Kasey Kahne Steps Into Spotlight As Budweiser's Face Of NASCAR

Kahne Has "Flexed Muscle" As Marketing Vehicle For Budweiser

NASCAR driver Kasey Kahne is in his second season endorsing Budweiser, and a "world-famous brand's reputation rides on how convincing he is as its beer-drinking spokesman, following in the footsteps of the sport's dominant personality," Dale Earnhardt Jr., according to a sports-section cover story by Nate Ryan of USA TODAY. Kahne thus far "hasn't become as ubiquitous as the man he replaced," but he "has flexed muscle as a marketing vehicle." A-B VP/Media, Sponsorship & Activation Dan McHugh indicated that 95% of wholesalers use Kahne in "point-of-sale displays." McHugh: "That's a real good indicator of his fit. His popularity and personality fits at meet and greets. Overall, he's a great beer guy." Ryan notes A-B's move from "Earnhardt's once-rebellious look to Kahne's cherubic visage coincides with a shift in strategy " for A-B. Sports Business Group President David Carter suggests that Kahne "might offer a more cost-effective and demographically suited avenue despite the mass appeal of Earnhardt." Carter: "You can't think of Dale Earnhardt Jr. endorsing a beer that requires a lime. InBev might have a product that leans heavily toward women and maybe it's advantageous to plug in Kahne." Earnhardt said, "He's more of a Bud guy than I was at times. That's a side he has yet to let you guys see much." Kahne said that his "association with a more masculine marketing campaign ... has helped convey a sense of a blue-collar background that belies his Hollywood good looks." Kahne said that he "initially felt pressure replacing Earnhardt because 'of how big his name is.'" But Kahne added, "I realized they weren't looking down on me for not having as many fans and saying, 'What's that going to do to our brand?' ... What Bud asks of me, is what I already am" (USA TODAY, 5/13).