Dive Brief:
- In anticipation of the upcoming NFL season, Bud Light is re-launching team-themed packaging for 28 NFL teams, according to Food Bev Media. This is the first year Bud Light is rolling out NFL packaging on aluminum bottles, in addition to cans.
- Each can or bottle will have a team logo, as well as a catch phrase or rallying cry. In addition, they will feature Snapcodes that consumers can use to try to win tickets to the Super Bowl when posting to Snapchat.
- Tostitos, owned by PepsiCo’s FritoLay division, is introducing NFL branded bags for 19 NFL teams, according to AdWeek. Each bag of tortilla chips is marketed to come with ‘a little bit of good luck,’ and will include information about a different team ritual or tradition.
Dive Insight:
Customization is a growing trend with food and beverage manufacturers looking to find new ways to entice consumers and differentiate themselves from the hoards of other products in the marketplace.
Bud Light launched its first NFL-themed can tie-in in 2015, and is now expanding the campaign by adding aluminum bottles to the mix. Alexander Lambrecht, a vice president with Bud Light, told AdWeek last year that the 2015 effort was met with "a tremendous amount of engagement" from consumers, who noted that the decision to bring back the cans was a "no-brainer." Described as a ‘jersey you can drink out of,’ consumers were drawn to their team’s branding, so it makes sense that Bud Light would bring back the NFL themed cans and introduce bottles.
Both the Bud Light and Tostitos products will be available nationwide, but the beer cans and bottles will be focused on the home cities of the 28 teams. While it’s logical that the majority of a team’s fans would live nearby, it’s disappointing news for the countless consumers who live in other parts of the country. As most sports fans can tell you, loyalties don’t always coincide with geography.
Personalization is a growing trend among food and beverage manufacturers, and can be effective when used strategically as a way to boost sales. Millennials are particularly interested in seeking out personalization. This consumer is often motivated to purchase an item if they can digitally or physically share the image or product with their family, friends or social media followers.
Coca-Cola has had tremendous success with their "Share a Coke" promotion. The soda maker saw more than 19% growth for sales of its 20-ounce bottles in 2014 when they added the 1,000 most popular names to their bottles.Nutella used algoritims to create a limited-edition of collectible jars in a variety of eye-catching colors, shapes and patterns, including zig-zags, polka dots and splotches. The 7 million different packagedesigns sold out within a month.
With products aggressively competing to standout, expect more brands to embrace the local crowd with specialized pacakging. For Bud Light and other beers, who saw volumes drop 1.8% around the world in 2016 — these NFL-themed packages are an opportunity they desperately need to take advantage of.