Ad backs responsible drinking

Scene from Sunrise, the first campaign in 2011

Heineken campaign rolls out globally during 2016

Heineken’s latest gambit in its global marketing campaign championing responsible alcohol consumption is placing women at the heart of the narrative. 

Launching this month and being rolled out worldwide during 2016, Moderate Drinkers Wanted is the third chapter in Heineken’s now five-year commitment to making moderate drinking ‘cool’. 

The centrepiece is a new television advertisement, one which makes the case that women prefer the attentions of men in control of themselves, not slobbering or somnambulant drunkards. And – spoiler alert – the ad’s closing scene offers a man standing at a bar refusing the offer of a Heineken, thus impressing the attractive female bartender. 

Gianluca Di Tondo, senior director of Global Heineken Brand, explained the thinking behind the new campaign. 

“Eighty-nine per cent of millennials cite avoiding loss of control as the primary motivation for limiting alcohol consumption on a night-out, clearly reflecting the influence of social media and the importance of image control. 

“Moderation is becoming cool but they need another push – from someone they care about. That is why the focus has now turned to women and the influence they have over our target consumer.”

Of interest is that the roll-out will be initially targeted to women. For example, the commercial is to be seeded to women only on Facebook for the first week following launch. 

The positioning of Heineken as the brand of moderate drinkers dates back to 2011 with Sunrise, a campaign that made the point that consuming less alcohol made for a better, elongated evening. This was followed up in 2014 with Dance More, Drink Less, another unisex appeal to moderation that partnered the brand with DJ Armin van Buuren.

Beyond TV exposure there are also experiential and digital activations. The campaign launched on 13th January and will be rolled out worldwide during 2016.