Balter invites Aussies to celebrate ‘Beerthdays’ in latest campaign via Deloitte Digital
Queensland’s Balter Brewing Company has launched an integrated campaign for its flagship beer, the XPA via Deloitte Digital. ‘Happy Beerthdays’ encourages Aussies to get together, over beers, to celebrate mates. Because occasions shouldn’t just happen occasionally.
This tongue in cheek campaign re-frames every beer bought for a mate as a chance to make them feel special, because if you’re hanging out with your mates it’s a pretty bloody special day.
Says Matt Lawson, chief creative officer, Deloitte Digital: “Every Balter XPA is a gift. The slabs are even pre-wrapped. In cardboard. And every catch-up with your mates, especially after last year, is a reason to celebrate. So, Happy Beerthdays, Australia.”
Through a series of three films we meet our Balter characters taking advantage of opportunities to share an XPA and celebrate a Beerthday.
Says Stirling Howland, brand director and co-founder, Balter Brewing Company: “From the beginning, Balter has done everything in-house. To go outside our walls and collaborate on our brand was a big decision. But Matt, Chuck and the team have grabbed the tinnie with both hands so to speak and are ripping tops off them left right and centre. They’re also doing really great work and we are pumped with the new campaign.”
The campaign will run across digital, OOH, social, retail and on-prem.
Client: Balter
Stirling Howland: Brand Director
Ben Trueman: Brand & Marketing
Creative Consultancy: Deloitte Digital
Chief Creative Officer: Matt Lawson
Creative Brand & Advertising Partner: Adrian Mills
Executive Creative Director: Charles Baylis
Design: Kyle Lotherington
Finished Art: Mark Scano
Senior Producer: Marlese Sloan
Group Account Director: Morgan Collins
Production Company – Balter
Director: Mike Calvino
Editor: Mike Calvino
DOP: Jamie Brooks
First AC: Nathan Prostamo
Runner: Alan Woodman
Grip: Logan Collier
Gaffer: Luc Cartilier
Best Boy: Matty Evans
Sound: Seth Jackson
Hair & Make Up: Cora Montalban
Post Production – Crayon
Colourist: Dan Stoneshouse
Producer: Laura Hesse
Sound Studio – RISK
Sound Engineer: Dylan Stephens
Producer: Sally McManus
Media: PHD & CUBHouse
Harry Brownbill (PHD)
Leon Samnartino (PHD)
Liam Hale (CUBHouse)
70 Comments
These made me chuckle. Nice one
Beerthdays. Brilliant. Not just Suzuki ads. Nice one boys.
Remember when they used to be good, have a laugh, not take themselves too seriously? Bit like this really. Well bloody done.
I think it’s shit.
What? Since when have beer ads ever taken themselves seriously in this country? Every beer ad is a comedy ad.
Balter is actually a bloody nice beer, it has a point of difference, you don’t do a category job when you’re a challenger . . .
I bet a lot of people won’t even remember who this ad is for.
I like it.
I really like that Mark Rebelitt looking actor, he’s awesome. Good casting.
Spoken like a planner. And not a good one. The kind who overcomplicates every brief because if you didn’t you wouldn’t be doing your job right?
It’s a beer, this will make people like the brand and hopefully order it when they’re at the tap. Job done. Back to your 100 slide deck mate.
What the hell is a planner? Some desperado suit trying to look relevant when they should have gone to work at pwc but felt s bit too ‘cool’ for corporate life. Back to PWC planners, let creatives do their job without your useless input.
Craft, writing, performances are all top-notch.
https://campaignbrief.com/hahn-encourages-aussies-to-bec/
Lots of other dross that I can’t remember exactly for, but it was bad. Things are picking up though.
Feels over-researched and under-casted.
it also doesn’t really tell me why I would want to drop $60 on a 16 x pack of pineapple flavoured beer.
Thought the first two were not as good.
I do like Balter and, I get that it’s a craft beer and so the audience is well…piss weak city types (prob the type of people reading this actually!) but, I feel like the casting took it too far, they look like total geeks and not in a cool way.
Anyway, well done all for getting it made
Nice work DD.
Humour is hard.
These are good.
Pretty telling that there is no planner credited. Apart from being a one off joke repeated three times, why am i buying Balter again? And don’t tell me because it it is funny.
Because it’s funny.
Because women don’t drink beer.
Nice work. Simple and good. Well done.
Nah
That is now over thanks to this.. Does anybody realise that it’s not 1980 anymore?
Feels like an Aunty Donna sketch. And that’s a good thing in my books. Onya Matty.
I thought it was just suits and creatives that pissed on each others roles, turns out planners hate everyone too
Any good planner knows not every ad needs a point of difference or reason to believe.
Especially in this category.
Make people like you and they will buy you a bit more often.
That’s what this ad does.
Well done. This is great
You’ve ruined my beer.
Like the brand enough to try it
Like the taste enough to keep buying it
Pretty simple stuff
…it wants its bloody awful beer ad back.
Good old consultancies trying to play marketers again.
Never buy Balter, but I could watch these ads over and over, and that would make me think more about buying Balter. Especially for a mates beerthday. Nice work.
Isn’t this the brand that did the flat highway billboard and then argued it was a 3D slab?
Yet another ‘sorta kinda’ idea that doesn’t quite hit the mark.
And I agree with the criticism that the lack of memorable branding makes it generic to the beer category.
It’s one of those ads somebody recounts to you as something they noticed or liked but when you ask them who the advertiser was they say ‘dunno’.
Which makes it a fail.
White men having a beer. I guess one is a redhead?
…the concept of Beerthdays. That’s fun. But how hard is it to show some diversity. FFs. Do better.
