Stupid Beer Commercials
August 13th, 2009 by Bob Bly
Coors and a few other beers are boasting about how they sell “ice cold” beer.
But as comic Kyle Cease observes: “Isn’t how cold it is really up to ME?”
How cold the beer is has nothing to do with the brewer or the brand.
It is determined with Coors, as with every other beer on the planet, by whether and how long the customer puts the beer in the fridge, freezer, or on ice.
So why even talk about it as a selling point in the ads?
Coors Light promotes temperature as a selling point right on the can.
The can is illustrated with a drawing of a mountain. When the beer reaches “optimal drinking temperature” of 39 degrees F or lower, the peak turns blue indicating it is guzzling time.
But even then Coors has the whole temperature thing wrong.
According to an article in Wired (7/09, p. 24): “Beer loses its flavor at that temperature [because] it releases few volatile chemicals,” and your tongue’s ability to taste the beer is diminished.
“Luckily, with Coors that makes little difference,” the article concludes.
I agree with Cease. Coors promoting their beer as the coldest makes as much sense as Campbell’s saying its soups are the best because they are “piping hot.”
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August 14th, 2009 at 1:28 am
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August 14th, 2009 at 8:31 am
Coors is betting that consumers won’t be aware of Wired Magazine’s “scientific” explanation of our ability to taste beer. The company is betting on the commonplace association of “cold” with beer, and also hoping against hope that when a consumer thinks of cold beer, he’ll automatically think of Coors.
August 14th, 2009 at 11:45 am
Lou: Yes, but COLD is not a USP because there is no differentiation. ANY beer can be as cold as any other beer. Rosser Reeves, creator of the USP, said the USP must be something the competition either does not have or does not stress. Every other competitor can offer cold beer, and MANY use the phrase “ice-cold beer” in their advertising.
The color-changing can is a gimmick, and it does reinforce the association you describe.
August 15th, 2009 at 8:53 am
Bob: I guess what this leaves us with is that traditional advertisers lack the quantifying methods with which direct marketers are blessed.
When you think about it “Mad Men” is a good title for the hit cable TV series. Lacking definitive metrics, these guys ultimately had to rely on subjective judgment, which, at its worst, was “madness.”
August 16th, 2009 at 2:12 pm
Actually, having drunk my fair share of beers, I believe Coors does understand what happens to the taste of really cold beer and are trying to level the playing field of taste by promoting that all beer should only be consumed very cold, thus making their watered-down swill palatable.
August 16th, 2009 at 2:48 pm
Phil: there are several major brands that are watery, the two best-known of which are Coors and Bud. I believe in Bud’s case it is because they mix rice into the hops and barley, which causes a water taste. I don’t know why Coors is so watered-down. I prefer micro-brews and dark beers, and my current preference is Taddy Porter.
August 17th, 2009 at 5:01 pm
The key factor here should be the bottom line. If Coors is gaining increased revenue from their latest “stupid” ad campaign, then so be it. If not, then scrap the stupid creative for something effective.
August 17th, 2009 at 8:05 pm
Any beer can be made cold; therefore, any beer can assume the “greatness” of Coors. So, as an advertising ploy, the cold factor is ballyhoo.
August 18th, 2009 at 12:05 pm
I agree cold-ness isn’t a USP. I don’t even drink real beer anymore, but I can make my Beck’s N/A as cold as I want. The fact is it tastes best a few minutes out of the cold and on the table. Then all the flavors come out. Coors is just using a techy gimmick to appeal to ignorant beer guzzlers (not drinkers) and spike a “flat” market share.
September 5th, 2009 at 10:42 am
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