Welcome to the Certified Cold Beer Crew Blog!

This is our final Blog post for our Certified Cold beer Blog. We have researched our 8 favourite beer brands and discovered some interesting facts throughout our analyses. We learned about SEO, Keywords, Blogging, Content Marketing, Analytics, Hootsuite and many other cool things along the way.

During our 5 week campaign we used Facebook, Twitter and Instagram in an engaging way to direct more traffic to our blogs.

Attached is a video of what we learned over our campaign including a detailed analysis of our analytics reports, overview of our Hootsuite and social media accounts and we get to share with you each of our content marketing campaigns for our beers.

Thank you to everyone who read our blogs and supported us in our endeavours over the last few months. We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2ObPq2FEJY&feature=youtu.be

Bud Light vs Heineken on Instagram

Bud Light

·         Posts roughly twice per week.

·         Does not follow the 50/50 rule; however, some posts promote Bud Light more than others. On Instagram, Bud Light just posts pictures for awareness rather than promotion.

·        

·         Its most successful recent post (within the last 10 posts), was posted 6 weeks ago. The post was the launch of its promotional campaign “The Bud Light Party”. The picture consists of Seth Rogen and comedian Amy Shcumer on a podium holding a Bud Light bottle. The picture is in black and white except the bottle which has a radiant blue glow hinting their liberal idealisms. The reason this post was so successful was because of two main reasons:

o   The celebrities: Seth Rogen and Amy Shcumer.

o   The political party reference to the current political hype that is taking place in the US.

·         The picture received 2,000 likes.

Heineken

·         Heineken does not post avidly; its most recent post was 18 weeks ago.

·         Scrolling through Heineken’s Instagram, you can easily perceive their brand. Their previous ad campaign #headingoutwith gave a bohemian perception; enticing consumers to head out and experience new, strange situations and companions alongside their beer. After that campaign, their Instagram launched another campaign targeting a different psychographic; they posted drawings of characters that appeared on bottles. After 8 posts, they launched another campaign with their current slogan “open your world” and began posting content related to the sponsorship of the movie Spectre (James Bond).

·         Their page does not follow the 50/50 rule either. Heineken posts very little about their brand, instead, their posts focus is more about the message that they want to deliver to the viewer.

·        

·         Their most successful post was their most recent post of which is directly related to the latest James Bond movie. Given its large fan base, the relation to the movie attracted attraction to the post and as a result brought the post more likes than their other posts.

·         The picture received 1,135 likes.

Should Alexander Keith's implement this marketing campaign??

Alexander Keith’s is one of the best beers I've ever personally tasted but there's one problem.  Social media wise they aren't very active.  They don’t have a huge following on Facebook & Twitter and don’t even have an Instagram page.  They need a marketing campaign to help bring their popularity up and help their social media pages circle the net.  Here's my idea!

The Idea

Keith’s should create a 2 part campaign.  The first part is for fans to choose between new flavours of beer.  They vote by clicking on the link that will be posted on Facebook & Twitter. Then when they vote for a flavour, the post is shared or tweeted on whichever social media page they chose to click with.  This will help reach out to a wider audience. The more shares/tweets a flavour gets, the better chance of winning. This campaign will run for 2 months. The prize is as follows: Whichever flavour is chosen, 5 people from that flavour who shared/tweeted the most will be randomly selected to win a coupon for a free 6 pack of the new Alexander Keith’s flavour at their local LCBO when it’s launched.  Now for the 2^nd part! Now that the flavour has been chosen, now is where the real fun begins. A campaign to create the new flavour Keith’s bottle design will run for 2 months until the end of July.  When a photo is submitted on the website, it will be posted on the newly designed Instagram account. They simply create a photo with the hashtags #AlexanderKeiths, #Canada & #Beer.  This will help the photos reach out to a wider audience to people who might be interested in the campaign.  Whichever photo receives the most likes by the end of 2 months will receive 10% of the beers profits during the remainder of the year(August-December).

The Audience

Beer lovers of course and people who want to try their hand at making some money for graphic design.

The Goal

I'm looking to create more traffic on Alexander Keith’s social media pages as well as their website.  The link to vote for the flavours and submit the design will direct them to the website.  Then it will be posted on the social media accounts.  We want people to share, tweet and like these photos so that their mutual friends see these posts and do the same thing.  I think this idea should be launched within a couple weeks so that the new flavour is launched by mid summer.  The summer time is when people get together and what better way to start the summer then with a new Alexander Keith’s flavour that you picked!

Let me know what you guys think of the new idea down below.  Would this be something you’d be interested in? If you have any campaign ideas that could help launch Alexander Keith’s into social media stardom we’d love to hear them!

