Sapporo takes swing at a younger market

Sapporo Black Label beer is running a nationwide branding campaign, themed Love Beer, in a bid to rejuvenate its brand image. Its latest commercial, named "Barbecue", featured two characters fighting in slow motion for food at a riverbank barbecue. In particular, the duo were after Black Label beer. Hakuhodo creative director Hiroshi Yonemura told MEDIA high speed editing slowed down the motion of the TVC, especially to prolong the scene showing the combatants tasting the beer and finding it delicious. "In my generation, we were all in love with TV animation and comic books, in which a lot of the episodes featured dramatic high speed scenes," said Mr Yonemura. The "Barbecue" commercial has won a grand prize in the Tokyo Art Director Club Award. It also won the best prize in the alcoholic beverage category in the Copywriter Club Award. A new younger character, Etsuji Toyokawa who is famous for his cool image among the younger generation, was chosen as another spokesperson in the campaign, in addition to long-time Sapporo character Tustomu Yamazaki. When the first commercial "Spa Table Tennis" launched last January, Black Label's branding campaign aimed to attract the attention and interest of younger people but not to the exclusion of older and loyal customers. Therefore, Mr Yonemura said the campaign featured both Mr Toyokawa and Mr Yamazaki, who respectively represented the younger and older generation of customers in their fight for everything, including the beer in the commercial. To increase its appeal, the beer is placed in situations where people would most likely enjoy it, such as in a spa or at a barbecue. In addition to the TV commercial, the Love Beer branding campaign was also supported by outdoor, POP and premium promotion.

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