July 20 2009
In a period of time where “Flat is the new up” would you believe me If I told you sales were up 17% through June for a premium branded adult beverage?
It’s true. Dos Equis beer sales are on a tear and its directly attributable to well-executed advertising that appeals to Millenials.
I continue to revisit advertising and branding, especially over the course of the last year, because I continue to see winery advertising that causes me to scratch my head in bewilderment and wonder, “Who is this really trying to appeal to?”
I firmly believe in my heart of hearts that aspirational marketing for the wine country lifestyle is an anachronism, a throwback, outdated, hopelessly out of touch, whatever phrase you want to use.
Simply, it doesn’t resonate anymore. At all.
For many wine enthusiasts, especially those under the age of 40, it’s not about a desire to live the wine country lifestyle. No. It’s much bigger than that, it’s about people’s desire to live a fruitful, varied and well lived life, and that can frequently include wine, or not. Nobody’s really a one trick pony.
How do you appeal to a youthful audience? It’s inspiration, not aspiration.
Dos Equis cracked the code.
If you haven’t seen the new Dos Equis commercials, keep your eyes peeled (or check YouTube), they’re running nationally and they are brilliant – brilliant in writing and brilliant in execution.
The premise, as laid out by the advertising agency, was to create a campaign that:
“establish(es) a distinctive, desirable and premium identity as evidenced by significant growth of key brand-tracking measures,” which would, in turn, be “different from other brands,” a “cool brand” and be “worth paying more for.”
Sounds like the Holy Grail.
But, they did it by creating a swashbuckling older gentleman who is dashing in improbable scenes of international intrigue with a voiceover that intones bon mots like, my favorite, “He once had an awkward moment just to see how it feels ... He is the most interesting man in the world.” And, the ads always end with, “I don’t always drink beer, but when I do, I prefer Dos Equis. Stay thirsty, my friends.”
It’s genius, just like the Canadian Club advertising I wrote about late last year.
And, similar to Canadian Club, Dos Equis has an immersive, educational micro site that features “The Most Interesting Academy” where you can take “online courses” in things like, “Circumnavigating the Globe.”
But, Dos Equis isn’t the only advertising that is using this blueprint. Fat Tire Amber Ale is another hot, hot beer brand and their print ads are supported by the tag line, “Follow your Folly, Ours is beer.” Check out the video at their site to see an example about how it’s not about the beer, it’s about the consumer, in a life well lived.
Finally, the third example is a radio campaign for, of all things, motor oil. Actor Owen Wilson laments, “Don’t be THAT Guy.” The radio spots, with just narration and no effects, talk about not being “That guy” the kind that can’t change his own oil. In the brief monologues, Wilson explains the simple lost skills of everyday life from previous generations.
All of these campaigns have a couple of things in common – they are only tangentially about the product, they don’t present lifestyle, they are amorphous enough to be relatable to many different demographic segments and they all, in a subtle way, call consumers to a higher calling in their own life.
To me, the way for a winery to relate to customers is clear – it’s not about you, it’s about me, and how your products can fit into my unique aspiration to be interesting and live a life well-lived.
I hope wine marketers are listening.
Additional Articles of Interest
Dos Equis’ ‘Most Interesting Man’ Is an Even Greater Beer Salesman
Dos Equis Launches Effort Around ‘Academy’
The Most Interesting Man in the World
Posted in, Wine: A Business Doing Pleasure. Permalink | Comments (4) |
The Dos Equis work succeeds because it breaks all the rules of beer advertising. The star is w-a-y outside the demographic, he is wise instead of sophomoric, and he isn’t even all that into beer. A bright agency delivered this work. And a brave client bought it.
The wine industry is many, many years from being able to accomplish this sort of thing. It can’t even get the basics right—like appetite appeal—never mind humor. You can get a snapshot of the sorry state of wine advertising here: http://bottlesickness.blogspot.com/
Rather than hector wineries for their shortcomings, let me just echo Jeff’s nugget: it’s about inspiration, not aspiration.
“People hang on his every word, even the prepositions.”
I agree with Fred that this campaign does break the “beer advertising” mold, but I’m curious to see beer sales across the board in this climate, I would expect that they would be up overall. In my opinion most real wine lovers would rather trade beverages than trade down (beer being that beverage) and as any wine maker would tell you, it takes a whole lot of beer to make good wine.
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You know you’ve struck ad gold when 21 year olds repeat your ads to their friends.
My friends used to love the highlife ads:
http://slackeyjay.blogspot.com/2008/08/original-high-life-man.html