What Makes a Great Brand Ambassador? Spotlight on Sarah Kennedy of McConnell’s Irish Whisky

Sarah Kennedy, McConnell’s Irish Whisky brand ambassador was born and raised in Belfast. McConnell’s Irish Whisky brand was re-introduced in 2020.

What attracted you to the industry?

While studying in Ulster University I worked in hospitality, and this is where my interest in spirits started. Through that I developed an interest in Irish Whiskey, The Irish whiskey industry is a very exciting fast-moving industry which has seen incredible growth over the past 6 years. My enthusiasm for Belfast city, which is my home and the home of McConnell’s, led me to the opportunity of a lifetime to come and work as the brand ambassador for this iconic Belfast whisky brand. Over the past year I have learnt so much about the brand and the exciting growing market of Irish Whiskey.

How and when did you get started as a brand ambassador?

After I graduated University in 2015, I continued to work in hospitality for almost a year, however, I entered the financial industry through a graduate scheme. I stayed in finance for 5 years, more specifically the insurance industry, but the brokerage that I worked for provided insurance advice to several the local distilleries in Northern Ireland, which leads me to how I got involved in McConnell’s. In February 2020 I attended the launch of McConnell’s in Belfast City, and this is where I fell in love with the brand story and the enthusiasm the company had for both the product and the brand. Being from Belfast, I connected instantly with McConnell’s and the future plans in Belfast City. I also had the opportunity of being one of the first to sample the amazing 5-year-old Irish blend that we all know and love today.

Why did you choose this brand to represent?

For me it was McConnell’s connection with my home City in Belfast. McConnell’s is a Belfast brand, established here in a time when Belfast was heavily industrial and was a great contributor in the export market. Belfast had its hard times through conflict however, in recent years Belfast is growing and thriving and this has a lot to do with how Belfast has evolved, and the people of Belfast wanting peace and progression. This is very similar to the Irish whisky industry. The industry is growing at an incredibly fast rate and to be a part of that growth is what really excited me. And more specifically to be a part of the return of a Belfast brand an opportunity that does not come along very often.

What are the qualifications for being a great brand ambassador?

Having the energy and enthusiasm for the brand or brands you represent is vital, if you believe in the brand this will translate to the consumers.
Having the ability and knowledge to educate consumers and customers about your brand and how it is different to what else is available on the market. You must know your brand values and your products, but also know the competitive environment.
Being active and influential on social media will help any Brand ambassador, social media is a great platform to use imagery and content to educate consumers and show them why they should choose your brand.
Being friendly, approachable, helpful, and honest are also very important attributes to a Brand Ambassador.
Being open and keen to learn on a continuous basis, even work towards gaining qualifications in Spirits will be a great asset to a Brand ambassador.

What does your job entail?

The average day consists of brand educations both in person and on Zoom, monitoring and posting on all social platforms, traveling to visit key suppliers, distributors and customers, organizing tradeshows and tasting events, entering tasting competitions and awards, working with the sales team to ensure they are fully equipped with point of sale materials, merchandise and samples, doing podcasts both locally and internationally, working with brand agencies and photographers to create more Ad content for social media and printable marketing material and most importantly ensuring you are an advocate for your brand by keeping up to date with market trends, brand knowledge, technical knowledge and Irish whiskey news.

What do you like best about being a brand ambassador?

It has to be the ability to contribute to the brand campaigns and new ideas for future releases, tasting notes and brand content… and of course getting to sample new product.

What trends do you see right now in the cocktail/spirits world?

Irish whiskey is growing rapidly, there are new distilleries opening all over Ireland, this is very exciting and encouraging for anyone working in the Irish whiskey industry. With this growth come innovation and new trends. The use of cocktails has become a very important trend in Irish Whiskey, especially when it comes to blends. Cocktails are a fun, tasty, and impressive tool to help attract and new consumers and to educate consumers on how Irish Whiskey can be enjoyed.

What’s one of your favorite cocktail recipes and the story behind it?

Cocktails are fantastic, and they have been an amazing tool for me over the past 12 months. McConnell’s was established in 1776, and in the 1800s the company became more industrial and so their distillery was built on the Ravenhill road in Belfast, the distillery was called The Cromac Distillery. McConnell’s produced large volumes of whisky, so they had a number of bonded warehouses across Belfast, one of their warehouses in Dunbar Street suffered a large fire in 1909! 500,000 gallons of whisky was destroyed! However, the company showed great resilience and recovered from this loss!

The cocktail I am about to share is called the Dunbar Street Sour, named after the street, where the fire broke out, the cocktail does not represent the fire, it represents the resilience and fight that McConnell’s had in the face of tragedy.