“Find Your Beach”-Beer with a Purpose

What motivates us to choose a particular beer? Is it just accepting what’s available or the brand everyone you know drinks during a football game? Do you change brands depending on where you are? Lots of people do and do so for a variety of reasons.  I know people who never drink beer, who need to have Abita Strawberry when it comes out each spring. A typical college student might buy whichever brand at the bar is the cheapest, since saving money is their motivating factor.  To an average beer drinker, the motivation may stem from a desire to either relax, or to have a social drink during a vacation, football game or other group activity. So how can a beer company appeal to this variety of motivating forces and entice a consumer to choose their particular brand of beer?

For a long time Corona Extra has been a favorite imported beer among U.S. beer-drinking consumers. In recent years, a typical Corona ad shows two people sitting on a beach looking out at the water with two Corona bottles between them. As a result, when the average consumer thinks of the brand Corona, a white sandy beach typically comes to mind. As a brand position, this image has created a the concept of “vacation in a bottle.”

One of Corona Extra’s new ads, “Moments”, however, puts a new spin on the brand’s traditional message. In this new commercial one sees young adult couples and groups of friends sitting in a similar position, but now in different settings—sitting beneath snow-covered mountains, in a field, on a cliff by the water or on a city rooftop—in each case with a Corona in hand or Corona in a bucket between them. The commercial then continues, ending with the well-recognized image of a couple on that classic, Corona, white sandy beach with the words “find your beach” appearing on the top center of the screen as the commercial ends.

This “find your beach” instruction offers new incentives for young beer drinkers when they look at the Corona brand. Instead of their focusing entirely on a white sandy beach and vacation-like setting, consumers are now able to expand their vision by connecting the idea of drinking Corona Extra beer with whatever “beach” they may wish to find – real or imagined. In other words, the image now suggests a relaxed state of mind, in whatever environment works best for the viewer. This new concept to “find your beach” appeals to both the needs of the consumer for pleasure, as well as to their need for an optimal level of stimulation. By drinking a Corona Extra beer, not only can the consumer enjoy the sensory pleasures that come from the drink itself, but they can also escape from the over-stimulation they may be experiencing in their daily lives, and relax on whatever “beach” they may choose to imagine.  Many beer advertisements depict people out partying (reinforcing the concept of binge drinking) or watching football, but Corona’s advertisements tend to show the more responsible and socially acceptable way to drink, while still appealing to a large audience. As socially responsibility in ads becomes a growing concern in the advertising industry, Corona Extra has found at least one suitable way to depict responsible behavior, without alienating any audience members.

This simple twist on the original theme allows more people to relate to the ad since it now expands the “beach” concept to include other traditional Western values centered on work & play. In today’s recession, people are working harder but making less money. This new Corona ad allows a viewer to believe that by simply having a Corona Extra, without any additional travel-related expense, they can find themselves experiencing a more relaxed state of mind. Since the audience has can now see Corona Extra presented as that same “vacation in a bottle” to suit their individual needs, the advertisement provides them an opportunity to mold their own version of relaxation, motivating them to seek out Corona Extra over other imported beers.

While maintaining the Corona brand’s established identity, the new Corona Extra’s “find your beach” commercial gives consumers more reasons to achieve relaxation and escape merely by drinking their product. If drinking a Corona Extra beer can help you to achieve that vacation state of mind, why wouldn’t you give it a try?