🟨 Heineken: We’re Not All That Different
Is there anything beer can't fix?
Hey there!
Every other Wednesday, I share a Marketing Campaign example to help you get fresh and actionable ideas to sell more and grow your business.
Heineken, the lager beer brand known for always giving that premium vibe wanted to build stronger connections and trust with their male audience.
Heineken realized that sometimes we're not as open as we believe, but when we chat over a beer, we tend to open up more. We have more in common than we think, and even though we might have different opinions, there's always something that brings us together.
To explore how talking openly and sharing experiences can make a big difference, Heineken created the ‘Worlds Apart’ campaign. It sought to challenge biases and stereotypes by getting people who don't see eye-to-eye on hot-button topics to sit down and chat over a beer.
By creating a safe space where everyone feels heard, Heineken wanted to show how listening, empathy, and respect can bring people together, even when they have opposing viewpoints.
The ‘Worlds Apart’ campaign is a social experiment that was produced as a video content. It featured conversations with different people ranging from the LGBTQ+ activist and the conservative father to the environmentalist and the climate change skeptic.
Six people were randomly paired with a stranger they knew nothing about. For the first part of the experiment, each pair worked together to build a table and bar stools. Then they sat down and answered a few questions about themselves, such as describing themselves in five words and naming three things they have in common.
It was when they had finished these two tasks, the pairs discovered what the experiment was about. They were given Heinekens and shown a video. The video revealed that the strangers who had been working together for the past hour actually held opposing views on critical issues like women’s rights, sexuality and climate change.
So, now that they knew a bit more, these six people had to decide: leave or stick around to chat about your differences over a beer.
ICYMI: The Best Thing To Do Is Nothing
Worlds Apart is an example of a Content Marketing Campaign. Beer sales in the UK increased by 7.3% over 12 weeks after the campaign. The ‘Worlds Apart’ video gained over 50 million views and 78% of customers felt more connected to the brand.
🍉 Action Points
Understand audience dynamics - Heineken wanted to strengthen connections and trust with their male audience. It recognized the potential of casual conversations over beer to foster openness and understanding.
Create engaging content - The campaign leveraged the power of video content to engage audiences. By documenting the social experiment in a video format, Heineken made the campaign relatable and shareable, reaching a broader audience.
Promote inclusivity - Heineken deliberately featured a diverse range of participants in the campaign, including LGBTQ+ activists, conservative individuals, environmentalists, and skeptics. This diversity not only reflected the brand's commitment to inclusivity but also allowed for different perspectives to be explored in a nuanced way.
🗂 More Stuff on Content Marketing Campaigns
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How to write a content marketing strategy step-by-step.
What will you design today?
For fakes’ sake, let’s talk about ‘real ads’.
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