4 Bud Spots Target Urbanites

Seeking to tap the urban market and those influenced by it, Anheuser-Busch has hired a Los Angeles video production company for a series of spots promoting Budweiser as a product of “hip hops.”
It is the first work for A-B from C Front in Los Angeles, which creates, among other things, music videos, said Danny Scott, ethnic marketing manager at the St. Louis brewery. The first spot broke Feb. 8.
“The brand wants to be cognizant of all its consumers,” Scott said. “This is a bit different for us. The urban market and [its] influence [are] growing.”
The first spot, shot in grainy black and white, shows a couple entering a club. Backed by a jazz score, a series of shots features clubgoers dancing, laughing and drinking Bud. A voiceover echoes the tagline, “Made from hip hops,” as the couple leaves the club beneath a neon Budweiser logo, the only element in the spot to appear in color.
“We feel like these spots will appeal to all urbanites, blacks, Asian Americans, Hispanics, whites,” Scott said.
Three companion spots will follow, Scott said. Media buys will be skewed toward African American oriented programming such as the syndicated TV talk show Vibe.
This work is also part of the shift away from animated characters in commercials for Bud, Scott said. An upcoming campaign for the brand from DDB Needham Chicago, stars humans, not frogs or lizards. DDB and Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, San Francisco, remain A-B’s primary agencies.
Traditionally, brewers have concentrated their ethnic marketing efforts on malt liquor brands. The perception of African Americans as urban opinion leaders, however, has led to flagship brand spots like those featuring the music of Al Green and black barroom dancers from Wieden & Kennedy for Miller Genuine Draft. Those spots are similar in tone to C Front’s Bud work.