Shiner Beers Integrated Campaign Project

Executive Summary

Shiner is a cra beer brewed in Texas and is highly popular in its home state but has also grown in popularity nationwide. However, a problem that remains is how to reach audiences in the tri-state area of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut with an engaging and effective campaign that connects the brand to the customer beyond Texas.

64Sharp will tackle this problem and rip it apart like a hungry lion tackles and rips apart a gazelle. We have formulated an intoxicating strategy with tactics that all #t with the theme of our campaign while still maintaining the Shiner brand image.

Aer conducting both primary and secondary research, picking a target audience, and feeling out the competitors, we decided to have our target DISCOVER THE BOCK. Our sources told us that no one really knows what a bock is, so we decided to capitalize on this in such a way that aer someone has been exposed to our campaign, they will not only know what a bock is, but they will also realize that Shiner is THE Bock and that these two terms are one and the same. With that in mind, we invite you to read on and learn more about our campaign and all the research and insights that went into developing it. As they say in Germany, Prost!

Primary Research

In order to gain some insight about our target we decided to go straight to the horse's mouth. We conducted in-depth interviews with six people within the target market. From these interviews we #rst learned that those within the target are always open to trying new beers. ey decide which new beers to try based on friends' recommendations, advertising, logo, packaging, price, and the look of the tap. Several respondents mentioned that tastings and samples would help sell them on a particular beer as well.

Another way that they learn about new and usually better beer is through, as one respondent said, "Rugged older men and bartenders." Another respondent learned about beer from his friend's dad, and a third respondent said that he likes the idea of a knowledgeable older person (almost like a mentor) to discuss beer with and share previous beer experiences.

We also learned that those that like darker beers choose it because of its rich taste. Furthermore, one respondent mentioned that, "ere is a strong draw in the Northeast to micro brews/home brews. In the winter there is an obvious draw to darker beers." is works in Shiner Bock's favor since it is a darker beer.

We also talked to a couple of people in the target age range, but from Texas, and found out that for many (but not all) Shiner was a stepping stone to better beer. ey viewed Shiner as “better than piss beers” like Miller or Bud, but not as good as “real cra beers” like Live Oak or Brooklyn. Although this insight may seem negative, our recommended tactics will focus on keeping these drinkers with Shiner, rather than letting them move on to other beers.

Secondary Research

Cra BeerIn addition to our primary research, we wanted to gain a general understanding of the

cra beer market. First, we needed to #nd out what makes a beer a cra beer. According to e Brewer’s Association, a cra brewer is one who meets three criteria: small (produces less than 6 million barrels annually), independent, and traditional. Cra beers are known for innovation by using traditional methods to develop new, unique %avors.

Cra beers have enjoyed success recently, even as sales of traditional beer have been %at. Sales of cra beer increased 12% from January to June, 2010 (Datamonitor, 2011). ese beers

provide customers with “affordable luxury,” especially with the numerous seasonal options available.

Over half of beer drinkers say they would try cra beers if they knew more about them, so educating customers about cra beers could prove to be an effective strategy. Women are more likely than men to say that they would try microbrews if they knew more about them. Mintel offers off-premise samples and knowledgeable salespeople as examples to educate customers on cra beers.

Cra beer customers tend to skew male, much like beer customers overall. e Northeast and Midwest are the areas of the country with the highest consumption of beer, and these areas also consume the most cra beer. Beer consumption rates increase as income levels increase. ose who consume microbrews tend to drink with less frequency than other beer customers, perhaps due to the higher prices for this segment.

Bocks Next, we wanted to look speci#cally into the bock style of beer. Bock was #rst brewed in Einbeck, Germany in the 14th century. is style of beer got its name because the local Germans pronounced the town as “ein Bock.” It is a lager beer made with lots of malt, thus giving it a full-bodied %avor but with low hoppiness. It is known for its dark amber color. Since bocks typically have a higher nutritional content, monks in Medieval Germany would drink it during Lent while they were fasting. As “bock” can be translated to “goat”, a goat has traditionally been the symbol of bock beers.

