BELIEVE

Short List
TitleBELIEVE
BrandLION BREWERIES
Product / ServiceFOOD AND BEVERAGE
CategoryC01. Integrated Campaign Led by Promo & Activation
EntrantDDB GROUP NEW ZEALAND Auckland, NEW ZEALAND
Entrant Company:DDB GROUP NEW ZEALAND Auckland, NEW ZEALAND
Sales Promotion/Advertising Agency:DDB GROUP NEW ZEALAND Auckland, NEW ZEALAND

Credits

Name Company Position
Toby Talbot DDB Group New Zealand Group Executive Creative Director
Regan Grafton DDB Group New Zealand Creative Director
Damian Galvin DDB Group New Zealand Art Director
Rory McKechnie DDB Group New Zealand Copy Writer
Paul Hankinson DDB Group New Zealand Head of Copy
Judy Thompson DDB Group New Zealand Head of Television
Tania Jeram DDB Group New Zealand Agency Producer
Scott Wallace DDB Group New Zealand Managing Partner
Jonathan Rea DDB Group New Zealand Account Manager
Danny Philips Lion Nathan Beer Marketing & Sponsorship Director
Todd Gordon Lion Nathan Marketing Manager
Adam Stevens Robbers Dog Director
Mark Foster Robbers Dog Producer
Ginny Loane DOP
Andrew Beattie Make-up design /prosthetics
Paul Maxwell Offline Editor
Jon Cooper Coopers of Franklin Road Sound Design
Pete Ritchie Toybox Grade
Stefan Coory Blockhead Online
Peter Van der Fluit Liquid Studios Music Composer

The Brief

To create an association between Steinlager and the Rugby World Cup, when legally the brand was not allowed to have any association with the event. Traditionally Steinlager had enjoyed a long partnership with rugby in the country, but this year arch-rival Heineken had been named as official sponsor. In this big beer drinking occasion for the target audience of NZ males 18-49, Steinlager needed to ensure people were reaching for their brand, over the flashier, foreign official sponsor with deeper pockets. We looked to give New Zealanders an emotive reason to go for the home brew.

Describe how the promotion developed from concept to implementation

The last time NZ won the World Cup was 1987 and back then, Steinlager’s iconic white can was in the hands of many celebrating. We drew on this heritage and brought back the white can design from ‘87, promoting it as a lucky charm from the last time we won. The cans launched with TV, online and print creating the story of a man saving his white can from ’87, for the next time the All Blacks won. Then following up, print encouraged consumers to do the same and get their lucky charm white cans. They were then driven online to our Facebook app to show they were saving one for the win.

Describe the success of the promotion with both client and consumer including some quantifiable results

Steinlager is currently the most recognized brand of the Rugby World Cup, well above all actual official sponsors. When prompted, 54% of consumers believed Steinlager was the official beer brand of the RWC, with the official beer sponsor, Heineken, languishing on 36%. The can is currently the number one canned beer in the marketplace, with 2.5 of 3 million units already sold, and another run ordered. Perhaps even more importantly, all Steinlager variants have enjoyed a halo effect in sales, and brand adorers are at all time highs with brand exiles at an all time low.

Explain why the method of promotion was most relevant to the product or service

For our target audience of NZ males, nostalgia and loyalty have been the perfect motivators. While the All Blacks are perceived as the world's best team, they haven’t actually won a RWC since 1987. Every RWC year is greeted with nervousness by Kiwis, as we worry the team will again fall at the final hurdle. By bringing back the iconic white can, Steinlager successfully reminded consumers that the brand had been through all the highs and lows they had, and reminded them that this was the brew they were drinking last time we won. By positioning the can as a lucky charm, we’ve sold one can for every New Zealander of legal age in under just two months.