The Case
Situated about five minutes from the Mexican border and the infamous town of Tijuana, the last thing the residents of Chula Vista, Calif., needed was yet another stimulus
influencing their kids to engage in underage drinking. So when Coors Brewing Co., in partnership with Universal Concerts, reached an agreement to name the town's new 15,000-seat
concert venue the "Coors Amphitheatre," the hops hit the fan.
"There was a lot of concern about underage drinking in the town even before this came up - it's a fairly big problem there and it's a very conservative community. The feeling
was that a family-oriented concert venue shouldn't be named after a beer company," says Carrie Gilbreth, senior account executive for Creamer Dickson Basford Southern California.
"We needed to turn that around and make Coors a positive influencer."
The Strategy
CDB needed to position Coors as a responsible corporate citizen, rather than as a primary sponsor of teenage drinking. "We needed to create an event that would tie in all our
audiences and portray Coors as a company that cares about the community," Gilbreth says. "We needed to show Coors as a positive and active community partner."
The first step was to team up with other local businesses, government officials and community members, building partnerships with the City of Chula Vista, the city's police
department, Sweetwater Union High School District administration and students, and local residents.
Working with civic and business organizations, CDB came up with the plan for an alcohol-awareness assembly for Chula Vista high school students. The "21 Means 21" event was
scheduled around graduation time to get the most possible impact.
To ensure the target audiences were aware of Coors' efforts to discourage underage drinking, CDB's efforts focused on:
- Increasing the awareness of the problems associated with underage drinking by holding an assembly for area high school students that included strong visuals, poignant
speakers and hip-hop music. - Delivering the universal message of "21 Means 21" to a large group of local high school students.
- Encouraging community involvement at the assembly through a dedicated outreach effort with city agencies and local opinion leaders.
- Generating media coverage about "21 Means 21" via San Diego-based media.
While the tobacco industry seems disingenuous with its kid-targeted anti-smoking ad campaign - basic research shows kids don't listen to messages that tell them not to do
something - CDB developed messages that actually talked to teens.
"We knew we needed to be able to get to the kids' level if it was going to have the effect we wanted," Gilbreth says.
CDB tabbed Z90-FM Radio, the area's top radio station for teens, to reach the target audience. Coors didn't have an ad buy with the station (since the main listening audience
is under-21), so CDB had to leverage the community importance of the event with the station. As part of its pledge to help increase awareness of the assembly, Z90 gave more than
20 minutes of on-air mentions and developed graphic artwork so the station could feature the event on its Web site. During the course of promoting the assembly, more than 1,200
students logged on for more information. Z90 deejays also donated their time to emcee the event and created hype and enthusiasm by holding a school spirit competition and
supplying a band to entertain the teens.
The Big Event
Kids don't really care what the chief of police or a local businessman has to say. But they might tune in to a celebrity. Coors provided NFL Hall of Famer and sports
broadcaster Ronnie Lott as a speaker as one of his contracted appearances for the brewing company. The arrangement saved CDB the $17,000 speaker's fee out of its total budget of
$30,000.
The San Diego Chargers also chipped in, providing wide receiver Mikhael Ricks to share a personal story free of charge. And Z90 Traffic Reporter Monica Zech told about losing a
family member to a drunk-driving accident.
Results
More than 2,200 high school students took part in "21 Means 21 at the Coors Amphitheatre. The civic organizations asked that the assembly become an annual event, promising to
increase the audience to 5,000. The event garnered more than 1 million media impressions, picking up more than 30 minutes of TV coverage as well as a front-page story in the
San Diego Union-Tribune's Metro section. Most importantly - although not necessarily a direct result of the assembly - the Chula Vista Police Department reported that there
was not a single underage drinking incident in the summer following the assembly in the city of Chula Vista.
Further, says Gilbreth, when the opening act for a Jewel concert later that summer came on stage with a six-pack of beer, Coors came out in the clear in the ensuing media
flurry.
"Everything [in the media] referred back to that assembly," Gilbreth says. "Everyone talked about how Coors was doing its part to prevent underage drinking."
Sober Advice
"I've received a lot of help along the way during my career and I'm happy to turn around and provide whatever guidance I can," says Carrie Gilbreth, senior account executive
for CDB Southern California. "I think everyone you talk to has something important to say or a good piece of wisdom to impart. You just have to take the time to listen."
Carrie Gilbreth
CDB Southern California
2755 Wardlow Road, Suite 101
Corona, Calif. 92882
909/272-1888
[email protected]
CDB
HQ: New York
Founded: 1935
Parent company: Havas Advertising
Staff: 81
Staff on Coors account: 4
Clients: Heinz USA, Motts USA, Orange County Transportation Authority,
Toyota Motorsports
Number of Coors drinkers on staff: everybody