Fan Pages of Alexander Keith's

Fan pages are a great way for consumers to almost get a second opinion on a product.  Sure the actual product website says its good, but when a there is a page dedicated to how it’s great or fun photos about the product, it’s almost like a testimonial. This blog is solely dedicated to fan pages of the great beer of Alexander Keith’s.  What can you expect on these pages and where to find them!

https://www.facebook.com/alexander.keiths.94

What’s it about?

The blog above is actually pretty witty.  It’s a Facebook account set up to make a bottle of Alexander Keith’s look like a human.  Posting photos of the Keith’s bottle out with friends, or smoking a cigarette.  It’s something you don’t see often and I really enjoy these types of pages. 

Why should you check it out?

It’s humorous and witty.  It makes Alexander Keith’s seem more personal than a bottle of beer should seem.  It makes you think of fun times or goofing around, why not have a Keith’s in your hand while you do it?

http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/6994/?view=beers

What’s it about ?

It’s a beer review blog for Alexander Keith’s! From the main page you can scroll down and look at the writers reviews of all different types of Alexander Keith’s, plus readers comments.

Why should you check it out?

Why not?! If you are tired of the same old Keith’s or have simply never tried any Keith’s, check out the reviews on which types you should spend your money on!

https://www.tumblr.com/tagged/alexander-keith's

What’s it about?

It’s a Tumblr account of photos that Alexander Keith’s has been tagged in.  Nothing too informative but there are some cool photos of people at events or nice shots of the beer itself.  If you check out this page, I guarantee you’ll be thirsty for a Keith’s!

Why should you check it out?

It’s cool to see people posting Alexander Keith’s photos from all around Canada and other parts of the world.  If you are a fellow Keith’s lover, it makes you feel connected with other people.  It’s always great to find people who love something as much as you do right?

There are tons of pages dedicated to Alexander Keith’s but I felt these were the top 3 all you Keith’s lovers or potential lovers should know about! Comment below if you know of any other great review or fan pages regarding the Halifax brewski!

Youtube Battle: Budweiser VS Alexander Keith's

Youtube is another social media platform that is quickly gaining ground.  It’s perfect for placing ads on other videos and commercials/promotional ads on your own page.  So far on my last 3 posts about Facebook, Twitter & Instagram, Budweiser has easily been not only the king of beers, but also social media! Once again, this does not change.  The following chart answers these 3 questions regarding Keith’s and Budweisers’ Youtube accounts:

·         How often does each brand post a new video/commercial?

·         What kind of video content does each brand post (commercials, celebrity spots, how-to’s, news, industry related events, music videos, etc.)

·         In the description area, what kind of content is included (links to other sites, keywords, descriptions, etc.)

Alexander Keith’s

·         Have not made a post in 6 months.  They posted a lot 6-7 months ago. Not active.

·         Most of their posts are about types of foods that you can make that go well with the drink.  A lot of these foods are popular on the east coast, especially Halifax and each video is usually a background story of someone who enjoys the food with the drink and why.

·         Their description of the channel is “Welcome to Alexander Keith’s official channel. Brewed since 1820, Alexander Keith’s brings flavour to life. Please enjoy responsibly.”  Below that is a link to their website and Facebook page.

Budweiser

·         They post as much as they do on any other social media site.  At least 5-6 times a month. Very active.

·         Budweiser makes a lot of posts. Commercial posts, promotional posts, celebrity posts.  The celebrity post is also a commercial which was aired during the superbowl where Hellen Mirren talks about drunk driving.  Their promotional posts are about why Budweiser is the best beer, why you should have it during the playoffs and why you should celebrate St. Patrick’s day drinking it.

·         The description for their channel: “Budweiser is the Great American Lager from Anheuser-Busch. Subscribe to our Youtube channel to keep up with your favorite American lager beer!” Below that is 5 links: Website, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter & Pinterest.

What is their most effective/popular video?

Alexander Keith’s

I’m not sure what separates this video apart from the other “UNTAPPED” ones but I guess the type of food they advertised was more popular than others. Other than that, I can’t really see any difference, the length of the videos are all somewhat similar.  They might have advertised this video at the right times.  Check the link for yourself and comment why you think this video has the most views!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FzMNjImQl8k

Likes: 6

Views: 212,924

Comments: 0

Budweiser

What makes this commercial so popular ? Well for one thing it was aired during the superbowl and another, it’s awesome.  Upbeat music that gets the viewer pumped, its cocky and fun and showcases their confidence.  They remind you throughout the video why they are the “King of beers”.  Saying “people who drink Budweiser like beer” or “let them sip their pumpkin spice ale, while we brew some golden suds”.  It’s almost an ad saying that hey you can drink other beers, but REAL beer drinking men & Women are what Budweiser is for. Check out the ad below and see for yourself.  As you can see below it, it’s quite popular!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=siHU_9ec94c

Likes: 1,807

Views: 13,135,084

Comments: 2,271

Let us know what you guys think! Cheers!

