How to embrace your sober-curious customers

Just Tapped

As expected, this is a slow news week, so this is an appropriately abbreviated version of The Taster Tray. I have one bit of interesting news to share with you as we get frightfully close to Dry January. Maybe it will help you address those sober-curious customers of yours.

Why the "Give Dry a Try" Marketing Initiative Matters

A few weeks ago The Taster Tray reported that Keurig Dr Pepper purchased a $50 million stake in Athletic Brewing. Now, Athletic has announced what it is going to do with some of that money. I think it's going to touch all of us.

At a recent meeting of the Adult Non-Alcoholic Beverage Association (ANBA), Athletic Brewing announced that it is about to launch its first national marketing campaign, calling it “probably our biggest [marketing] investment ever.” The word came from Bill Shufelt, founder/CEO of Athletic Brewing, during an ANBA roundtable discussion.

There's a reason why this news should interest you, but first, let's talk about what it is. Athletic Brewing's Give Dry a Try is a seven-figure ad campaign that will include television advertisements during the NFL Playoffs and the NCAA's Cotton Bowl on January 2nd. The commercials during the Cotton Bowl will feature USC star quarterback, and recent Heisman Trophy winner, Caleb Williams, with whom the company signed a name, image, and likeness (NIL) deal. Also, they're buying adverts on digital, connected, streaming shows, out-of-home billboards, podcast sponsorships, and radio ads. And there's more. For example, next month Athletic will sponsor the Q&A segment of Barstool Sports’ Token CEO podcast, with a reach of more than 3.6 million people. That's a lot of advertising for a beer not called Bud Light or Corona.

Here Comes January

The timing of the marketing campaign’s launch is no coincidence. According to a report from Morning Consult, nearly 1 in 5 adults says they'll participate in Dry January this year. An even larger percentage say they’ll observe Damp January by significantly reducing consumption.

You probably don't see an opportunity when you look at Dry January, but maybe you should. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em? The Give Dry a Try campaign will probably get people talking about NA beer. Maybe you should consider offering more NA choices or more interesting NA choices. Maybe you should target some social media promos to attract sober-curious, damp, and dry consumers. If someone is observing Dry January, they can still come hang out with their friends who are not.

Athletic is about to spend a lot of money getting people talking about NA beer. You and I need to learn to speak the language and become part of the conversation. After all, we're the beer experts. There's a lot to learn.

I know bupkis, but I do know that there are issues with the production of NA beer that are not very well documented. Maybe I'll do some digging into that in the future and share what I learn. In the meantime, here are some links to get us started. We're in this one together.

• How it’s made, from the NA Beer Club.

• More about how its made: methods.

• How Sierra Nevada Brewing does it.

• Resources for brewers, for Brewers Association members.

Happy New Year!

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Cheers to a bright new year!

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This week's Taster Tray was composed by Kendall Jones. Have news you'd like to share with us? Reply to this email or reach out to [email protected].