“Guinness breaking the alcohol-mold”
In the spirit of St. Patrick’s Day this past week, I figure I’d spend some time talking about another adult beverage company in Guinness. Guinness has recently changed their marketing strategy to differentiate themselves from the traditional beer advertisement about a “girl-chasing, party-loving man-child,” to telling a genuine and heartfelt story. The new slogan for Guinness is “The choices we make reveal the true nature of our character.” One of the commercials that used this slogan told the story of a bartender that set a glass of Guinness on an empty table every day. Not until the end of the commercial did we see whom the beer was for until a soldier walked into the bar only to see a beer waiting for him. By using an emotional appeal, this advertisement is able to capture the viewer’s attention and hearts while playing towards the target market’s sense of loyalty and responsibility. The target market being young adults with a high focus on maturity. Not only does this type of marketing campaign capture attention, but it also positions Guinness as a company that cares about morals and the good of communities.
Guinness Wheelchair Ad
The next example of how Guinness is changing the style of their marketing campaign is from another heartwarming commercial. The commercial starts out with two teams playing wheelchair basketball against each other. At first you think it is a commercial for the Paralympics or some other foundation, until you see all the players stand up from their wheelchairs except for one. Come to find out it was a group of friends playing in wheelchairs to involve their one friend who was paraplegic. The scene is then ended with the friends drinking Guinness together at a bar after the game.
Going along with the previous advertisement, this advertisement projects the image that one of the demographic drinkers of Guinness are athletic men who are defined by their kindness and loyalty. This brilliant advertisement is aimed to reach the core of the viewer to make them reflect on the person they are and who they want to be, along with imprinting the Guinness brand name in their head at the same time.
Another facet of this commercial that impresses me is the fact that they know exactly who their target market is. If this were a cheap beer brand, a more appropriate strategy might be to display this “party-loving man-child.” The reason being that a younger audience might respond better to a situation that displays where they are in life, or in their “drinking career” you could say. With Guinness, using an emotional appeal is a great way to reach everyone in their target market whether that be the young, or old.
Why this is a great marketing strategy
When a company displays this kind of image and comes across as one that is socially responsible, loyal, and dedicated, it makes users of this product feel as if they themselves are good people. Touching advertisements such as these are a great representation of a company differentiating themselves from the competitor and using an emotional appeal to reach their target market.