A recent study by the L2 think tank* that assessed the digital competency of beer brands in the United States found that just two, Heineken and Budweiser, earned a “Genius” ranking.
L2′s report said: “On the social media front, Heineken had very little competition, nabbing the top spot for most Facebook fans, most Facebook engagement, most Twitter followers, biggest YouTube community, and most individual YouTube channel views. In fact, Heineken is so dominant on YouTube that its biggest competitor on the platform, Budweiser, had less than half of Heineken’s views when data was collected.”
Heineken is a social media superstar. At last count, it was the alcohol brand with the most likes on Facebook, with more than 12 million. One of their most popular series was a job interview for an Event and Sponsorship Intern. They created a contest called “The Candidate,” aka the first job interview you can’t prepare for.
Instead of putting candidates through the “typical” interview, they used a hidden camera and really tested their mettle. Each applicant was subjected to unorthodox, sometimes dramatic interview techniques. Afterwards, the three top interviewees from a field of more than 1,700 candidates were put online, and Heineken fans voted for their favorite. The winner got the job and now works for the company – all thanks to social media.
I’m confident this amusing, feel-good video inspired many 12-pack purchases. Guy Luchting – You got the job!
Social media gives brands a unique outlet to communicate with consumers. Online contests, event promotion and gamification are helping brands to build awareness, market share and revenue. As a result, we’ll undoubtedly see continued expansion into social and more entertainment!
According to L2, the top 10 beer brand social media rankings are as follows: Heineken and Budweiser are ‘Genius’; Bud Light, Stella Artois, Samuel Adams, Coors Light, Sierra Nevada, New Belgium and Blue Moon are ‘Gifted’; and Guinness and Miller Light are ‘Average.’
What brands do you love following on social media? Perhaps your suggestions will inspire a part two to this post . . .
*L2 is a think tank for digital innovation. Their L2 Digital IQ Index® is the global benchmark for digital performance of prestige brands. By analyzing more than 650 data points across four dimensions – Site & E-Commerce, Digital Marketing, Social Media, and Mobile – they quantitatively diagnose brands’ digital strengths and weaknesses and rank peer-to-peer performance for their members.