Beer CustomersBeer customers aged 21-24 are the least brand-loyal, making them the ideal candidates to

be in%uenced by advertising. Younger beer customers are typically drinking what they consider to be affordable. Not being brand-loyal, younger beer customers are most likely to try new brands, especially ones their peers are consuming, as social status is an important behavioral motivation for this age group. ey are also the group most likely to take recommendations from the bartender when ordering drinks. Also, this group is likely to not have a speci#c brand in mind when purchasing beer, instead deciding while in the store based on what is the best value for their money. Younger beer customers are also more likely to try new %avors, especially ones that are trendy.

Customers aged 45-55 are brand loyal and set in their ways. is group would be very hard to in%uence to try a new type or brand of beer. Men tend to choose fuller-%avored beers, while women want lighter beers with fewer calories. Women, however, are more likely to try new and exciting %avors.

Shiner Culture Shiner customers are very loyal to the brand. is loyal following began in Austin, Texas, in the 1970s, where the fun-loving, music-loving Austinites consumed more Shiner Bock than any other city in Shiner’s small distribution area. is ran counter to the trend at that time of light beers increasing in popularity. ose who had tasted the beer while visiting Austin wanted to have it more oen as a reminder of the fun times they had in Austin. And while Shiner did not have any of the %ashy advertising campaigns typical of that time, customers found that Shiner had “character and a non-fabricated small-town brewing tradition” (Renfro, 2008) that they couldn’t #nd in any of the offerings from the big brands such as Budweiser and Miller - something that they were willing to pay a little bit extra for.

ose from Texas who move elsewhere in the country continue to seek out Shiner in their respective states. ere are numerous threads on message boards from people in other states who

are trying to #nd the closest place to get Shiner. Reading these threads, one can gain a sense of the attachment to Shiner. One person calls it “the official nectar of Texas.” Another says “I always buy a few cases whenever I am close enough to home to #nd it in most any store. Two years ago I loaded the back end of my Tahoe with 1/2 cases when I found it at the Country Market in Artesia, NM for $10 a 1/2 case.”

Competitive Analysis

        Littering the landscape with exceptional availability are a couple of brews that resemble the cra heritage but are not cra beers as de#ned by the Brewer’s Association. ey are consumed as such due to the terms that surround them, like ‘Belgian,’ and the ambiguity of their origins.

Brands like Blue Moon and Shock Top bene#t from the distribution of their parent companies MillerCoors and Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev), respectively. Are these beers cra brews? is debate seems to be up for discussion in beer communities around the U.S. Other ‘cra brews’ of AB Inbev are Land Shark and Rolling Rock with Leinenkugel’s falling under the MillerCoors umbrella. ere are technical aspects of what de#nes a beer as “cra.” But these de#nitions are useless when the market views such brands as such, and what does a customer do with information about these brands when they do #nd out the ‘cra’ beer they’ve been drinking isn’t cra? ese brands may be allowing easy entry into the cra beer market, which may actually help real cra brewers. eir constant availability leads to a constant top of mind in this particular beer category. erefore, they are a relevant component to Shiner’s competition.

As of 2010, Spoetzel was the 4th largest cra brewing company and the 10th largest brewing company by sales volume in the country (Brewers Association, 2011). Spoetzel is led by Boston Beer Co., and Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. in the cra beer market.

Spoetzel holds a 4.49% share of the market and produces 409,000 barrels annually. It is available in 41 states, and its %agship beer is the Bock. Boston Beer (Sam Adams) is available in all 50 states including 20 other countries. It holds a 20.2% share, produces 1.8 million barrels annually, and its %agship brew is a Lager. Sierra Nevada Brewing Company produces around 786,000 barrels per year. It holds a 7.94% share, and a Pale Ale is this brewer’s forerunner. Breweries with top sales within this tri-state area include:

• Matt Brewing Company: the 6th largest cra brewing company, located in Utica, NY, over 120 years old

• Blue Point Brewing Company: in Patchogue, NY, the 50th largest cra brewing company

• Brooklyn Brewery: located in Brooklyn, NY, the 19th largest cra brewery • Flying Fish Brewing Company: located in Cherry Hill, NJ, largest cra brewery in

New Jersey, produces 12,000 barrels annually• omas Hooker Brewing Company: located in Bloom#eld, CT, largest cra

brewery in ConnecticutOther cra brews surrounding this area are plentiful; eleven of the top 50 breweries are located in the New England area.

