Warsteiner’s Media Campaign: Strategic Communication Essay

Introduction

The purpose of this report is to develop a media communication campaign on behalf of Warsteiner brewery. Media campaigns are complex, with many factors influencing their outcomes. Ranging from language specifics to political complications, there are many variables that have to be considered in order for such a campaign to be effective. Although brand strategy determines the overall direction of efforts, many local nuances have to be considered. The goal of media campaigns is to attract attention, which is a complex attribute to measure. The task is further complicated when there are issues and crises interfering with the execution of the promotional campaign. Understanding the strategy of Warsteiner brand is essential in ascertaining the most appropriate ways of promoting its non-alcoholic sort of beer.

Strategy of the Brand

Warsteiner is a beer brand owned and promoted by the Warstenier Group. It is a widely known name not only in Germany, but also worldwide. Warsteiner is an old brand, the origins of which can be traced as far back as the eighteenth century (Warsteiner Gropus, no data, para. 15). It is an example of a long-standing business, which has survived through centuries and continues to function in the present. Warsteiner adapted to the demand of each period, expanded into foreign markets, and corrected its business processes to maintain quality. The overall strategy is to brew beer, while staying competitive and satisfying international reporting standards, which is most appropriately described by the “partnership” grand strategy.

Environment

Although the ultimate purpose of Warsteiner has remained the same – producing and selling beer, the modern environment places additional objectives on businesses. One such objective is to ensure commitment to environmental and social sustainability. The recent decades have witnessed the rise of ecological agenda in corporate decision-making, which causes many businesses to become more aware of the impact they have on society. Warsteiner is no exception, which is evident from its Sustainability report – Warsteiner brewery (no date, p. 15). This commitment is indicative of “separate but equal” approach, in which the organization recognizes its interdependence with environment and works to adapt to it.

Change

The attitude towards the importance of change in Warsteiner Group can be characterized as negative. Although the company understands the importance of sustainable environment, its management does so due to the external pressure. For instance, in 2014, Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) verified Warsteiner’s commitment to sustainability, which was used as an important selling point, since at the time, it was the first German brewery to meet GRI standards (Warsteiner Group, no date, para. 20). GRI is an independent organization that analyzes companies for the amount of damage they inflict on society and ecology. However, the company has not updated its report since then, which implies that managers see sustainability standards as inevitable conditions of investor attractiveness, but are not committed to change itself.

Publics

The most appropriate way of describing Warsteiner’s relationship with the public is “separate/equal”. The management is aware that the company is dependent on its stakeholders. Actually, the commitment to stakeholders is directly stated in the corporate outlook on its future. Specifically, in the sustainability report it is written: “based on our continuous stakeholder dialogues, we [management] prioritize topics, goals and action areas that are relevant for the Warsteiner Brewery” (Sustainability report – Warsteiner brewery, no date, p. 30). In essence, the public plays such an important role in forming Warsteiner’s agenda that stakeholders’ opinions directly influence the company’s policy.

Issues

The company’s approach to the appearance of issues is to solve them. The most evident example is Warsteiner’s view of ecological impact. The management is aware that its production processes harm the environment. Any beer brewing company produces substantial volumes of waste, which is composed of packaging materials (Milburn and Guertin-Martin, 2020, p. 410). Warstenier’s management also knows that industrial litter is extremely damaging for investor attractiveness. Furthermore, it will likely prevent GRI-like organizations from certifying a company, which does not handle waste management properly. Warsteiner’s solution is to avoid such issues with preventive measures (Sustainability report – Warsteiner brewery, no date, p. 52). However, if they do become urgent, the company recognizes the problem and works to solve it.

