Carlsberg Export has taken the fight to arch rival Stella Artois with an ad campaign that claims the Danish brand is preferred by beer drinkers.
The ‘Trust Your Tastebuds’ push will centre on billboards carrying the messages ‘7/10 prefer Export to Stella – 3/10 can still change their mind’ and ‘7/10 think Export is more Stellar than Stella’.
The figures are taken from a taste test carried out among 109 consumers in April 2013, in which 69% of those who expressed a preference rated Carlsberg Export above Stella. The participants were all male, aged 18 to 40, and regular drinkers of bottled lager.
The outdoor advertising, part of £14m push for the Carlsberg brand portfolio this year, will be split between two bursts, with the first launching this week and the second in June. The billboards will be supported with social activity on Twitter and Instagram.
Carlsberg is also rolling out refreshed packaging for Export, with the signature of founder JC Jacobsen and the brand’s golden hop leaf given greater prominence.
“While Export has always been a key pillar of our Carlsberg family of brands - alongside our core Carlsberg lager, and specialist Jacobsen range - this research offers an opportunity to celebrate Export, throwing a spotlight on its fantastic taste,” said Carlsberg UK director of brand and insight, David Scott.
“The taste test graphically illustrates how well Carlsberg Export performs against its nearest competitor brand, and in a category that can sometimes see ‘default purchasing’, we wanted to seize this opportunity to remind drinkers this premium pilsner is a great-tasting product.”
Sales of Carlsberg Export fell 10.9% last year to £87.5m [Nielsen 52 w/e 11 October 2014]. It is the fifth largest premium strength lager, after Stella (£454.9m), Budweiser (£297.5m), Kronenbourg (£115m) and Peroni Nastro Azzurro (£97.4m).
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