Target Audience

We found that customers who attend college begin experimenting with cra brewed beers aer graduation. With college graduation and the entrance into the professional world comes the

pressure to have more mature tastes and preferences. A socially visible product like beer conveys these matured, grown-up tastes which our target wants to convey to its peers.

We de#ne our target as 22-28 year olds with college degrees who live in the tri-state area of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. ese customers are seeking a “better beer” to represent their new position in life and see cra beers as a way to convey their newfound maturity and achievement.

rough in-depth interviews we discovered that some cra beer lovers tend to start out by drinking Shiner and then move on to higher quality beers. e focus of our campaign is to attract not only the “temporary customers” along the stepping stone process but to maintain those that enter the cra beer market through Shiner.

Insights• Cra beer drinkers entered the market thanks to a mentor type #gure• When becoming a cra beer drinker, you progress through several beers and evolve your

taste• Beer drinkers like to talk about other beers they’ve had, almost trying to one up each

other in their knowledge and the past beers they’ve drank• People are more likely to try new beers if they learn more about them

Strategy: Discover the Bock       

We want Shiner to be THE Bock. We hope to achieve this goal through educating our target customer about Shiner and bocks in general. Our research showed us that no one really knows what a bock actually is and that our customer is more likely to try new beers if he learns about it #rst. Learning about bocks through Shiner will make a strong connection in a market that is looking for the information. Borrowing a bit from here and there, we brewed up our own de#nition of what a bock is and came up with: A dark, traditionally German beer characterized by malts, or a residual sweetness, with enough hoppy bitterness to even out but not dramatically affect the malt %avor of the beer.

rough several tactics, our target customer will Discover the Bock and even begin to associate Shiner as being synonymous with bock like Kleenex is synonymous with tissue. e Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) shows us that central processing, which uses facts and information to persuade, leads to stronger and more long-term attitudes than peripheral processing. ese attitudes are also more likely to stand the test of time and oppose con%icting messages. We will also take the idea of discovery and engage and pique the interest of our potential customer by playing our own version of Hide and Seek with them, which will be discussed in more detail below. TacticsGuerrilla Effort: Hide and Seek        In order to further the presence of Shiner and to keep with the theme of discovery, “hidden” Shiner logos and images in everyday places will be placed to keep the brand top of mind. Some examples of this are columns in the subway that will be made to look like a Shiner beer bottle and manhole covers that will be made to look like Shiner bottle caps. Each “hidden object” will also feature a URL for the Discover the Bock website. ese guerilla-style ads will be placed in close proximity to Discover the Bock billboards for repetition and recall purposes.

One great thing about this tactic is that it’s engaging without being obtrusive. It will leave the viewer wondering about what they saw and motivate them to visit the website to #nd out

more. Some examples of this tactic can be found in Appendix I.

Billboards        Billboards will be utilized in the tri-state area. ese billboards will be strategically placed in close proximity to our “hidden Shiner objects” to further iterate the brand and point viewers to the Discover the Bock website in case they miss the URL on the objects. e billboards will feature the website URL in big letters that look like they’re written in barley and will also have the Shiner Logo. e bag of barley sitting next to the giant URL is three dimensional and over%owing with barley to attract more attention. You can view an example of the billboard in Appendix II.