Research

The technology for beer production has been known and used by the company for decades. However, Warsteiner looks for ways to optimize the technological process to make it more efficient. For instance, in 2011, a research brewery named “Warsteiner Brew Academy for Research and Development” was launched. This facility serves as the testing ground for “highly innovative components and containers which are not yet part of the technological mainstream” (Sustainability report – Warsteiner brewery, no date, p. 80). Aside from the work done to make the production process more sophisticated, the research brewery also focuses on the creation of new products. Overall, this facility is proof of Warsteiner’s commitment to ongoing research.

Communication

Warsteiner views communication with the public and media as a two-way dialogue. The company presents itself as an entity committed to fulfilling its corporate social responsibility duties. In order to maintain this status, it relies on frequent interactions with the public. Examples include the company’s presence in alcohol-related social events. For instance, Warsteiner contributes to educational campaigns regarding alcohol abuse, which is a point communicated to management by outside stakeholders, such as parents and teachers (Sustainability report – Warsteiner brewery, no date, p. 156). The company is aware of the criticism regarding the effect of beer advertisements on underage people and responds with promotion of caution. The fact that the company’s agenda is influenced by the outside feedback indicates a two-way dialogue between Warsteiner and the public.

SC Practitioners

Not only is Warsteiner an old brand, but it also has an old family name. In the same way as Antonius Crammer was at the forefront of Warsteiner’s activities in the eighteenth century, so is his descendant Catharina Crammer today. Subsequently, most of the authority revolves around her and the CEO of the company. However, in their decision-making, they rely on the input acquired from middle-tier managers who act as strategic advisors (Sustainability report – Warsteiner brewery, no date, p. 140). Although these people are not members of the board, they are important for the corporate power dynamic due to personal insight into inner workings of the company.

Campaign-Level Objectives and KPI’s

In order to ascertain the objectives of Warsteiner, it is important to understand the dimension of their campaigns. Botan (2021, p. 310) defines campaigns as “planned communication efforts that are directed at producing behavior change in a target audience within a specified timeframe”. Currently, Warsteiner is at the crossroads of two strategies – increasing beer production and advancing sustainability agenda. Although these two courses may seem to contradict each other, in reality, both of them can be complementary. The solution to Warsteiner’s dilemma of how to balance both strategies lies in the promotion of non-alcohol beer. Consumption of alcohol-free beverages, including beer, is currently on the rise (Anderson, Kokole and Llopis, 2021, p. 6). However, in order to influence consumers, Warsteiner had to launch a campaign promoting its own sort of alcohol-free beer.

Campaign-Level Objectives

Based on the previous record of Warsteiner’s activities, it is reasonable to suggest that this campaign pursues three objectives. First, the company has to ensure that enough customers are aware of the brand. Current perception is that Warsteiner primarily specializes in ethanol-based beer. The more people are aware that Warsteiner is also effective at making alcohol-free beer, the more consumers will be willing to purchase such beer from Warsteiner. This objective is further complicated by the prevalence of social stereotypes that devalue non-alcoholic beer and frame it as a product with low quality (Staub, C. et al., 2022, p. 3). As a result, Warsteiner’s campaign needs to convince consumers that both types of beer can be of high quality.

The second objective is to convince the target audience that alcohol-free beer is a healthier alternative. Excessive ethanol consumption is a public health issue that threatens sustainability. Not only are people who drink alcoholic beer regularly are at a greater risk of becoming obese, but they are also statistically likely to die earlier (Staub, C. et al., 2022, p. 1). Subsequently, any business activity involving production of beer harms society, which contradicts Warsteiner’s commitment to sustainability. Promoting non-alcohol version will allow the company to increase its product sales, while maintaining adherence to the reduction of negative impact on society.

The third objective is to assure ESG investors that damage to the ecology during the production of beer is minimized. The process of brewing beer is not environmentally-friendly, regardless of the type of beer produced. In all cases, there are concerns regarding water safety and waste disposal, which are inevitable nuances of beer production. ESG agenda gains prominence among investors who are wary of pouring finances into companies, which damage the environment (Einig, 2022, p. 310). Therefore, Warsteiner’s campaign advertising alcohol-free beer has to accentuate the measures that the company has undertaken to protect the ecology to attract ESG investors.

