In this part we will focus on the
customers, in order to understand who are these beers drinkers and to really
understand what are their motivations and emotions. Also, we will see that they
can have different habits, they won't drink beer the same way, at the same
time, at the same place etc. But above all: what kind of emotions they are
looking for?
Of course, beer drinkers are very different
from one to another, but we still can link them thanks to some relations, emotions,
they share.
What are their habits?
It is really important to understand when
and where people are more likely to drink a beer. Most of them are drinking
beer in a bar or at home with friends. So we
can see here that we have beers in order to share a moment with friends or relatives, which is becoming a part of our social activity. They are looking for long talk
with friends, to feel well surrounded with them, in a nice area where they feel
comfortable. Also in many cases we can highlight that some consumers can be
influenced in making their own choice, if a group of people that you are going
to join is drinking beer, most of us will tend to drink beer as well, rather
than other kinds of drinks. The habits we described are the same when
you join friends at their place, how easy is it to brink a 6-pack? You can find
it in any supermarket, you can handle it easily, and last but not least, it is
cheaper than a good wine or hard alcohols.
So it is fair to say that beers are more
favored than other alcohols in the mentioned moment. That is why, many brands
will communicate on it, they will show this aspect of community, friendship,
good time, etc. (1664 for instance)
When and how they drink it?
Also, for the consumption, French people,
contrary to other people, don't really have this habit of drinking beer
during lunch. That is why, the consumption will mainly be after work, or during
week-ends in a bar or at home. Most of them will also drink beer by watching game
on TV, in a bar or at home. Here again we can see that beer is really related to
social links and the fact that a group of people is enjoying a moment. The
example of watching game on TV with a beer seems to be really manly, but that should not let us leading to think that only men drink beer! More and more
women are now assuming that they like beer and drink beer regularly! Many
brands understood it really soon and created beers to target more women, such
as Light Beers (Heineken), White Beer (1664) or no-alcohol beer!
What kind of emotions are the customers
looking for?
We will all agree saying that drinking beer
is an experience: customers are looking for a special moment to share. Deeply
they want to create social links. In the customer's mind, having a beer, it is
saying "cheers", it is the promise of spending the next 20 minutes
drinking a not too strong but tasty drink, it is the promise to spend this time
with people that you like, to talk about different subjects etc. When people
buy beers to bring to someone's place, it is the knowledge that it will always
be a right choice compared to other alcohols (ex: you can buy a wine
that nobody likes, poor quality etc.). During an interview given to
Bloomberg TV, Alexis Nasard, chief commercial officer of Heineken, while they
were sponsoring the UEFA League, said that they sold 60% of emotions and 40% of
beers. They are aware of the fact that people, depending on the occasion, will
consume beers because it is related to an emotion, a feeling, as we have seen
before. Here the video is showing that Heineken understood very well that people share beers, that there is this social link that is made by beers, so they decided to create an App dedicated on it, here is the video explaining the concept of the Heineken BFF (Beer For Friends): click here
