Diageo AdWatch

Campaign Overview

Buchanan’s argues that “if tables could talk, they would talk about us” in this latest digital video, as the brand portrays a variety of social situations where its scotch whisky is a constant presence. This ranges from old friends catching up, families coming together, or businesspeople making plans for a brighter future. In each instance, Buchanan’s demonstrates how these customers come together around a table, with its whisky always at the heart of proceedings.

Key Learnings

This creative ties into the group’s global marketing strategy, as the brand have consistently highlighted how Buchanan’s is a product designed to be shared. Indeed, a digital video from November 2020 demonstrated this, emphasising how life’s best moments happen when people come together. This Mexican campaign continues this trend, and also calls attention to how Buchanan’s is often the focal point of any social occasion, as customers revel in each other’s company and bond over their shared love of the drink.

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Campaign Overview

This latest ad, which was broadcast on television and also featured online, tells the story of a happy couple arriving at a bar ready for a date. When they order their first drinks, however, they both take to their mobile phones and proceed to become extremely distracted. The brand visualises the content they scroll through by having cyclists, bakers, makeup artists and various other online presences appear at the bar, forcing the couple further away from each other and thus acting as a metaphor for the emotional distance that is growing between them. When the couple are served their ALFA Beers, these distractions disappear when they put their phones aside to focus on one another.

Key Learnings

This campaign demonstrates how ALFA Beer can be a catalyst for better interactions, with the product reminding the couple of what is most important. Not only does it imply that customers should remove distractions to focus on one another, but it also highlights how ALFA Beer itself deserves a similar degree of undivided attention, with consumers urged to savour the drinking experience. What this successfully emphasises is how ALFA Beer must be considered an integral element of any important occasion.

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Campaign Overview

This campaign sees Chivas Regal continue its association with Manchester United football club, but with an emphasis on backing the women’s team. In a creative that was released online, the brand highlights how the team played for the first time at the iconic Old Trafford stadium, with Man Utd triumphing over rivals Everton in a fantastic atmosphere. A post-match event was then held which featured the company’s cocktails, hosted by Sian Anderson and Komali Scott-Jones from Girls Talk, where a panel discussed women’s presence in football, and where changes could be made for the better. Chivas Regal also provided a link to a microsite, which describes the rise of the Manchester United women’s team, and how the brand has helped support the players and the club over the years.

Key Learnings

The Manchester United women’s team was only founded in 2018, and yet the club has risen rapidly through the ranks, as it pushes to qualify for the prestigious Champions League tournament for the first time. By supporting the club’s ascendancy through the women’s game, Chivas Regal is also associating itself with notions of quality and success, as the brand marries its aspirations with those of the football team. Its decision to champion women’s involvement in football demonstrates its CSR ambitions, as it looks to address the gender inequalities present in many popular sports.

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Campaign Overview

Summit Brewing Co have collaborated with The Minnesota Twins, a baseball team hailing from Minneapolis. Together they have created the ‘Beer We Go, Twins’ campaign, which signals the return of the baseball season as well as advertising Summit’s new ‘Twins Pils’ variant. The digital video appeals to the senses by using ASMR, as the ‘Twins Pils’ can and the beer itself are used to create sound effects, which are digitally manipulated to resemble the classic baseball song ‘Here We Go’.

Scott Dahl, group creative director at Periscope, (the agency that helped create the campaign) said: "Certain auditory cues are deeply tied to the experience of enjoying a crisp beer. A can top popping open, for instance. Or the sound of beer pouring into a glass. Even a can being crushed has a certain sensory memory to it. So, in the spirit of combining the sounds of drinking beer with the sounds of baseball, we used the familiar 'Here We Go' as our base track and enhanced it with one very special instrument: the Twins Pils can."

Key Learnings

Summit Brewing Co have found a logical collaborator in The Minnesota Twins, given the brewer was founded and is located in Minnesota. ASMR has risen in popularity over the years, with many brands, such as Michelob ULTRA Pure Gold for its Super Bowl advert in 2019, employing the sensory activity for their campaigns. By replicating the sights and sounds of consuming beer, Summit Brewing Co have effectively highlighted how it’s the entire drinking experience that appeals to customers, with its ‘Twins Pils’ variant at the heart of this enjoyment.

