Brewniversity
Boundary Road Brewery
Issue 38 | March 2016
Agency
Barnes, Catmur & Friends
Creative Team
Creatives Katyana O’Neill Renee Warner Designer Andrea Lo Vetere
Production Team
Printer Image Centre Group Barnes, Catmur & Friends: Executive Creative Director Paul Catmur Chief Executive Officer Daniel Barnes General Manager Luke Farmer Senior Account Manager Nicholas Gallagher Head of Production Phil Newman Finished Artist Alison Curtis Retoucher Mark Creaghan
Other Credits
Boundary Road Brewery General Manager Marketing Michael Edmonds Category Manager Andy Havill
Date
November 2015
Background
The craft beer industry was growing significantly though the overall beer market in New Zealand was experiencing difficulty. Despite being New Zealand's third most popular craft beer brand, nobody knew the full scope of Boundary Road Brewery's craft beer range – 12 beers in total. To increase brand awareness and establish in the minds of beer drinkers that they were a serious contender in the craft category, Boundary Road Brewery needed to educate their consumers.
Idea
The best way to educate people on any subject is to simply send them to school. So "Brewniversity" was formed - an online establishment dedicated entirely to the study of beer (Boundary Road Brewery's in particular). Outdoor, press, social and digital executions invited beer enthusiasts online to sit their Bachelor of Beer. Kiwis could finally turn all those hours spent studying their favourite subject in pubs throughout New Zealand into a degree worth just as much as any other. Upon completion of their exam (a five minute quiz), graduates were sent a Bachelor's certificate to proudly put on display. They were then invited to share their success by registering, via Facebook, on the Brewniversity Yearbook. Shared Yearbook entries populated newsfeeds throughout the month-long campaign, helping Boundary Road Brewery to both educate their consumers and introduce themselves to a new legion of fans.
Results
Since 2008, there had been an overall decline in beer sales in New Zealand of 12%. This campaign bucked that trend.
Our Thoughts
This is a campaign that will annoy a lot of parents, teachers and middleaged folks. In fact, it may even have been designed specifically for that task.
There is nothing the young like more than something their elders hate.
In this instance, there is the ring of truth to it. You go to college to learn your limits as much as to learn anything from your books. So you waste huge amounts of time drinking and falling over.
Weird how this works. On the one hand it’s celebrating ignorance, but on the other it’s educating its target audience. Come on, you didn’t know zythology is the study of beer and brewing, did you? There, you learn something new every day!