rocco, to discuss how she built the brand around home entertaining and lifestyle, and what she’s learned in the start-up’s first year since launch.
Expanding the vision
Alyse’s co-founder, Sam Georges, had the original idea for Rocco after noticing the lack of innovation in the wine fridge space. “He is a big wine drinker and wanted a wine fridge for his apartment, but traditional wine fridges were ugly and utilitarian,” Alyse explains. This sparked the idea to create a stylish fridge that doubles as a piece of furniture.
But Alyse, who doesn’t drink alcohol anymore, suggested broadening the product’s scope to appeal to a wider audience. “Together, we thought about how to make this an all-in-one drinks fridge to appeal to different drinking preferences,” she says. She imagined that consumers might use the fridge for not only wine, but also seltzer waters, iced coffees, or even skin care.
Validating the market
One important step in building this brand was validating that there were people who already had a lifestyle that would necessitate a second fridge. Luckily, Alyse and Sam found research that showed many Americans actually already own a second fridge, though it is usually in an inconvenient location, like a garage or basement.
By focusing on creating a more stylish appliance, Rocco positioned itself as a piece of furniture that fits in your living room seamlessly. “The Rocco fridge is supposed to be the center of your celebrations at home,” she emphasizes. “People get a lot of joy from drinks, and that’s what we want to emphasize.”
Emphasizing the lifestyle in marketing
One of the core strategies Rocco employs is marketing a lifestyle rather than just a product. “It’s about thinking less about the features and tech specs and more about how the product fits into someone’s life and what it brings them,” Alyse says. She explains that even the data supports this approach. The ads that have performed the best lead with messages that are more lifestyle-centric, emotive, or solution-focused. Some of the most creative examples of this are content around party-hosting tips or cocktail recipes.
Trying creative marketing strategies
Even though Alyse had a lifestyle she wanted to market to, she has been surprised by some of the alternate use cases for Rocco, and she’s adjusting the messaging to match. For example, she was surprised by how many businesses, such as exercise studios and dentist offices, were buying the fridge and putting it in their space. So the brand launched a new campaign called Rocco on the Road to showcase the fridge in different types of businesses like offices and clothing stores, so other business owners could see more examples of how the fridge could be used.
Additionally, partnerships with drink brands are another way Rocco helps its customers get fully stocked and discover new drinks at the same time. For example, Rocco collaborated with Wölffer Estate Vineyards to send bottles of the company’s Summer in a Bottle rosé wine with new orders of Rocco’s special-edition pink minifridge.
To learn more about Alyse’s creative marketing strategies, listen to her full interview on Shopify Masters.
