How to Launch a New Product on Social in 2025

In our recent panel, ‘How to launch a new product on social in 2025’, at our Digital and Social Summit, We Are Social Sport UK’s creative director Tom Brandhorst sat down with Annabelle Rawsthorne, brand manager at Lucozade and director RVBBERDUCK, to go behind the scenes of our recent Lucozade campaign, Ice Kick with Jude Bellingham.

Launching a new product on social now requires a full 360 approach - a killer idea, total alignment across channels, and a production schedule tighter than Tuchel's tactics. Our recent work with Lucozade and Jude Bellingham, Ice Kick, had exactly that. Spanning paid, shopper, talent, social and PR, we created a content machine that turned three hours with one of football’s biggest stars into 24 hero assets, and a product launch that’s already smashing records in-store and online - and is now on your TV too.

Here are three key takeaways on how we crafted a culturally relevant, social-first campaign that drove not just impact, but sales.

Your talent isn’t just a face — they’re a creative partner

Authenticity is key. We’ve heard it time and time again. And when bringing in a cultural figure like Jude Bellingham, there’s no exception. From the start, the Lucozade team knew this needed to be a true collaborative partnership every step of the way.

Jude helped shape everything: he tasted and approved the flavour, he helped name the drink, he contributed feedback on packaging and design, and even visited the factory where it’s made. This level of involvement meant that Jude wasn’t just the face of the product, but he was emotionally invested in the launch. And audiences could see this through the content with his real excitement, connection and authentic care for the product.

Our Digital 2025 Global report found that 22.4% of online users follow athletes on social media, slightly more than those who follow traditional influencers. And, these aren’t passive audiences; they’re deeply invested in the lives of these public figures. As athletes share more of their world online, partnerships with authenticity matter more than ever.

Big screen-quality production with social-first thinking

You can never predict exactly how a shoot is going to go. From last-minute set changes to missing props, you have to be ready for the unexpected. That being said, what you can plan needs to be tight and ready. For this shoot, we had six months from brief to launch, and used every minute wisely, with a social-first mindset from day one.

We knew that our time on set would be limited, so we made sure we knew every single shot we needed like the back of our hand. With the combined expertise of our social-first creative team and the distinctive vision of director, RVBBERDUCK, we captured a stellar campaign with platform-native storytelling.

The opening frame, featuring Jude Bellingham, immediately captured audiences’ attention. We kept them intrigued with the mystery of the ice block, and subtly embedded branded elements into the content in a way that felt authentic, rather than intrusive. With a custom soundtrack by P Money tying it all together, we didn’t just create standout content - we struck gold.

And it wasn’t just one film. Thanks to a meticulously choreographed production schedule, our team maximised a three-hour shoot window to deliver over 24 assets, achieved by building in dedicated social setups, running multiple content streams simultaneously, and making use of every single second on set.

Start social, but think bigger

Traditionally, social can often be treated as an afterthought to above the line. Not this time. Not only was this a social-first production from day one, but we flipped the script with our social film being so successful that it debuted as a TVC during the FA Cup final halftime ad slot.

But how did we set ourselves up for success? Our 360 approach covered all bases. From PR to shopper, every touchpoint was designed with each other in mind. From icy bold visuals to thumb-stopping familiar faces, the same look ran across store shelves, social, paid and OOH. The results?

• 39.3M+ organic impressions
• 1.5M engagements on the day of launch
• 13.6K new followers

Director of the film, RVBBERDUCK, said on LinkedIn, “Perhaps this upside-down model: of thinking social-first, with a through-the-line mindset, where we apply the craft and polish of a TVC to a creative that is innately designed for engaging online audiences on their own terms, is the future of delivering more value for audiences and brands alike?”

As the team wrapped the session, it was clear this launch had set a new benchmark not just for social but for how product, culture, and creativity can align to deliver real commercial impact.

ICYMI, you can watch all the sessions from the Digital & Social Summit on-demand here.