Coors Light builds a 'Beerman' who's ready to chill during the holidays

Dive Brief:

Coors Light, which is marketed by Molson Coors Beverage, this week debuted a multichannel campaign featuring the "Beerman," an imperfect snowman built to keep cans of beer cold and who's ready to let loose during the holidays, per an announcement. In a 90-second spot, the Beerman comes to life to perform "More Than a Feeling" by the rock band Boston in a jam session with a yeti who shreds on electric guitar.
As part of the "Build Your #Beerman" campaign, Coors Light next week will roll out a social media challenge featuring actor Adam Devine that asks consumers to submit a picture of a homemade version of the Beerman. The winner will have their front yard transformed into a "winter wonderland" with real snow and a light display, per the content rules.
The campaign, which looks to capture the mood around an unusual holiday season, was developed with DDB, with ads appearing on broadcast, digital and paid social. Coors Light is also releasing a custom Beerman can design later this month in New York City via MiniBar and several retailers.

Dive Insight:

Coors Light's offbeat campaign featuring the "Beerman," a disheveled snowman with crooked eyes and ambivalent smile, aims to capture the public mood after a tumultuous year marked by a pandemic, recession and social unrest. Adults are ready to enjoy the holidays and relax a little, and the Beerman reflects that sentiment, per the brand. Describing the character as the "holiday hero we need in 2020," Coors Light said the Beerman is built for "function over form, and his superpower lies in the ability to refresh us with ice cold Coors Light."

The beer brand also seeks to engage consumers with its social media challenge that offers a chance to win a "winter wonderland" landscape — an at-home experiential activation that allows the brand to connect with consumers during a socially distanced holiday season. As people post photos of their own versions of the Beerman to enter the contest, Coors Light's campaign can grow organically among people who use social media stay connected with friends, family and followers during the pandemic. With the surge in social media usage this year, hashtag challenges have become more common, as seen with recent efforts by Chipotle Mexican Grill, Diageo, Michelob Ultra, Stella Artois and Tums.

Amid the disruptions of the pandemic, Molson Coors developed a marketing strategy focused on five tenets: committing to action, doing something, finding trusted partners, moving forward and doubling down on creativity. The off-beat "Beerman" campaign for the holidays reflects that approach. Coors Light's other efforts this year have included a contest that gave fans a chance to win a vacation to the travel destinations they had used as video chat backgrounds during the pandemic, and its #CouldUseABeer effort that gave away as much as $1 million in beer to help lift morale of Americans in lockdown. The company launched a virtual tip jar campaign from Miller Lite that supported bartenders who were out of work.

Coors Light has been a bright spot for parent company Molson Coors Beverage, whose sales fell 3.1% to $2.75 billion in Q3 from a year earlier with many restaurants and bars either closed or operating limited capacity. The sales decline marked an improvement from the 15% drop a quarter earlier, when pandemic lockdowns were most widespread. Coors Light's off-premise sales grew 6% in Q3, while Miller Lite saw a 9.5% improvement, according to the company.