Anheuser-Busch during the Super Bowl "will once again seek to shine a spotlight on its flagship brands Bud Light and Budweiser and attract millennials the brewer believes are critical to selling more beer," according to Lisa Brown of the ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH. In one 60-second ad called "Lost Dog," the brewer "will once again tug on viewers' heartstrings by pairing Budweiser Clydesdales and a puppy." Budweiser VP Brian Perkins said that the spot "will tell an emotional story of a puppy who has lost his way." He added that another 60-second Budweiser spot "features the beer's beechwood aging process and the pride its brewers take in 'brewing it the hard way.'" While details about the ad are scarce, Perkins said that it is "unlike any ad A-B has done before." Anomaly, N.Y., "created both of Budweiser's new Super Bowl ads." Meanwhile, there also will be a "throwback to the 1980s -- a Bud Light ad with a life-size, interactive Pac Man arcade game." Brown reports A-B "is buying 3½ minutes of air time" for the Feb. 1 game, "running three 60-second ads" and either expanding one ad to 90 seconds or airing another Budweiser or Bud Light spot. A-B VP/U.S. Marketing Jorn Socquet said that the brewer is "focusing its Super Bowl marketing on attracting millennials aged 21 to 27 by taking a digital first approach." Brown notes A-B "plans to release sneak peeks of some of its Super Bowl ads online in the days leading up to the game" and for the first time will have "teams of copywriters, marketing and other staff at four social media command rooms." A-B estimates 44% of millennials "haven't yet tried Budweiser, and it sees the Super Bowl as an opportunity to reach this demographic amid declining sales" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 1/7).
IS BUD WISER AVOIDING CELEBS? AD AGE's E.J. Schultz notes Bud Light in its 60-second ad via BBDO will "tout the brand's new packaging that will eventually feature more than 100 different messages scrolled on bottles that is part of the ongoing 'Perfect Beer For Whatever Happens' campaign." The effort "debuted during a celebrity-packed" Super Bowl ad last year, but the star of this year's spot "will be a regular drinker who orders a beer labeled 'the perfect beer for stepping outside for some old-school fun.'" The drinker "will then confront a giant coin that will be inserted into a wall to unlock the Pac Man game" (ADAGE.com, 1/7). ADWEEK's Andrew McMains notes the ad "will be supported by a House of Whatever event that the brewer will set up for three days in Phoenix, the host of this year's game." Musician Steve Aoki "will serve as DJ at the house" (ADWEEK.com, 1/7). Meanwhile, USA TODAY's Bruce Horovitz reports there "won't be any" celebrities in A-B's ads, a tactic the brewer typically has used "in at least one of its Super Bowl spots." Socquet: "Celebrities do not elevate the stories we have to tell" (USA TODAY, 1/7).
