Do ‘Fan Cans’ Make You Drink More?
Anheuser-Busch recently unveiled a new marketing and advertising promotion that caused quite a stir, both among participating colleges and in the media. The beer company began advertising a plan can to dress some of its beer bottles in the school colors of select colleges and Universities. The move comes in part based on comments made by employees at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
So I have to ask the question, Do ‘Fan Cans’ make you drink more? I am responsible, know the dangers of drinking and driving and try to set a good example. I think alcoholic companies also need to set good examples and be responsible advertisers. That said, this advertising campaign, in my humble opinion, might influence someone to try the Bud Light brand (see picture), but I don’t know that it will get them to drink in the first place. A college student who intends on drinking beer, will continue to do so. Tell me, is this targeted advertising towards minors or a company just affiliating with a college campus?
This is a legal product that is sold at most games and advertised on TV virtually doing all college football games.
All of this comes at a time when InBev, the parent company for AB, recently announced price increases.
“We plan on taking price increases on a majority of volume and in a majority of markets this fall,” a spokesman told the St. Louis Business Journal
If you are going to stop promotions for Beer companies from affiliating with a college campus that promotes a product, then stop take marketing and accepting promotional dollars at Athletics departments. That is exactly what the University of Wisconsin did today when it announced the university ended long-standing sponsorship partnership with and Anheuser-Busch and MillerCoors for advertising during Badgers broadcasts. The deals, according to an Associated Press story which ran online today, totaled about $425,000 per year, were stopped after a campus committee suggested stopping the advertising as a way to help prevent college binge drinking.
If a University is ready to take this financial step, then I understand the decision ask a Beer company like A-B to stop a promotion like Fan Cans.
Other companies have also recently attached themselves to college universities as Chicago-based The Parking Spot, came out with their own school colored promotion on its shuttle vans, asking users to choose between UCLA and USC colored vehicles.
So please, answer the question, Do You Think ‘Fan Cans’ make you Drink More?
Here are some other related stories
SMU protests Bud Light campaign
Too Dangerous for College — Newsweek
The Price Hike’s For You – Bloomberg
Although rEv posted on this topic today, I respectfully disagree with what Darren wrote, and agree with you here. You aren’t going to pick up a beer because of the colors on the can, you’re going to pick up a beer because you want a beer. *Note* My views do not represent those of rEv’s!
As someone who went to one of the top party schools (Wisconsin), and what I assume is the top beer drinking school, a can that came in school colors wouldn’t have appealed to me. I had everything in red and white – but when I was a student, as an underage drinker, you drink what was cheap.
With a fake ID, cheap = more, and more is always better (either more to drink, or more money for other things). If you’re underage without an ID, you’re not just paying for the case, you’re paying the person who bought you the case too. It wasn’t “ooh, buy me that, it comes in a cool bottle/can/box” it was “what’s on sale this week? Natty Light? I’ll take it!” I think people are making too big of a deal out of this, and they are forgetting how poor college students think.
Now as an alumni, however, I think it is awesome. (Woo hoo, go UW I have a red and white can, look everyone I have a red and white can!!) I see the issue being licensing rather than underage drinking.