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Campaign Overview

This latest ad features a protagonist suffering in hot conditions, having to wait longer than usual to use an ATM. Annoyed that the customer in front of him is treating the ATM like his own public property, the protagonist daydreams about ways in which he can embarrass the time-waster, by making him dance on command for money. Instead of losing his cool, he simply drinks a bottle of Sprite, which puts him in a more composed frame of mind. Thinking more clearly, he devises a subtler way to lure the customer out of the ATM, with this character becoming irate in a way the Sprite-drinking protagonist never did.

Key Learnings

Refreshment and keeping cool have long been key concepts marketed by Sprite and other soft drinks manufacturers, with a digital video from January 2022 also demonstrating how the drink can provide a moment of clarity and relaxation from the stresses of life. This newest creative highlights how the product can have an instant and profound effect on one’s mood, emphasising how Spite is the perfect-tasting companion to navigate the trials and tribulations of daily life.

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Campaign Overview

In a call for freedom and peace during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Moskovskaya Vodka has amended its bottle label in solidarity with those caught up in the conflict. The product will now bear the name ‘Mosko Vodka’ and features a message that calls for an end to the war. The back label includes a QR code that directs customers to information about how the brand is providing support to Ukrainians, and how consumers can also provide assistance. More than 80,000 limited-edition bottles have been created, and will be available in Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia, with 100% of profits made being donated to the charity initiative, Stand with Ukraine.

Jekaterina Stuģe, CEO of Amber Beverage Group explained: “Within the first days following the invasion of Ukraine, our Group expressed solidarity with the people of Ukraine and gave financial support via a trusted charity. Military action in Ukraine is unacceptable to us, and our aim is continue offering support to our close neighbours and the people affected.”

Key Learnings

Many brands have come out in support of Ukraine since the beginning of the conflict, with numerous companies pulling their business from Russia in protest of its actions. Whilst Moskovskaya Vodka’s initiative also provided vocal support for the Ukrainian people, its decision to donate its profits to those in need highlights how it is tangibly trying to provide substantial aid to those affected. Moskovskaya Vodka, which is produced in Latvia using only EU ingredients, stands as a symbol for unity and positive collaboration during a moment of crisis.

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Campaign Overview

This latest campaign, where the brand invites Manfredi and Bickford to ‘mark [their] own journey’, notes the revolutionary and distinct ways each ambassador takes when creating their music and dishes respectively. Manfredi has taken the leap of faith to leave the indie rock band The Preatures to begin a career as a solo artist, at the same time as navigating life as a first-time mother. Bickford has built a reputation as one of Australia’s most ambitious chefs, with a boundary-pushing approach seeing him become Sydney’s Shell House’s culinary director. With progress being something that ‘doesn’t wait’, G.H. Mumm highlights how these two inspirational Australians shouldn’t wait to celebrate either, with the brand raising a toast to their achievements.

Manfredi commented: “Becoming a mother has helped me recognise that progression in life is such a beautiful thing. I really do believe that we should put more emphasis on celebrating the unconventional moments, the everyday risk taking and marking moments of progress. Along with G.H Mumm, I’m happy to remind and inspire others to do just that.”

Key Learnings

G.H. Mumm has so far released creative featuring both Manfredi and Bickford, but is planning on expanding the campaign with events scheduled throughout the year. These events will be called ‘Critical Riffs presented by G.H. Mumm & Shell House’ and the first will be held on 10th May, where Bickford will perform his ‘critical riffs’ on dishes that have been significant throughout his career paired with Mumm cuvées. The second will see Manfredi host a musical event experience that will reflect her new album, as well as paying tribute to her childhood influences in restaurants and at family celebrations. What this demonstrates is a dedication to building a strong relationship between brand and ambassador, one that fully utilises the talents of the celebrities in a way to best resonate with the consumer.

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