Selling Point

The King of Beer Sponsorships

What company in Hawaii has roots that go back 744 years, to 1262? This company has more than 100 competitors, but still maintains a 45 percent market share in the Islands. It also used to maintain a team of beautiful horses in Hawaii. Give up?

The answer is Anheuser-Busch, founded by Eberhard Anheuser in 1860. Anheuser discovered a centuries-old, refreshing light beer in the town of Budweis, Czechoslovakia and modeled his American-brewed Budweiser after it. Originally, any beer brewed in that city was called Budweiser.

Anheuser-Busch in Hawaii has a unique and very successful approach to marketing. Small businesses can learn from its methods. What is it doing right? First, it’s a master of target marketing. It really understands its consumers.

Many small companies assume their customers are a cross-section of the population, but that’s rarely the case. Simple research can help you understand the make-up of your customer base.

Hawaii marketing manager James Baloaloa says that Anheuser-Busch’s target market is ”contemporary adults who haven’t chosen a favorite beer yet. They’re typically 21 to 27 years old. They’re entry-level drinkers. They’re young, fun, social and enjoy parties. They’re not brand-loyal yet. They like to sample and try new things.”

Baloaloa, who’s 28, says part of his job is to spend time socializing with this group, to learn about its interests and values. ”I go to places that are high-end, trend-setting establishments, concerts and popular taverns.”

”We’ve noticed a shift in the last three to four years among 21- to 27-year-olds, away from being price conscious, and toward being image driven. They tend to see brands as a badge. They want to be different,” says Baloaloa. They prefer Bud Lite.

”Those that are 28 to 35 are more loyal to their favorite brands. They are settling down and making money. They know what they want and can afford it. Whatever you’re drinking at 35, you’ll tend to stay with the rest of your life.” They tend to favor Budweiser.

Anheuser-Busch also sponsors events that contemporary adults attend and ”endear themselves to that sector of the market,” Baloaloa says. ”We sponsor 50 to 100 events a year, such as paddling and surf competitions, music events and various block parties. We sell a fun product. People want us to be part of their celebrations.”

Bud Light sponsors 30 to 50 events a year and Budweiser sponsors 15 to 35. The idea is to increase awareness and exposure of their brands to a specific demographic at the event. The average cost of sponsoring an event in Hawaii is a couple of thousand dollars.

Anheuser-Busch puts up banners that advertise event details and create brand awareness at the key focal points of the event: entrances and exits, the stage, judges’ stands and even bathrooms.

All the banners are customized for each particular event and made in-house. ”I look over the plans with the event manager and come up with a design of where I want to place our signage,” says Balaola.

Anheuser-Busch then produces a huge number of signs: up to 200 3-by-10-foot banners and 2,000 posters. All are made at its Halawa Valley plant.

Some of the banners, in case you were wondering, are about ”drinking responsibly.”

Anheuser-Busch also participates in many charitable community events, such as Muscular Dystrophy’s Annual Soire at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel. ”We introduced our new Harbin beer there, brewed in China. We try to create demand for the product before going mainstream,” he says.

The company will often partner with stores that see its product. Balaola says, ”Sometimes we give them tickets to these events and they can use them for in-store giveaways. It’s win-win. The store gives us displays to advertise the event, which makes the event managers happy. We help them get the word out.

”We let the event organizers piggy-back on our media spending, which gets them a reduced rate.” The organizers will advertise the event and direct people to the stores to enter a sweepstakes for free tickets.

How can your company learn from one of our marketing masters? Understand your target market. Survey them. Talk to them. Hire them. Know the places they like to go and find ways for your company to have a presence there. Actively look to see how you can endear your company to your target market.

Bob Sigall teaches marketing at Hawaii Pacific University and owns a company called Creative-I. Contact him at: Sigall@Yahoo.com.

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