Shiner Roadmen        Corona and Miller, among others, employ beer girls to go from bar to bar and promote their beer, mostly through sex appeal. We plan on having our own version of the beer girls, but they won’t be girls at all. We will instead employ Shiner Roadmen. ese Roadmen will be a group of men that are knowledgeable about beer and will use knowledge instead of sex appeal to promote Shiner Bock.

e reason we decided to call these men Roadmen is because in Shiner’s heyday the guys who promoted it were called Roadmen. To quote Shine On: 100 Years of Shiner Beer, “Road men loaded up their cars with matches, ashtrays, coasters, lighted signs, tap handles and whatever other kind of gee-gaw they could #nd and each day hit all the bars in their territory. As part of their duties, they were expected to sit down for a while and have a beer or two with the bar proprietor, maybe offer up a round for the customers, and then it was on to the next place down the road.”

Our Roadmen will act as mentor-type #gures to young beer drinkers. According to our research, most beer drinkers made the switch from macro beers to micro and cra beers through the guidance of a mentor-like #gure who fostered their interest in this subject through back and forth, engaging conversation. ese men will be wearing uniforms similar to those of Shiner brewery workers. ey will travel to selected bars in the tri-state area and encourage drinkers to try Shiner Bock.

Since many beer drinkers within our target enjoying talking about the beers and %avors they like, this allows the opportunity for the Shiner Roadmen to discuss beers with bar patrons and help guide them toward Shiner. It is a low effort decision to choose a beer to drink, especially when only committing to one beer at the bar, so the Roadmen’s presence could greatly in%uence a lot of #rst time purchases.

Texting Because of the target market’s responsiveness to modern technologies, we felt it necessary to include a tactic that could reach our on-the-go customer in a modern way. e obvious selection for such a technique would be an app for a phone, however many are hesitant to download apps they won’t use much because it will take up space on their phone. In order to reach smart phone and non-smart phone users alike, a texting option would be set up for interaction with the Shiner Roadmen. A customer could text a special number to ask the Roadmen any Shiner or Bock related questions such as which bars in their area have Shiner or what are the characteristics of a bock.

Beer Festivals        Another way we plan on introducing Shiner Bock to the tri-state area is by entering it into beer festivals in the area. A list of some of the potential festivals is located in Appendix III. is is a good opportunity to further educate the customer about Bocks and Shiner in particular. It will

also help associate Shiner as a cra brew since it will be among other cra and micro brews. Providing Shiner Bock in a beer festival environment is a great way to attract attention and garner interest from our target beer drinkers.

Another attention-getter during the festival will be a live ram that we call Kosmos. He will be near the Shiner stand or booth at all the outdoor festivals that Shiner participates in. e Shiner Roadmen will also be present at the festivals to once again act as mentor-type #gures and start conversations with visitors about beers and beer experiences.

Coasters        A simple way to educate beer drinkers in bars and raise awareness of the Shiner brand is to provide coasters to bars. Each coaster will feature a different fact about bock beers. e coasters will also include the Shiner color scheme and logo in order to further the idea that Shiner is synonymous with bock beer.

ere are several reasons why coasters #t well with our campaign. First of all, little-known, fun, quirky beers facts are a good way to interest and educate our target customer. Furthermore, these coasters can be taken home as memorabilia and serve as a constant reminder of Shiner, keeping the brand top of mind. Finally, coasters are easy on the budget. A mock-up of the coasters and some Bock Facts can be found in Appendix IV.

Glassware        Bars are stocked with pint glasses featuring a variety of beer brands. It’s a good way to get a brewery’s name out there. Furthermore, many bar patrons, especially those like our target bar patron, enjoy collecting and keeping these glasses. Many bars even have specials where when you buy the beer you get to keep the glass.

We’d like to get Shiner in on the pint glass action by stocking bars in the area with Shiner Bock pint glasses. However, we will differentiate our glasses by not only having the Shiner brand logo printed on the side, but also by adding a Discover the Bock logo printed at the bottom of the glass. When a drinker is #nished with his beer, he will notice this signage at the bottom of his glass. It will simply say, “Discover the Bock” and have the website address printed on it as well. An example of the glass can be found in Appendix V.

