One of the most famous beer brands in the world is definitely Heineken. Nearly everyone either knows this brand or has at least heard of it. Now with more than 8 million likes, Heineken is by far the most liked beer on Facebook. On Twitter it has even more likes. Therefore the question arises why this is so? What makes the iconic green beer bottle so popular?
1.
Well, Heineken at least posts once a day on its Facebook page, inducing likes and comments with pictures or videos. Moreover, the brand uses 15% of its marketing budget just for social networks, such as Facebook, Twitter, Youtube or Instagram. Heineken doesn’t want its users to leave the brand behind by just clicking like. Pressing the like button should basically be the beginning and not the end. The user should think “this brand speaks to me”, and therefore Heineken has to create a dialogue with the consumer. Furthermore, Heineken is known for sponsoring soccer events, such as the UEFA Champions League for example. Thereto, I have to add that soccer is still the most popular sport in the world. Lots of pictures or video spots, which are published on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube, still deal with the sport.
Customer base of Heineken:
Nearly everyone who is allowed to drink alcohol has drunk Heineken, no matter what gender. So the customer base of Heineken is basically everyone who is legally allowed to consume alcohol.
Target audience of Heineken:
Heinekens target audience is not the same as its customer base. The brand focuses on men of the age between 18 and 45. Heinekens ads (e.g. pictures or videos) on Facebook or Youtube often show either students who are having fun with a bottle of beer at a party, or middle-aged men who are meeting their friends at a bar after work. There is a famous spot of Heineken on Youtube for example which first shows a group of women who are entering a small unknown room. Inside this room are hundreds of shoes, which makes the group completely freak out. Next to this room is another one, which is entered by a group of young men. Inside this room are hundreds of Heineken bottles, which make the men completely freak out. Through this ad spot Heineken’s target audience can easily be explained.
2.
Heinekens social media marketing strategy will most likely work in the future. Though, there are still a few things Heineken has to think about, such as the demographical change in some countries. Less babies and more elder people would mean that they lose customers, because their targeting audience is between the age of 18 and 45. Anyway, why are they just targeting men between the age of 18 and 45? Heineken considered that and has recently started to target also elder men at the age of 50 and beyond. That’s a good start for a successful future.
Furthermore, as I already said, Heineken focuses on soccer. In Europe, soccer is already the most popular sport, whereas in the USA or in Asia it is not. But it is slowly getting more and more popular there as well. So by focusing on soccer they could definitely increase the number of customers.
3.
It would be good for a small company to create a “like page” on Facebook, as well as one on Twitter. Daily posting pictures or videos of the products or services the company provides would help to get more and more popular. After a certain time, the company could also think about investing in those networks. By investing in Facebook for example, more and more random people will see the pictures or videos you post, because Facebook helps you to make your site get more popular.
M.V.
HYDE STREET JOURNAL 