KPIs

Evaluating the success of a promotional campaign requires using variables that would showcase how effective a company is at changing the audience’s behavior. According to Botan (2021, p. 365), there are three key performance indicators for evaluating campaigns – outputs, outtakes, and outcomes. Outputs refer to actual marketing elements that produce a cognitive impact on the audience. Given the popularity of social media platforms, and YouTube in particular, it is reasonable to suggest that it is an appropriate venue for a promotional campaign. Specifically, the number of views of short twenty to thirty-second-long videos advertising Warsteiner’s alcohol free beer will constitute a quantifiable indicator of the campaign’s effectiveness.

Outtakes are the most elusive indicator, since measuring it takes the most effort. In their most basic form, outtakes refer to perceptions that a campaign seeks to change (Botan, 2021, p. 365). In this case, the outtake is the stereotype that alcohol-free beer is of subpar quality compared to the ethanol-based version. Surveys of public opinions can provide the data that would indicate what consumers think of different beverages before the start of the campaign. They will also show the change in perception after the start of the campaign, if some opinions become more prominent.

Outcomes are the final indicator that can be used to assess the effectiveness of the campaign after its conclusion. The major outcome that Warsteiner pursues is the increase in alcohol-free beer sales. It is important to note that this indicator will be available only after the fiscal year has ended, which implies that the overall assessment of the campaign is also time-restricted. Another outcome is the price of Warsteiner’s stocks, as the increase in price will indicate ESG investors’ trust. Combined with outputs and outtakes, outcomes will provide a comprehensive overview of the effectiveness of Warsteiner’s campaign.

Communication Media

In order for the campaign to be successful, the company has to reach its consumers appropriately. Internet-based technologies allow organizations to influence hundreds of thousands of consumers simultaneously. One of the most popular platforms that can be extremely effective in promoting brand awareness is YouTube. There are three primary reasons why a company would benefit from this choice. First, YouTube search algorithms expose its users to content that they would not have encountered on their own. Not only does it allow people interested in a certain subject find relevant channels, but it also benefits content creators, as their viewer base grows without their active participation. The same approach can be used by Warsteiner – a trailer of a non-alcoholic beverage would attract the target audience without overtaxing the overtaxing the marketing department.

Second, YouTube allows businesses to attract a target audience via advertisements. Any time a person watches a video, they will likely see an advertisement. Even though most of the users skip it as soon as they are able to, the five seconds are more than enough for the promoted information to become memorized (Wang and Chan-Olmsted, 2020, p. 295). Such functionality is the most direct and effortless way to increase brand awareness. Furthermore, YouTube users are used to the abundance of advertising, which makes the appearance of another advertisement innocuous compared to the total ad flow. Provided that the video is structured appropriately, the first seconds may be enough to capture the attention of the audience.

Third, many video platforms incorporate the functionality of short videos, and YouTube is no exception. These videos are usually extremely dense, with only the most essential information being displayed. Such a format is important because it is time-efficient, as watching them does not take more than a minute. Moreover, the time limit makes shorts less imposing than videos without it. It is possible to use this format to summarize the essence of the promotional campaign in less than thirty seconds.

Facebook

YouTube is effective at raising brand awareness, but it is not as suitable for communicating with the target audience directly. Facebook is a better choice for this task, since its interface is adapted specifically for communication with many users (Wang and McCarthy, 2021, p. 160). Warsteiner can use Facebook in numerous ways to promote its alcohol-free beverages. First, it is possible to make promocodes available for the public. People are drawn towards seemingly costless experiences and are more likely to buy a product when they see a discount. The company can offer such discounts on Facebook, thus drawing attention to the needed product.