Social Media We will have a Twitter handle for the Shiner Roadmen. e Roadmen can tweet about things like which bars they will be visiting on a particular evening, fun facts about bocks and Shiner, or even some fun facts about themselves to connect even better with their followers. ere will also be a Discover the Bock Facebook page which will talk about different aspects of the campaign and also feature facts about bocks and Shiner.

Website        A website for Discover the Bock will be set up. is is the site that the other tactics like the billboards and coasters will direct people to. It will have information about Shiner, bock beers in general, and other aspects of the campaign, such as the locations of all the “hidden objects”. It will bring the campaign together into one place and complete the discovery of the bock. It will also include links to the Shiner homepage and Shiner’s social media pages.

Finally, there will be a page devoted to letting site visitors know how to help others discover the bock. Suggestions would include requesting Shiner Bock in their local bars, following e Shiner Roadmen on Twitter, and Liking the Discover the Bock page on Facebook. In Appendix VI, you can #nd some suggestions of what the site could look like.

Measurement and Evaluation       

For measurement purposes, the website will be invaluable. Hits and unique visitors will be noted in an effort to decipher the effectiveness of the campaign as a whole. Each tactic that has a URL to go with it will feature a slightly different URL that will all lead to the same Discover the Bock website, but will allow us to know which visitors came from which tactic. Also, the site will have an “I’ve seen this one!” option, allowing site visitors to tell us the particular billboard or “hidden” Shiner object they’ve spotted. is will tell us which of the tactics were most effective and will provide insight into whether or not people are seeing them and taking note of them.

e texting tactic will help us measure the effectiveness of the Shiner Roadmen by determining how many people are asking questions as well as what types of questions they are asking. Based on the area codes from the incoming texts, we can also know what geographical area the person sending the text is from. We can also note how many people are following the Roadmen on Twitter or re-tweeting or replying to any of the Roadmen’s tweets. e Shiner Roadmen will also be keeping track of the number of people they interact with at bars and beer festivals. Additionally, for those bars that already offer Shiner, the increase in Shiner sales at these bars aer the Roadmen have visited them will give us a good idea of the effectiveness of the Roadmen in in%uencing Shiner sales.

We can also track the number of fans on the Discover the Bock Facebook page and also the number of likes this page has. Furthermore, since the Discover the Bock page will solely be linked to this campaign, it can act as a testament to increasing desires for Shiner in the tri-state area.

Conclusion

rough the aforementioned tactics, we aim to not only increase awareness of Shiner Bock in a new market, but also increase the target market’s desire to drink this beer, which in turn will provide a demand that bar owners will #nd in their best interest to meet.

Because of our extensive research, signi#cant insights, and relevant strategy and tactics, we are con#dent that this campaign will reach audiences in the tri-state area of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut in an engaging and effective way that will connect the Shiner brand to the customer.

References

Bockfest. (n.d.) What is a Bock? Retrieved from http://www.bockfest.otrbrewerydistrict.org/What_Is_Bock_Beer.htm

Brewers Association (2011). Cra Brewer De#ned. Retrieved from http://www.brewersassociation.org/pages/business-tools/cra-brewing-statistics/cra-brewer-de#ned

Brooks, J. R. (2010). e Top 50 Cra Breweries. Retrieved from http://www.ibabuzz.com/bottomsup/2010/04/17/the-top-50-cra-breweries/

Cold Hard Football Facts. (2006). Wake up the taste buds, it’s Bock O’Clock. Retrieved from http://www.coldhardfootballfacts.com/Articles/26_671_Wake_up_the_taste_buds,_it's_Bock_O'Clock.html

Datamonitor. (2011). Cra Beers in the US & UK Case Study: How Mainstream Brewers Can Bene#t From the Trend Towards Cra Beers. Retrieved from Business Source Complete, EBSCO

Hubpages. (n.d.) Everything You Wanted To Know About Beer. Retrieved from http://leslieposton.hubpages.com/hub/beertriv

