Don't Go Back to Normal. Get Better.

The kind of headline in the image above is what we always like to see, but especially this year. Because things are really different now.  

Every year before Super Bowl I write a note to describe a little bit of how we get there, of how things get done. And I always have a special focus on recognizing our teams and our partners for the immense effort they put in. Because in order to be ready to execute fully integrated commercial programs, simultaneously for multiple brands, it means that while many people were decelerating at the end of the year, or taking a break for the holidays, our team was working hard. Accelerating to bring the magic to life. And, needless to say, this time was tougher. With the distance, the constraints, the uncertainties, the risks, the last-minute issues. So, now more than ever, they deserve all the recognition in the world. It’s a huge privilege to work with such unicorns in our industry. 

But there are even more reasons for this Super Bowl to be different. There are all the learnings from 2020. Because last year, as the world flipped upside down (and all the places where people drink our products got shut down), we decided to focus on people like never before. To take people-centricity to the next level. And we pivoted 100% of our brand plans. Literally. 

We used our sponsorship dollars to convert sports arenas into blood drive centers. Because entertainment had to happen at home, we started to produce live-streamed music concerts. For the same reasons, as e-gaming exploded, we developed the #1 brand page on Twitch. We adjusted our pack sizes and our innovation projects to the new needs of people. Our brands started showing up in more meaningful ways, authentically adding value to people in their new routines. 

We brought chefs together to help elevate the meals people were cooking at home, as well as created programs to support bars and restaurants across the country. We developed in-home workout sessions for those wanting to stay fit, while raising funds to support gyms and studios in need. As sports started to return without fans, we teamed up with Microsoft and the NBA to develop the first digitally interactive fan zone, Ultra Courtside. 

All of this was about treating consumers as humans, not targets, and having our brands showing up in meaningful ways. 

As a result, despite all the challenges, we saw the number of conversations about our brands grow in social media by nearly 50%. And ultimately, we closed the year leading the growth creation in our industry. That’s the lesson: relevance drives results. 

So, what does all this have to do with Super Bowl in 2021? The point is that after everything we’ve been through last year, after all those learnings, we don’t just wish to get back to normal. We want to get better. 

And better clearly means being more human and building brands that are more meaningful. It’s about time we learn to adjust how we work and what we make to better serve people, instead of working to try to convince them to connect with what we do, or to just entertain them. 

And this is the approach we have for Super Bowl in 2021. We deleted from the briefs all the lines about stunts, about pure entertainment value for awards, or anything that was not connected to a real consumer truth. We decided to use creativity at its best: to deliver meaningful messages, to inspire, and also to take action. Even if it means having the most iconic brand in the history of Super Bowl skip the game this time to support vaccination efforts.

Yes, our line-up this year will be different. We’ll have several brands in the game, big and small, and even our first campaign in the game for the Anheuser-Busch corporate brand. Because the role of companies and brands in people’s lives is changing. 

Because Marketing needs to change together. Because we don’t want to get back to normal. We want to get better. 

I hope you enjoy our brands, our content, our new beverages. They were all done for you. And I wish you have a 2021 to remember, in a great way. 

In the end, we are all One Team.