Behind AB InBev's Super Bowl strategy—Bud Light's new tagline, Michelob Ultra's 'Caddyshack' play and Bud goes regional
What Anheuser-Busch InBev has planned after giving up alcohol exclusivity in the Super Bowl.
FrankLin
No longer having the Super Bowl all to itself, Anheuser-Busch InBev will still lead alcohol rivals with three minutes of in-game national commercial time for four ads. That includes the debut of a new campaign for its big but beleaguered Bud Light, and a golf-themed Michelob Ultra campaign that looks to be inspired by “Caddyshack.” Plus, Busch Light will get national airtime while Budweiser will be relegated to regional buys.
The 2023 Super Bowl will be the first since 1988 during which AB InBev does not have exclusivity in the alcohol category. The brewer's decision, announced last year, opened the door to rivals such as Molson Coors, which has purchased 30 seconds of commercial time (that it will use for Miller Lite or Coors Light). Liquor brands Rémy Martin and Crown Royal have also confirmed spots. And Heineken will advertise its non-alcohol beer.
AB InBev ran four minutes of Super Bowl advertising last year, spread across six spots.
Benoit Garbe, AB InBev's U.S. chief marketing officer, in an interview argued that marketing money once devoted to a heavy Super Bowl presence is better spent throughout the year, including the summer when most beer and seltzers are consumed, and the fall football season. “Second is the realization that [the Super Bowl] hasn’t really been exclusive for many years,” he added. “Competitors have been buying regional. They've been present online.
“I feel very confident with our brands, that the creativity will really break through,” Garbe continued. “And ultimately, I think we are embracing the change. We want to lead and grow the category. So, welcoming more competition is a great way to grow and foster the category as well.”
A new day for Bud Light
Long known for its humorous Super Bowl ads—yet stuck in a lengthy sales decline—Bud Light will begin anew behind the debut campaign from its new agency, Anomaly. The work will introduce a new tagline—“Easy to drink. Easy to enjoy”—and a tone that Garbe described as “more confident, more magnetic [and] more aspirational,” than before.
“So, less trying to be funny and the joker, and little bit more true to who we are,” Garbe said.
Trey Edward Shults is directing the Super Bowl ad, which the brewer said would include “one of Hollywood’s hottest stars,” without revealing the identity.
Garbe said the Bud Light commercial would establish a brand voice that will be consistent and show up 52 weeks a year. “We had [growth] spikes, and now we’re going to have a consistent range with high frequency across the year.” The company is also committed to spending locally and targeting Hispanic consumers, he added.
“A big part of what I’ve been doing over the last year is bringing this idea of cohesion into everything we do with our brands. And Super Bowl is the starting point of the full campaign for Bud Light,” said Garbe, who was named CMO in late 2021. “It will be consistent and cohesive throughout the year and throughout all the touchpoints. So what you're going to see is not just a one-off Super Bowl ad [but] really the big launch of everything we'll be doing for the rest of the year.”
Garbe said the goal of the campaign would be to stabilize Bud Light, which has lost share for more than a dozen years but remains America’s top-selling beer brand.
“We know mainstream has been on the decline over the last many years. And that's why [we have] a portfolio, building out our premium and super premium portfolio with brands like Stella Artois, and Kona Big Wave, and Estrella,” Garbe said. “Our goal with Bud Light is to stabilize our share. It’s not about turning around the category … it’s about fighting harder, protecting our share. Ideally, we could even win and grow share, but the goal is stabilizing the mainstream.”
Michelob Ultra hits the links
Fast-growing Michelob Ultra—on a trajectory to supplant Bud Light as the country’s top-selling beer—will get two spots during the game that the brewer touted as including “a handful of firsts for Anheuser-Busch, a roster of superstar athletes, can’t-miss brand collaborations, innovative consumer experiences and epic entertainment partnerships.”
The spots for Ultra, with creative from Wieden+Kennedy, will emphasize its tagline “It’s only worth it if you enjoy it,” and retain the creative construct from last year of “athletes finding joy on the field and off the field,” Garbe said. But whereas last year’s spots took place in a bowling alley inspired by “The Big Lebowski” this year’s ads will take place on a golf course and would appear to be inspired by the 1980 comedy “Caddyshack.” The spots are directed by Rachel Morrison.
While AB InBev representatives haven’t confirmed it, Ultra may have tipped its hand in preview commercials that ran during last weekend’s NFL playoffs and on the brand’s YouTube channels modeled on scenes from “Caddyshack.” Those spots showed CBS analyst and former pro quarterback Tony Romo playing Carl Spackler’s “Cinderella story” scene, whacking flowers with a golf club. Boxer Canelo Álvarez pilots a beer truck on the green with a horn resembling that of Al Czervik’s car. And soccer star Alex Morgan draws a beer from a golf bag with a Michelob Ultra tap as Kenny Loggins’ theme song “I’m Alright” plays in the background.
The ads include a QR code directing viewers to order Ultra using Instacart.
The inclusion of links to buy is representative of an emphasis on “connectivity” at Anheuser-Busch, said Garbe. “[We’re] making sure that offline and online are connecting, making sure that a spot on the air has a QR code that leads you to retail promotion, and that retail promotion gives you access to special experiences. So you’re going see a lot of connectivity between touchpoints, between programs and between creative.”
The Busch Guide
The economy brand Busch Light has been growing since 2017, the last time it was featured in a Super Bowl ad. “It’s a brand that is connected with American values—farming communities, fishing, hunting, and the great outdoors,” Garbe said. Its ad, from the Martin Agency and directed by Kitao Sakurai, stars the “Busch guy” who will kick off a humorous yearlong campaign called “The Busch Guide” to teach outdoor skills.
Budweiser goes regional
Budweiser’s Clydesdales will stay in the stable this year, at least when it comes to national airtime. Bud will run a 30-second regional ad voiced by actor Kevin Bacon who will “spotlight stories of passionate, self-made Americans, each connected by a Bud six-pack.” The spot comes from FCB New York and is directed by Lalou Dammond, with Joaquin Baca-Asay. The creative construct would seem to be a reference to the Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon game.
The ad will run in 14 markets where most Budweiser fans are located and the brand feels it has the most growth, including Philadelphia, St. Louis and Pittsburgh.
