The encyclopedia · Marketing & Brand · Marketing decision · 2020
Colombia's Aguila gave its bottle caps away to other brands to curb drinking.
AB InBev's Aguila took its logo off the cap and let Uber, KFC and McDonald's in, so each cap became a voucher for food, water or a ride home.
AB InBev (Aguila Beer) · MullenLowe SSP3
the move
Colombia's leading beer brand, Aguila of AB InBev, wanted to encourage people to drink more responsibly. Rather than run a warning ad, it turned its own product into the mechanism.
For The Beer Cap Project, Aguila removed its logo from every cap and handed that space to food, water and transport brands including UberEats, KFC, McDonald's, Hard Rock Cafe, Uber and Cabify. Each cap then worked as a voucher: redeem it for a meal, a bottle of water or a ride home.
The agency also took the move abroad, challenging breweries such as Heineken, Miller, Asahi, Guinness and Pilsener to adopt the same strategy, so the nudge became a broader invitation to the industry.
why it works
- It made the responsible choice (food, water, a ride) the one the cap subsidised
- Surrendering shelf branding to other brands generated curiosity and coverage
- A voucher that rewards safe behaviour is more actionable than a slogan
- Challenging rivals to copy it spread the idea beyond one brewer
what transfers
To shift risky behaviour, redesign the choice architecture so the safe alternative is the free and convenient one instead of the nagging message.
what came after
The Beer Cap Project was shortlisted and won medals across creative shows, including a Direct Lions Bronze at Cannes, a One Show Gold for physical items and honours at Gerety, El Ojo and The One Show. AB InBev positioned it as a template for responsible-drinking marketing, and the free-ride cap became a signature of Aguila's live-responsibly platform.
references
- MullenLowe SSP3 y Ogilvy Colombia ganan Direct Lions gracias a estas piezas
- Cerveza Aguila: Live Responsibly (The Beer Cap Project)
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