Instagram Battle: Budweiser VS Alexander Keith's

I was going to do a blog comparing the effectiveness and activeness of Budweiser and Alexander Keith’s Instagram accounts but guess what? Keith’s doesn’t have one. Boo you say? Yes BOO indeed.  In a a world overrun with social media, you can never be accessible on too many social media platforms. So for this blog. Keith’s gets an F! So let’s see how well Budweiser uses Instagram, the following chart will answer these questions:

·         How often does Budweiser post new content?

·         What kind of content does Budweiser post (promotional, commercials, discounts and coupons, how-to’s, industry related events, games, images, infographics, celebrity spots, news, music videos, etc.)

·         Is there a description feature on this platform? What kind of content is included (links to other sites, keywords, descriptions, categories, #hashtags, etc.)?

Budweiser

Very active.  On my 2 other blogs I mentioned how Budweiser posts on Twitter and Facebook almost every other day.  Well Instagram is no different.  Budweiser is quickly gaining more and more ground on Alexander Keith’s in the social media battle!

Most of the posts are informational and promotional.  A lot of their posts are pictures of different scenarios with people having a great time & holding a nice, cold looking Budweiser. This is effective in showing the user that Budweiser is perfect for any occasion and great for bringing people together. Other recent posts include one for their drinking and driving awareness campaign at SXSW & about bars with a Budweiser logo in the background.  I’m somewhat surprised that they don’t have any posts regarding their goal light marketing campaign.  I would have thought using photos of different cities the goal light will be going to would be very effective, especially on Instagram!

The description of the page is “Budweiser Life is best lived on your own terms #ThisBudsForYou. By following, you confirm you're of legal drinking age (LDA) & won’t share w/ those under LDA.bit.ly/TheHardWaySeries”  There is no link to their website or other social media accounts.  The only hashtag they use is #ThisBudsForYou which is posted in most of their Instagram posts. The link in their description is to a Youtube video about a tattoo artist, Budweiser has used a tattoo artist to make comparisons to their new label.  They compare the precision and talent of a tattoo artist to how they created their new label.  It’s very effective ad and very innovative.

What is Budweiser’s most effective and popular Instagram post?

The following post was effective because it was relatable.  It showed people who you assume are good friends enjoying some Budweiser.  It helps that the way they showed the Budweiser reminds you that it’s Cold & Delicious.  Some of the comments on the post were about how nice the Budweiser looked.  The better looking something is, the more it attracts people. The post talks about building legacies, referring to the traditions of getting together with your loved ones over some Budweisers’.  In order for beer ads to be affective, they need to show either: people having fun, cold refreshing beer, or both; and Budweiser does just that.

Comments: 52

Likes: 2747

Comment and let us know what you think of the importance on company Instagram pages.  Should Keiths hop on the Instagram wagon ??

Twitter Battle: Budweiser VS Alexander Keiths!

Who doesn’t have Twitter nowadays? Almost every business, celebrity or average joe has Twitter.  But what about beer companies?? Alexander Keith’s & Budweiser do, but are they using Twitter to its full potential? The following chart will briefly answer these 4 questions and I will give them a grade rating:

·         How often does each brand tweet?

·         What kind of content does each brand tweet about (promotional, discounts and coupons, how-to’s,      industry related events, games, images, infographics, etc.)

·          Does each brand use the 50/50 rule?

·          Keyword sentences used by either brand on their posts

Alexander Keith’s	Budweiser - Canada
D Not Often. Once a month. No posts in March yet. More posts during December.	A+ Very active. Post almost every other day.
C They mostly post about trying their product during the holidays or entering pins to win merch.  Nothing to crazy	A Very engaging with their twitter account.  Consistently post about activities they are involved with(Drinking and driving talk at SXSW, Goal light) A lot of their posts lately are to spread awareness for the Goal light and sharing  a link to engage them to try and get their names on it.  The reason for the A is because the posts are mostly similar, no variety.
D No posts about the industry as a whole and barely any posts about themselves	C They have made posts about drinking and driving which effects the beer industry as a whole and they posts about their product very often.
#JoinIpaHouse #KeithsIpaHouse #Keiths	#TackleImpossible #LightTheLamp

What were these brands biggest tweets and why ?