Mintel. (2010). Beer: e Market - US - December 2010. Retrieved from Mintel Reports database

Mintel. (2009). Domestic Beer - US - November 2009. Retrieved from Mintel Reports database

Mintel. (2011). On-premise Alcohol Consumption Trends - US - April 2011. Retrieved from Mintel database

MKT. (2010, March 19). Live in NJ, looking for "Shiner" Beer [Msg. 9] Message posted to http://smith-wessonforum.com/lounge/130024-live-nj-looking-shiner-beer.html

e Oatmeal. (n.d.) Twenty ings Worth Knowing About Beer. Retrieved from http://theoatmeal.com/comics/beer

Renfro, M. (2008). Shine On: 100 Years of Shiner Beer. Houston, TX: Bright Sky Press

Shake. (2008). Shiner Bock beer in NJ or NYC? [Msg 1]. Message posted to http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20081007080949AABMKkG

Appendix I

Hidden Object in Subway

Hidden Object as Manhole Cover

Appendix II

Billboard

Appendix III

Beer FestivalsSyracuse Beer WeekNovember 5-12Many breweries are there offering sampleshttp://greatbrewers.com/festival/syracuse-beer-week

Holiday Valley Beer and Wine FestivalNovember 11-12Over 30 cra breweries from the US are participatinghttp://www.holidayvalley.com/HolidayValley/info/beer-wine-festival.aspx

International Great Beer ExpoUniondale, NYNovember 12Beer samples, beer seminarsSponsored by Dra Magazine and Beer Connoisseur Magazinehttp://www.greatbeerexpo.com/nassau/

7th Annual Not So Snooty Beer, Wine, and Cheese TastingWindsor Locks, CTNovember 18http://ctbeertrail.net/events/7th-annual-not-so-snooty-beer

Brewfest on the BeachNew London, CTOctober 14http://www.newlondonrotary.org/Fests.cfm

Brass City Brew FestWaterbury, CTSeptember 10http://www.brasscitybrewfest.com/

Cra Beer and Chili ChallengeEast Hartford, CTAugust 21http://www.cpbn.org/#les/beerandchili/beerchili.html

New Jersey Beer and Food FestivalSussex County, NJJuly 15-16http://www.crystalgolfresort.com/DiningWine/NJBeerFoodFestival.aspx

Empire BrewfestSyracuse, NYJuly 15Top 10 Beer Festival - USA Todayhttp://www.empirebrewfest.com/

Brewtopia FestNYCOct 1-2brewtopiafest.com

North Fork Cra Beer FestivalLong Island, NYAugust 13Beer seminars, tastings, meet and greets with brewershttp://www.northforkcrabeerfestival.com/index.html

Appendix IV

Coasters

Bock Facts-Back in medieval days, German monasteries would brew bock for sustenance during their Lenten fasts.

-In 1516, Duke Wilhelm IV of Bavaria enacted a law limiting the ingredients of beer to barley, hops, and water.

-Monks that brewed beer were allowed to drink #ve quarts of it a day.

-To keep your beer glass from sticking to the bar napkin, sprinkle some salt on the napkin before setting the glass down.

-Beer is a source of B-complex vitamins and #ber.

-e ancient Babylonians were the #rst to brew beer and if you brewed a bad batch, your punishment was to be drowned in it.

-Many people in the Middle Ages drank beer instead of water because the alcohol made it safer to drink than unclean water.

-Vikings believed that a giant goat bearing udders with an endless supply of beer was waiting for them in heaven.

-Cenosillicaphobia is the fear of an empty glass.

-When the yeast used to make beer ferments at higher temperatures and stays at the surface, it produces a bock.

-Some people believe that bocks are dark in color because they are the beer from the bottom of the barrel.

-e goat or ram is the common symbol for bocks.

-Germans drink bocks in May in celebration of May Day.

Appendix V

Side View of Shiner Glass

Inner View of Shiner Glass

Appendix VI

Website Mock-up

Website Mock-up

Website Mock-up

Website Mock-up