A recent article in the Wall Street Journal chronicled the marketing saga of Narragansett Beer, a once regional brand that was purchased by Pabst, and in the process, lost its way. There are obvious parallels to radio here, as many once-great local stations have been neutered by consolidation. As the story goes, Narragansett production was moved out of the New England area; they changed the recipe for the beer, and stopped marketing. Where have we heard this story before?
The revival was begun by the brand’s purchase from Pabst a couple years ago by Mark Hellendrung, and a strategy was put in place to elevate and differentiate Narragansett from the big national brands. Of course, many local radio stations are going through a similar struggle in their attempts to promote their localness up against global media.
First, Hellendrung fixed the product. (You wouldn’t want to start marketing before the beer got back to its basic quality and flavor.) He hired the original brewmaster, a 70 year-old consultant, and now they’re in the process of returning the brewery to its original home in Rhode Island.
Then Hellendrung took a page out of the "Retail Marketing" handbook. Instead of the typical "big marketing" strategies that most beers embark on, he personally visited dozens of bars every week, reaching out to customers, buying them free beers, and getting a great feel for what was happening on the ground. In the process, he learned that some of the youngest drinkers had "organically" found Narragansett, but the original marketing slogan that he brought back – "Hi neighbor" – was perceived as lame.
So, they started targeting messages to different customers. And they also realized that doing too many bar nights was detrimental to the rebirth of the brand. Narragansett has also identified certain "epicenter bars" – the ones that are influential, and in which they are able to build great relationships with owners. It is in these establishments where they do their best, high-profile promotions, all with the support of the folks who own them.
It’s Marketing 101, and a great lesson for local radio at a time when marketing budgets continue to dwindle. Putting together a smart, strategic "Retail Radio" plan doesn’t cost a lot of money, but it does require a focused approach with definite goals. Just doing lots of bar nights or "hitting the streets" isn’t what got Narragansett back to the dance.
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Fair and excellent post Fred….however, I doubt Narragansett was judged as a successful or failure beer by 1900 drinkers who had to write down in a booklet what they drank every 15 minutes, send that booklet into the arbitron beer drinking company all for a buck.
Great story….not the same business at ALL.
And you don’t need a landline to drink beer! Thanks for writing, Dave.