We have waited for two years to put on our green-themed outfits and celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. Thankfully, with COVID-19 restrictions easing, infection rates declining, and spring slowly making its entrance – American consumers can celebrate with confidence this March 17th.
St. Patrick’s Day campaigns
Brands, on the other hand, have not been celebrating much. Of all 23 brands in EDO’s Beer, Ale, Cider, & Hard Seltzer (BACHS) category that have aired spots on national linear TV this year, only Guinness has invested heavily in ads to jumpstart this season’s celebrations.
Since the start of the year, Guinness has invested 11% of the TV ad airings and 3% of the estimated spend, while generating 7% of the share of SEV within the BACHS category.
Guinness debuted its St. Patrick’s Day campaign on February 14th, airing variations of its All Together Now spot. The spot’s rendition of the song Can’t Take My Eyes off You is very catchy, but what also makes it engaging is its message of the return to normalcy and how we can have fun “All Together Now”. And TV viewers agree – the All Together Now campaign, with 2,100+ airings to date, has generated over 260,000 incremental online searches for Guinness.
The success of this campaign and its optimistic messaging has an echo of the brand’s 2021 St. Patrick’s Day campaign, which featured variations of its Silver Lining spot. This 2021 campaign had over 2,400+ airings and generated a total of almost 300,000 online branded searches.
Calls for celebration work
Holiday-themed campaigns engage TV viewers. The holidays are a time for brands to heavily advertise sales and gift offers, but it is also a time for other calls to action. It is possible that the call to action for celebration contributes to the all-around cheery atmosphere. In the case of Guinness, both of the St. Patrick’s Day campaigns have been a success. The call to action for celebrating – whether it be because we’re “All Together Now” or for the “Silver Linings” in life – has resonated with TV viewers.
In addition to generating hundreds of thousands of incremental online searches, EDO’s Search Engagement Rate (SER) metric also provides another insight into its success. In terms of SER, the 2022 St. Patrick’s Day campaign and 2021 St. Patrick’s Day campaign outperformed the benchmark of all Guinness non-St. Patrick’s Day airings since 2021 by 6% and 26%, respectively. These results mean that a TV viewer who saw an airing from a St. Patrick’s Day campaign was 6% or 26% more likely to engage online with Guinness, in comparison to the average non-St. Patrick’s Day Guinness airing since 2021.
Guinness has prepared for this St. Patrick’s Day and given the engagement from their campaign, consumers are prepared as well.
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