Death-defying. Stunning. Incredible. Terrifying. Bombastic…

These were some of the words used to describe the Red Bull Stratos Jump by Felix Baumgartner. And truth be told, that jump was all of these words combined and more. How else do you want to describe a jump from the edge of space?

Red Bull is one energy drink that is known across the whole world.  As a child, I remember listening with awe as an older boy talked about how muscles will pop out of our arms immediately we drink the contents of the can. The only thing that kept me from daring to go ahead was my mother’s painful thorough whipping that rendered butts useless for days and his little caveat; we might become so filled with energy that we will run mad. Although this was an extreme view of what the drink can do, a lot of people will agree that it is a true energy drink that ‘works’.

It’s not for nothing that Red Bull spends boggling amounts of money on marketing and branding. Worldwide, the drink has come to be associated with daring, with pushing the envelope.

The Stratos Jump was a very daring (and expensive) marketing move for Red Bull. How can millions (over 52million) watch a human can of Red Bull charging through spheres and not be converted into  Red Bull fans? The exposure that the jump gave the brand across all platforms is stunning in its entirety and would have taken tens of millions of dollars to get that same amount of exposure using normal adverts.

Felix jumped from the stratosphere for a total of 9.09 minutes, free-falling at supersonic speed for 4.22 minutes of that time. That’s scary, especially for someone like me who is height-unfriendly (that’s a cute way of saying I’m scared of heights).

Of course it wasn’t a top of the hat decision and stunt. Preparation and training were going on for 5 years after the idea was conceived and approved in 2005. Felix himself has been skydiving for Red Bull since 1988 but this was a major.

The jump went ahead to break 5 Guinness Book of records feats, one of which is the Highest Freefall record. Owner,  Dietrich Mateschitz claimed it wasn’t a marketing stunt, “if this were just a marketing gimmick it would never work”. But hey, a few percent jump in profits doesn’t hurt right?

Click right here to read more on the Red Bull Stratos jump. What daring stunt have you pulled before? Comment in the box below.