Coors Light Packaging Plays Up Cool Factor

Golden, Colo. — Armed with internal research that shows 70% of men cool their beer in the freezer, MillerCoors' Coors Light launched a campaign that centers on bottle labels that include a "two-stage cold activation indicator" that tells consumers when their beer is "cold" and when it is "super cold.""We used the package as a hero," says Angela McKeand, brand manager of Coors Light premium large format. "It's such a strong insight, we wanted to make sure we hit it home."Coors Light wanted to alert consumers when "their beer is at the peak of refreshment," says Jovina Young, brand manager of Coors Light innovation activation. Furthering previous designs that have the mountains on bottle and can labels turn blue when the beer is cold, Coors Light has added "cold" and "super cold" bars that turn blue. (MillerCoors declined to provide the temperature at which the bars are activated.) "The 'cold' activation ties to our positioning around Rocky Mountain cold refreshment," says Young.The brand's "Super Cold Summer" campaign promoted the indicators with TV spots that starred entertainer Ice Cube and a digital campaign featuring a character called the "Master of Cold," with related content on the Coors Light YouTube channel as well as the brand's Facebook page. While driving, consumers might hear radio spots telling them which stores in their areas are "super cold certified" or look up to see out-of-home boards that show a neon image of the super-cold activation bars on the package.The brand's Coorslight.com and Facebook pages serve as a home for highlighting current campaigns, and to "create engaging content that allows us to have a two-way dialogue with our consumer," says Young.Additionally, point-of-sale materials highlighted "the benefits of knowing when your beer is super cold," McKeand says. Convenience stores were a particular focus of the campaign because "people are stopping at C-stores for immediate purchase." Stores cross-merchandised Coors Light with ice, both "helping the retailer with their basket ring but also reinforcing the super cold message."Launched in mid-May, the campaign ran through July in about 3,500 beer retailers. More than 300 Walmart stores carried in-store materials, and some Walmart stores executed parking lot concerts with musicians Keri Hilson and Ledisi. In-store signage promoted the concerts as well as contests for trips to the Essence music festival in New Orleans.Coors Light declined to release research data on how it measured the success of its campaign, but Young says it is "on its eighth year of volume and share growth, and the summer 2011 program was part of the plan to maintain that momentum."Coors Light's agency partners were Seattle-based Razorfish for digital, Chicago-based Draftfcb for print and out-of-home, Chicago-based Commonground for the television spots with Ice Cube, San Francisco-based Landor for packaging, and Lakewood, Colo.-based Integer Group for in-store point-of-sale. Bromley Communications, San Antonio, helped with a parallel campaign aimed at Hispanic consumers with bilingual P-O-P.

Coors Light Packaging Plays Up Cool Factor

P2PI MEMBERS

JOIN P2PI

Related Topics

Related Images

Business Topic

Company

Market Segment