2025 Winner
BronzeBest Use of Influencers
Labatt (Bud Light)
"Buckle Up Tour"
Starcom / Anomaly
"Buckle Up Tour"
Starcom / Anomaly
Over the past two years, Bud Light saw a decline in both favourability and purchase intent among its core demo: men above the age of 35 living in small towns. A controversy south of the border involving the brand ignited an internet firestorm, and a brand boycott fueled hesitation both in the US and Canada to be seen drinking Bud Light.
In order to restore the love for Bud Light, they spotted an opportunity to get back to what Bud Light does best — being the champion for the passion points their target cares about most. Chief among them, country music.
A genre, as they learned, was blowing up globally and, as a result, was pulling live performances and artists away from small-town fans who live hours and days away from big cities and stages.
The “Buckle Up Tour”: A big small town tour featuring 12 country bars, 12 epic shows, and one rising country star, Owen Riegling.
“Buckle Up Tour” brought country music back to small towns and their bars. A place where many country music artists — like rising star Owen — found their stride, and where thousands of passionate fans rarely get to see their favorite acts live.
The brand launched its tour by giving small towns the spotlight and the mic. Within days of Owen releasing Bud Light “The Way” as a feature on his upcoming EP, Bud Light signed him on to headline the 12-stop Buckle Up Tour. A tour that would culminate in his hometown of Mildmay, ON. To drive excitement, we utilized a 3-phased approach.
Phase one was to announce the tour. The agency launched the tour with a national press tour on small-town radio stations and interviews with much-loved small-town publications, like Mildmay Town Crier.
Phase two was to promote the shows. To drive local awareness and excitement for the tour, Bud Light leveraged regional media to drive awareness and excitement. Partnering with superfans identified through social listening, along with targeted social media in surrounding towns, the agency drove excitement everywhere the brand went. Owen’s channel also played a large partin promoting the local stops and connecting with local fans directly.
The final phase, phase three, was to amplify the content by partnering with Much Music and working with Owen directly. Bud Light created a 25-day social content plan that utilized organic and paid channels to tell a story of the tour.
With the country genre surging in popularity, this campaign was the first in its category to identify a rising star, and quickly bring them to an underserved fanbase in small towns — all while meeting the modern country fan where they are with a 24/7, 25-day content plan that let 'em ride shotgun every step of the way.
The “Buckle Up Tour” successfully kicked off Bud Light’s comeback across small-town Canada. The campaign generated 199 million earned impressions, with 42% of media impressions in small towns, reaching 89% of publications in those regions. It resulted in 163 feature stories, with 100% of coverage including Bud Light.
The tour also increased brand pride by 6% in Ontario and the Prairies, brand favorability by 8%, and purchase intent by 10% in the same regions. Ultimately, the initiative grew Bud Light’s national market share by 0.16% compared to last year and helped Owen Riegling garner over two million song streams.
In order to restore the love for Bud Light, they spotted an opportunity to get back to what Bud Light does best — being the champion for the passion points their target cares about most. Chief among them, country music.
A genre, as they learned, was blowing up globally and, as a result, was pulling live performances and artists away from small-town fans who live hours and days away from big cities and stages.
The “Buckle Up Tour”: A big small town tour featuring 12 country bars, 12 epic shows, and one rising country star, Owen Riegling.
“Buckle Up Tour” brought country music back to small towns and their bars. A place where many country music artists — like rising star Owen — found their stride, and where thousands of passionate fans rarely get to see their favorite acts live.
The brand launched its tour by giving small towns the spotlight and the mic. Within days of Owen releasing Bud Light “The Way” as a feature on his upcoming EP, Bud Light signed him on to headline the 12-stop Buckle Up Tour. A tour that would culminate in his hometown of Mildmay, ON. To drive excitement, we utilized a 3-phased approach.
Phase one was to announce the tour. The agency launched the tour with a national press tour on small-town radio stations and interviews with much-loved small-town publications, like Mildmay Town Crier.
Phase two was to promote the shows. To drive local awareness and excitement for the tour, Bud Light leveraged regional media to drive awareness and excitement. Partnering with superfans identified through social listening, along with targeted social media in surrounding towns, the agency drove excitement everywhere the brand went. Owen’s channel also played a large partin promoting the local stops and connecting with local fans directly.
The final phase, phase three, was to amplify the content by partnering with Much Music and working with Owen directly. Bud Light created a 25-day social content plan that utilized organic and paid channels to tell a story of the tour.
With the country genre surging in popularity, this campaign was the first in its category to identify a rising star, and quickly bring them to an underserved fanbase in small towns — all while meeting the modern country fan where they are with a 24/7, 25-day content plan that let 'em ride shotgun every step of the way.
The “Buckle Up Tour” successfully kicked off Bud Light’s comeback across small-town Canada. The campaign generated 199 million earned impressions, with 42% of media impressions in small towns, reaching 89% of publications in those regions. It resulted in 163 feature stories, with 100% of coverage including Bud Light.
The tour also increased brand pride by 6% in Ontario and the Prairies, brand favorability by 8%, and purchase intent by 10% in the same regions. Ultimately, the initiative grew Bud Light’s national market share by 0.16% compared to last year and helped Owen Riegling garner over two million song streams.
Credits
LABATT BREWERIES OF CANADAVP, Marketing: Andrew Oosterhuis
Senior Marketing Manager: Janet Hong
ANOMALY
Executive Creative Director / Partner: Dave Douglass
Creative Director: Vinay Parmar
Associate Creative Director: Sasha Barkans
Associate Creative Director: Cristina Piñeros
Senior Copywriter: Darren Marranca
Senior Art Director: Becky May
Jr. Art Director: Chris Stapleton
Jr. Writer: Liam Haggarty
Jr. Art Director: Darian Hildebrand
Jr. Writer: Calder Forbes
Jr. Art Director: Kaitlynn Gasparinho
Jr. Writer: Maggie Matian
CEO & Partner: Candace Borland
Managing Director: Matt Holton
Business Director: Joachim Holmgren
Account Director: Dominic Neukom
Head of Brand Strategy: Mahmoud El Kattan
Head of Comms Strategy: Kira Montgomery
Executive Strategy Director: Paul Lipson
Group Social Strategy Director: Matt Stasoff
Head of Production: Marie-Pierre Toure
Agency Producer: Jacklyn Bonsignore
STARCOM
Manager, Media Planning: Tamara Sanchez-Vegas
Assistant, Media Planning: Maude Peterson
Group Account Director, Media Planning: Chris Pallotta
Senior Vice President, Planning: Claus Burmeister
Vice President, Investment: Mark Evans
Manager, Investment: Marta Zwierzynska
Vice President, Director Video Distribution: Catarina Padilha
Group Account Director, Social: Bethany Castle
Director, Social: Gary Gamarra
Manager, Social: Julz Hernandez
Senior Social Specialist: Jessica Dy Mo
Senior Buyer, Investment: Gen Delarosa
Account Manager, Programmatic: Chinmay Mahadeshwar
Associate Director, Programmatic: Louise Stafford
PRODUCTION: UNR
Executive Producer: Annya Williams
Production Company Producer: Patch Ward
Editing Company: Unreasonable Studios
Editor: Oren Michaels
Film Producer: Max Vlassenko
Director & DOP: Christian Flook
Print & Digital Director: Pierre Briones