If Bud Light were playing in an NFL game, it would be fourth and long for the flailing brand, with no timeouts left and under two minutes left on the clock. In other words, it’s probably too little, too late. Since the Dylan Mulvaney fiasco, sales have fallen like a rock, and Modelo has dethroned the former number-one beer. The once bulletproof brand may never recover.
Rather than just apologize for Mulvaney and for disrespecting their core customer base by calling them “fratty and out of touch,” Bud Light has continued sponsoring drag shows, Pride parades, and other activities that helped start their precipitous slide.
The brand has also rolled out a series of new, America-themed commercials, attempting to rescue the image of the light beer. The ads have mostly fallen on deaf ears and have been derided online as the boycott has only picked up steam.
Again, the brand could simply apologize for offending their customers, but apparently, swallowing their pride is as difficult as swallowing a warm mouthful of their product. Now AB InBev is trying to throw a literal Hail Mary by rolling out several NFL stars for a Summer promotion aimed at making the product cool again. Good luck with that.
Bud Light launched a new ad campaign with the hopes of regaining lost ground, and said it has new ads planned with country singers and NFL players.https://t.co/oz8d8koAHa pic.twitter.com/nxl0xtQWUT
— Local 12/WKRC-TV (@Local12) June 24, 2023
Todd Allen, Vice President of Marketing for Bud Light, unveiled his Summer plan: “Bud Light established our ‘Easy to Drink, Easy to Enjoy’ platform at the Super Bowl and we are continuing to build on that message as we unveil our new ‘Easy to Summer’ commercial to officially kick off summer. We can’t wait to get out on the road and give fans the experience to enjoy their favorite artists through the first-ever Bud Light Backyard Tour. Bud Light is ready for an epic summer, and we are looking forward to delivering easy enjoyment to our 21+ fans for all the best summer moments in the backyard.”
Fewer backyards than ever will be cooling off with Bud Light this Summer. In fact, considering that Bud Light’s sales have dipped 28.5% since this time last year, it isn’t just backyards. Bars aren’t selling it, and grocery stores and gas stations are almost giving it away. It simply is uncool to drink Bud Light at any price point.
Will an ad campaign help? It hasn’t so far, as the brand continues to take on water. While there have been rumblings that the brand may be resurrecting some of its most iconic characters, the “Bud Knight” is suddenly active again on Twitter, nothing short of Spuds MacKenzie on a longboard or Old Milwaukee’s “Swedish Bikini Team” may help.
Yeah, I’m thinking I’m back pic.twitter.com/7BsxfCuwUp
— Bud Knight (@TheBudKnight) June 26, 2023
However, the beer still plans to trot out several NFL stars and do lavish giveaways for anyone willing to be a Bud Light customer. Travis Kelce, George Kittle, and Dak Prescott are the three featured NFL stars that will be appearing on social media spots and television commercials to hawk the second-place beer.
One can hardly blame the three players, as a paycheck is a paycheck, but it will be interesting to see the backlash, if any, these players suffer in terms of jersey sales and popularity.
Perhaps at some point, Bud Light will simply say ‘Our bad’ and admit that partnering with Dylan Mulvaney was a slap in the face to their loyal customers. Or maybe they won’t. Either way, three NFL stars aren’t going to make a difference in sales as the boycott picks up steam deeper into the Summer.
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