Another way Facebook can be utilized is through special offers. For instance, the company may declare one alcohol-free drink on the house in exchange for sharing the information about this offer on one’s page. The company may also publish extensive posts, which detail production process, thus ensuring that both investors and consumers are aware of the steps the company takes to minimize environmental impact. As Facebook users can leave comments, the company will show that it is willing to have a two-way dialogue and listen to the input of its consumers.

Risk Assessment

A possible consequence concerning ethics is that the communication strategy fails to deliver an honest narrative. For instance, if management decides that the cost-effectiveness of the environmentally friendly technological processes are not justified, they may decide to revert back to the original process. Although such a decision would directly contradict the company’s overall sustainability policy, there is a risk that current recession may force management to adopt a more traditional approach to beer brewing. In case the public is informed of this risk, the company may be criticized for unethical marketing due to dishonest promotion of its technological process.

Issues Communication

Considering that companies exist and operate in a dynamic social environment, it is possible that some corporate decisions may jeopardize the communications strategy. For instance, in 2021, a large number of companies made a decision to boycott Facebook (Hsu and Lutz, 2021). The reason behind such a move was the #StopHateForProfit campaign that sought to fight hate speeches on Facebook. Although ethically, joining this initiative would have a positive effect on Warsteiner’s reputation, it would also compromise its own media campaign that actually includes Facebook as an important platform for communicating with consumers. In order to manage this issues, Warsteiner would have to address its audience via other means and either use a different platform or abandon two-way dialogue altogether.

Crisis Communication

There is also the risk that a larger crisis will impose additional challenges on the company. When the pandemic occurred, all corporate entities had to communicate with their clients and consumers on the subject of their business. It should be noted that Warsteiner had already faced such a problem in 2021, when investors feared that economic conditions would negatively impact the company’s revenue (Warsteiner brewery closes 2021 with marginal sales decline, 2021). Warsteiner responded with the publication of a fiscal report that showed a slight decrease in revenues. It was effective at convincing the public that the company was handling the crisis. The same approach can be used in case other political or economic disturbances arise and affect the company. The goal of crisis communication is to keep investors and consumers aware that the company continues to operate and succeeds despite the negative circumstances.

Addressing the Netherlands

When addressing the Netherlands, two elements should be considered – language and local stereotypes about alcohol. Although most of the Dutch understand German, their first language is different. The audience responds better to marketing content in their own language as opposed to the use of the company’s language or English. A cost-effective way of implementing it is to rely on YouTube short videos. In many cases, they do not even have to incorporate voiceover. As long as the content appearing in the promotional video is in Dutch, the chances of welcoming reception increase.

The second nuance that has to be considered is local stereotypes. The dutch have numerous preconceptions regarding alcohol-free beer, which might impact the success of the promotional campaign (van den Brandt and Brandts, 2020). It can be tackled by promoting the value of drinks without ethanol. Warsteiner can publish a number of posts and videos that accentuate the quality of alcohol-free beer. Another point, which can be made is that this type of beer can have a positive impact on young generation. Overall, prioritizing quality and social responsibility will allow Warsteiner to market alcohol-free version of beer in the Netherlands.

Conclusion

Altogether, it should be evident that Warsteiner strives to be a socially responsible company in beer industry. However, environmental concerns pressure it into meeting sustainability criteria. They are important because ESG is and agenda gaining in popularity among investors. Combined with the stereotypes regarding non-traditional beer, these concerns further complicate Warsteiner’s operations. Although the company specializes in selling traditional beer, it attempts to incorporate alcohol-free drinks in its range of products. In order to successfully penetrate the Dutch market, the company has to utilize social platforms, such as Facebook and YouTube. At the same time, numerous risks have to be considered, namely the political and economic nuances that may complicate marketing efforts. The Dutch themselves have stereotypes regrading non-alcoholic beer, which also need to be addressed. Proper use of social platforms will help the company overcome local preconceptions and sell alcohol-free beer in the Netherlands.

Reference List

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