Anheuser-Busch Tweaks Bud Light Label

[2008-12-23 17:07:01]

Friday, 12 December 2008
Come March, it will be pretty hard -- nay, impossible -- to avoid the idea that Bud Light is "drinkable."



On TV, billboards, stadium signs and Internet banner ads, Anheuser-Busch has been spreading the message that its bestselling beer offers refreshment and balanced taste, summed up in the word "drinkability." But in the spring, Bud Light's new labels -- the first major redesign of its packaging since aluminum bottle in 2005 -- will say the same thing. It is "the next evolution of broadening that (drinkability) messaging and taking it to the shelf," said Keith Levy, Anheuser-Busch's vice president of marketing.



In the labels that wrap around Bud Light bottles and cans, A-B is accentuating a royal shade of blue that, we're told, signals refreshment. The Bud Light logo is about 25 percent larger than it was before. There's also a "splash" on the label.



And in case drinkers didn't quite get the message, the words "superior drinkability" will be plastered on the label as well as the sides of 12-packs. In places such as California, Arizona and Florida, a Spanish translation of the phrase will appear on the beer-carrying boxes.



Locked -- as always -- in bruising competition with Miller Lite and Coors Light, A-B is spending $48 million on fourth-quarter media to promote Bud Light. But even with a big blitz, "it still takes time" to pound the branding message home, Levy said. He said the St. Louis brewer plans to stick with the drinkability campaign for some time.



It seems to be working. Bud Light's sales, measured in cases, are up about 1.5 percent in supermarkets, and the beer has gained a point of market share, Levy said, quoting data from Information Resources Inc.



Despite the success, Levy said A-B marketers are taking a longer-term view, with a mind toward reinforcing Bud Light's "contemporary nature."



Said Levy: "Bud Light is such a successful brand, why change it? Sometimes the best time to fix a leaky roof is when the sun's shining."



Copyright (c) 2008, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Source: beverage world
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