Let There Be Beer push fails to impress marketers

A TV ad designed to help drive sales across the beer market has fallen flat with marketers.

The ad, which broke last Saturday, is part of the generic Let There Be Beer campaign funded by five major breweries. It will also feature in-store and online activity.

But some observers feel the push hasn’t got off to a great start with an ad that includes a barbecue and a man getting to know his girlfriend’s dad. One beer supplier suggested it was “preaching to the converted”.

The ad was engaging but didn’t show how beer offered something other alcoholic drinks couldn’t, said Richard Morgan, senior creative lead at Geometry Global UK.

The ad used the “key standbys” of lager advertising - refreshment and social lubrication - and could have been any lager ad screened in the past 10 years, added Robert Metcalfe of Richmond Towers. “Such a campaign should focus on the fact beer tastes delicious,” he said. “Tell consumers there’s a beer they could fall in love with - not because of 60 seconds of tired advertising but because it’s a good product.”

Why would a generic campaign succeed where individual campaigns had failed, added creative consultant Simon Robinson. “If their own advertising sold beer, they wouldn’t need to be pooling their resources,” he said. “It’s not as if people have forgotten beer exists.”

Some observers were more positive, however. Mintel senior drinks analyst Chris Wisson pointed out that the ad played up the refreshment angle - one of the key reasons for the growth in cider.

The organisers of Let There Be Beer said the ad was designed to remind people of times when only a beer would do. “We are happy to agree we are in some ways ‘preaching to the converted’,” said a spokesperson. “Beer’s decline often stems from drinkers drinking less frequently.”