If you think this is shit, you’re shit.
The only valid negative comment here is from ‘Diversity’.
I appreciate you guys all got your parents and friends to comment so quickly.
But this sucks.
And yeah, diversity is bang on!!!
I’ve watched these over at least 4 times today. Great performances
Stick to banners and MRECs
These are shite.
ok
These are funny.
Acting is brilliant and yes there are nerds, but they’re likeable nerds.
The diversity is a problem and sadly, we shouldn’t even be discussing it but here we are.
Will I remember the beer, yes Baltharzar, easy.
and… planners, please find another way to be annoying, just give us this creative space, please, please!!
That is all.
Beer Cartel called, they want their Happy Beerthday gift pack idea back.
So only white gay men drink beer these days huh?
@? – I chuckled. That was funny.
“Will I remember the beer, yes Baltharzar, easy.”
Yep – the ad definitely worked on you.
really guy, really?
Come on now it’s 2021 – Women Drink Beer Too! But I guarantee they wont be drinking Balter now… Be better Balter
An idea. Take it or leave it. But I’d use the ‘Happy Beerday’ track as a sting to all the spots.
You don’t need to be ‘making a statement’ to have some diversity in your ads. Disappointing.
You are very wrong about me and about how communication works. Grow up and learn.
Well ~85% of the Australian population is caucasian so I’d say this is a pretty accurate representation of not only the country but the target audience. I know it’s super hip right now but not every ad has to shoehorn diversity into the narrative.
Honest Q – how many of the women you know buy beer for themselves to drink from a bottle shop?
I can think of 2
It’s not sexist to appeal to the target market – it’s marketing
Baffled at how defensive people are getting when all that’s being said is *maybe, just maybe* show one less add with the same white blokes ‘avin banter at the pub narrative.
Also, maybe if women saw themselves featured in beer ads then they’d consider buying one for themselves next time – “it’s marketing”
Well done all. Thoroughly enjoyed these. Regards, a beer-drinking gal.
Good lord, are we going to start complaining about lack of male representation in Aperol Spritz ads now?
Yeah, good one. Go away you imbecile.
The diversity discussion on here is indicative of an industry crippled and immobilised by political correctness and timidity. Keep it up, you’ll get nothing done.
Nonsense. You can still do great work and not whitewash it.
This thinking stinks of an age many of us are excited to see the back of.
Instead of leaving spiteful comments in defence of your inability to accept the idea that people who aren’t “Old CD Guys” also drink beer and can be part of the narrative too (emphasis on the “too” here), it would be awesome to see you spend your senior years reflecting on how the world has moved on since Old Fashioned sipping Don Drapers and what you can leave behind in your legacy to help lift the younger generations to progress the industry into the 21st century (unfortunately, it seems we are 21 years behind schedule).
Implying that not casting diverse talent was an intentionally discriminatory decision… Just let ads be ads. Don’t overthink it.
Nah, I’m not saying that at all. I’m saying the entirely white cast (including in the pub) was completely unintentional. Unconscious. No one thought about it or noticed it. Why? Because most of Adland lives in an Anglo bubble, and they make ads for the ‘Australia’ they see.
Not slamming anyone. It happens all the time. Used to be standard merely a decade ago, when being a minority in Australia meant never seeing yourself or your kids in advertising.
But other brands, from Kmart to Bonds to Woolies to Coles to IAG and more (to Canadian Club and even Bundy) have improved massively in this area over the last decade. Beer brands, not so much. I’m not overthinking. I’m recommending people in our monoculture industry get out a bit more. (And whoever said Australia is 85% caucasian, A) I’d love to know where that statistic comes from, and B) it doesn’t justify a thing.) Peace.
Work must be:
Genius
Original and never ever ever ever slightly close to having been slightly seen as done before
Flawlessly art directed
Effortlessly copywritten by a comedian who can entertain everyone 16-86
Not have too many actors but at least 50% female representation, multicultural inclusion, LGBTI representation and someone with a disability
Sex positive and body positive
Non offensive in every which way
Pass CD
Pass legals
Pass client
Pass CAD
Be meticulously executed by a well respected production company
Directed by a legend
Edited within a millisecond of perfection
Next level sound production
Be simultaneously enviable yet inspiring
Entertain
Have cut-through
Be memorable
Sell a product in a new and clever way
Be on brand
But not too branded
Simple
Have a great twist
Nail the brief
Conceal the strategy
And then maybe just maybe it wont be dogged on Campaign Grief for being any less than just a great ad.
Correct. That’s literally the job, champ.
These are great guys
Are all these positive comments from Deloitte staffers?
Well executed rubbish is still rubbish IMO.
Lightweight, forgettable pun for a beer that probably deserved better.
This industry is so full of complete wankers. Look at yourselves in the mirror, and remember that (almost) nobody outside of the bubble gives a fuck about what you’re doing. That’s how important you are.
and it’s fucking funny.
But what about all those 14-hour days and weekends I did at tier-1 agencies?
You continue on with trolling everyone’s work then, CHAMP.
Great scripts ruined by crap pictures.
It’s just a pun. Not sure why there’s so much (positive + negative) commentary on this one. Definitely a lack of diversity but the ads are fine… they just ran away with a pun, right?
In Australia women are 30% of the market and growing.
In Portland, Oregon, its 52%. Because they bothered to make their industry inclusive and market to women.
Why on earth would a drink be gendered, it’s a marketing construct.
SURFERS who own beer brands should get some diversity. its not 1997 rip curl tee shirts ya selling Mick its beer and its 2021… Maybe add a female and someone who’s not white FFS
A beer ad you say? Guess, I’ll take an RDO.