Heineken USA: The Cold Open
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Project description: Activation
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Role: Primary research (interviews & surveys), consumer research, cultural research, strategy development, insights
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Team: Francesca Fierro (copy), Charlie Nguyen (art), Wenqi Chen (design), Andrew Johnson (account), Colleene Kabaria (program management)
Background
Heineken has always stood for refreshing social lives.
The brand is an iconic symbol of good times, with an inventiveness for helping people overcome woes that stand between them and socializing.
Problem
Heineken's green is greying:
Young (21 to 25-year-old) Americans are choosing to stay in rather than go out to meet new people. They're not going to bars, sports games, parties, etc. — all the places you drink Heineken.
Opportunity
To win over this generation, Heineken needs to build social relevance by tackling their biggest problem:
They're not meeting new people.
56%
‘never’ or ‘rarely’ start conversations with strangers.​
OnePulse survey data
In reality, they're not socializing,
Google Trends
...even though they want to.
American Time Use Survey, US Bureau of Labor Statistics
The Zig
Portray socializing in your twenties as a stress-free fantasy
Our Zag
Take on the hard realities of meeting new people
​Proposition
Heineken helps young people put
new bros before woes.​
Social Woe
Starting conversations is hard,
especially with new people.
Insight
Starting conversations is easy when you have an excuse.
Think about the social smoke session that follows asking
someone for a cigarette lighter.
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How can we ignite conversation just as easily with the Heineken bottle?
40% of music festival goers attend solo.
All Things Go music festival is the latest cultural epicenter — and the perfect place to launch Cold Open and highlight the social potential of our innovation.
Teasing Cold Open x All Things Go
Cold Open x All Things Go
