6 lessons learned from 15 years working on industry-leading alcoholic drinks brands.

Consumers have a repertoire of brands they drink which varies depending on their needs, feelings and the company they’re with. Build strong associations between your product and great occasions to make your brand more obviously relevant to consumers at those shared moments. 

We created a multi-platform consumer Pan-European website aimed at inspiring and educating consumers in the art of making spirits-based mixed drinks and cocktails for any social occasion at home.

• +300k unique visits per month to the site, with +1m visits in November and December alone
   
• The site ranks no.1 for popular search terms and is more visible than Jamie Oliver’s Drinks Tube or BBC Good Food guide for key search terms
   
• Winner of a Silver DMA for Best Use of Search

Neuroscience research from our sister agency, Walnut Unlimited, has revealed that how you show your product can have a dramatic impact on brain activity. Make your product look as irresistible as possible and the star of your communications. 

Case study: Baileys

To change Bailey's perception as the dusty bottle at the back of the drinks cupboard to a drink that women like to enjoy with friends we used shots that conveyed the delicious, creamy texture and taste of the drink.

We then paired Baileys with other indulgent, high calorie ingredients that are known from our neuroscience research to elicit a higher emotional response to boost up the crave appeal.

Digital innovation not only helps to deliver breakthrough marketing, it also gives your consumers the tools they need to create occasions to get together with friends to enjoy your product.

Case study: Guiness

We experimented with the latest technologies to drive consumption for Guiness. To encourage their fans to watch rugby matches together, we developed a personalised video Facebook application where a recipient could enter their friends’ names into the platform and render a personalised team talk from Lewis Moody directly to mates, inviting them to meet up at a chosen location to watch a particular match.

In a category where there are always new entrants arriving, existing brands can start to lose front of mind recall, particularly with younger audiences.  Creating content that drives inspiration and brand reappraisal, gives people a reason to try your product which was previously missing.

We were briefed to create a website that would drive relevance with younger people and persuade them to put J&B back on their cocktail lists. We used bright colours, intuitive functionality and compelling content to create a fully responsive website that was impactful for younger audiences around the globe.

70% of decisions are made at point of sale. To win the moment of truth at the shelf or bar, you need to be disruptive and give people a reason to purchase at that critical moment.

Case study: Diageo – Shake up Summer

As part of our Shake up Summer campaign, which sought to drive association between summer occasions and Diageo’s range of spirits, the free jug mechanic was vital to driving purchase of a bottle of spirits in store. It also encouraged repeat purchase as consumers continued to use it at home throughout the summer.

RESULTS

• +170,000 jugs redeemed in Tesco, up 70% on previous year
   
• +7,000 on trade kits used, up 40% on previous year
   
• Winner of Diageo Marketing Excellence Award for Best Shopper Marketing Campaign

Bartenders serving your products beautifully and with care will drive awareness of your product, inspiring people to order it at the bar and try it at home.

For the last five years, we have been responsible for the editorial planning, creation and publishing of multi-format content for the World Class Club website. Our engaging and inspirational content includes beautifully shot videos, long and short form articles and pictorials for the site, and gives bartenders from the best bars around the world the opportunity to create and showcase their innovative cocktails.

• 12,000 unique visitors to the site within the last 6 months, with a 20% increase from social.
  (To put this in context, there are currently 13,000 premium bartenders in Western Europe.)
   

• Winner of Best Digital Content Solution of the Year in the B2B/ internal category at the Content Association Awards.

We’d love the opportunity to apply our extensive digital experience in the alcoholic drinks sector to the incredible brands in the Beam Suntory portfolio. So please do get in touch, if you’d like to find out more about the agency.