It’s too easy, and frankly unfair, to judge someone by just their social feed(s). Sure, life on Insta might not always mirror life on the streets, but in today’s world, life is life and our digital lives are part of our "real lives" because we all strive for belonging. We want and need community, and since I’m sitting (well, actually standing at my desk) in Milwaukee, it’s time to talk that – and beer.
Yes, beer.
This week, Miller Lite dropped a new marketing campaign encouraging us to unfollow their social accounts, noting that, "a few friends are better than a few thousand followers." Sure, but having both is fine, too. Yet, the against-the-grain message and zag-when-they-zig play in the ad is clever – and is exactly what good messaging should do: connect, be unique and create conversation.
The ad, of course, wants to remind you about the connections you build when you’re hanging out with friends and enjoying a beer – aka Miller Time.
You probably know that we work with Miller, and – you know what – I drink Miller products. Many have asked for our thoughts on this new ad, and my experience says it’s difficult for a big brand to be local and national at the same time while scaling, growing and connecting to its roots. So, using the power of community to be a bit anti-community? It’s smart! It won’t get me off Twitter (and I'm pretty sure it’s not supposed to be taken 100 percent literally anyway), but it will remind me to text a friend to catch up over a beer.
Plus: There's free beer. To score some free suds from this unfollow campaign, here's the way:
- Text a photo or screenshot to 49375 and include keyword "UNFOLLOW"
- Wait for Miller Lite to send a link
- Upload a receipt from a Miller Lite purchase
- Miller Lite will credit their PayPal account back for your first round of Miller Time (dollar value is dependent on the state in which you reside)
Additional details are here.
Finally, beer can be and is a social thing. For example, we featured a recent series called "Over A Beer." It’s a chance to learn more about someone notable locally, quite simply a real-life conversation over a beer that was shared digitally.
Ah, real world and digital – together they make magic. And sell beer.
A life-long and passionate community leader and Milwaukeean, Jeff Sherman is a co-founder of OnMilwaukee.
He grew up in Wauwatosa and graduated from Marquette University, as a Warrior. He holds an MBA from Cardinal Stritch University, and is the founding president of Young Professionals of Milwaukee (YPM)/Fuel Milwaukee.
Early in his career, Sherman was one of youngest members of the Greater Milwaukee Committee, and currently is involved in numerous civic and community groups - including board positions at The Wisconsin Center District, Wisconsin Club and Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. He's honored to have been named to The Business Journal's "30 under 30" and Milwaukee Magazine's "35 under 35" lists.
He owns a condo in Downtown and lives in greater Milwaukee with his wife Stephanie, his son, Jake, and daughter Pierce. He's a political, music, sports and news junkie and thinks, for what it's worth, that all new movies should be released in theaters, on demand, online and on DVD simultaneously.
He also thinks you should read OnMilwaukee each and every day.