Budweiser Canada

65 likes

117 Retweets

It uses a video to take up most of the space of the users’ screen which then catches their attention.  It has a link describing what the goal light is about and using the word “Canadian” give users a patriotic feeling when they retweet the post.

Alexander Keith’s

32 Likes 

20 Retweets

Nothing special right? Correct! But that’s what makes it so effective and so “Retweet-able”.  It’s a simple post about sharing with friends and family during the holidays.  By retweeting this, you are sharing the holiday joy and the Keith’ name.

Facebook Battle: Budweiser VS Alexander Keith's

Facebook is a massive tool brands use to market products, events or new ideas.  It's a social media platform that allows companies to reach a widespread audience.  Today I will be looking at the Facebook pages of Alexander Keith's and Budweiser to see what they do to effectively market themselves and I will rate them on a scale of 1-5.

I have designed the chart below to answer the following 4 questions:

1.  How often does each brand post?

2.  What kind of content does each brand post (promotional, discounts and coupons,   how-to’s, industry related events, games, images, infographics, etc.)

3. Does each brand use the 50/50 rule?

4. Keyword sentences used by either brand on their posts

Alexander Keith’s	Budweiser
Not Often. Within the past 3 months, they have made 2 posts.  None so far in the month of March, and in Feb. & Jan. Last year they made couple posts in December about holiday gifts and posted almost every other day in November & October.	Very Often. They make posts almost every other day and are very active in responding to comments made on these posts.
A lot of the content that Keith’s posts are promotional, coupons and industry related.  Most of their posts talk about new brews that they will be introducing soon, merchandise that they are selling for the holidays or weather related & posts about activities to do such as taking a tour of the brewery or trying out new beers at local bars.	Because its hockey season and the playoffs are around the corner.  A lot of the posts they have made are all promotional regarding the Giant goal light that is travelling across Canada.  Their marketing campaign to get people involved is enabling people to submit their names to be engraved on the Goal light when it comes to their area. 1 recent post that they made that differs from the others is one about drinking and driving, with a video attached.  The video is a speaker from Budweiser talking at SXSW festival.
Not Really. Most of Alexander Keith’s posts are regarding their own personal brand.  The only recent post not directly promoting their brand was an article about how a 120 year old bottle was found on the bottom of the ocean of the cost of Halifax and it contained Keith’s beer.	Most of their posts like I said before is about the goal light.  The only 2 other posts that aren’t about Budweiser is drinking and driving.  Both posts have videos attached to them, making it easily accessible for consumers scrolling through Facebook.  It’s a huge issue and makes them look very good.
19+, Keith’s Brewery	Canada’s goal light, http://www.budweiser.ca/en/, #LightTheLamp #TackleImpossible

As you can see, there is a huge difference in how both these brands use Facebook actively to reach out to their demographic.  Lets see what their most effective posts were and what they did to stand out.

Alexander Keith’s

It’s simple.  It’s not trying to directly sell you a product or bombard you with info you don’t care about.  It’s simply relating to everyone who likes to celebrate St. Patricks day and is reminding you to have a Keith’s. Shows 4 people together and represents a good time.  This post so far has 635 Likes, 98 Shares & 19 Comments.

Budweiser

Its powerful and effective.  Almost everyone agrees that drinking and driving is wrong and many people have been affected by it.  What Budweiser has done with this post is simply create awareness.  They aren’t trying to promote their product, they are more promoting their ethics on certain topics.  It’s a short post with a powerful statement “Join us to put an end to drinking and driving and‪ #‎TackleImpossible” Attached is a video of a spokesperson, making it easily accessible rather than people reading.  

Budweiser vs Alexander Keith’s: Which beer can Canadians find easiest in their Internet fridge?

Introduction

SEO is an important consideration for marketers because it determines how easy it is for users and search engines to find and navigate through your website. The easier it is, the more likely people will find it.  In Canada, 2 of the top beers are Budweiser and Alexander Keith’s, Keith’s being from Nova Scotia and Budweiser being an American company who moved into Canada under the name Budweiser Canada.  Alexander Keith’s is a relatively quiet beer when it comes to marketing and brand exposure yet it is very popular in Canada; while Budweiser is all over the place especially when it comes to hockey.  Which page makes the most of their name? Lets’ find out:

Screen Captures of both home pages:

Budweiser Home Page

Alexander Keith's Home Page

SEO Considerations	Budweiser	Alexander Keith’s
URL:	http://www.budweiser.ca/en/	http://keiths.ca/#/
Keywords used on each site:	Goal, For you, Enjoy Responsibly, Canada	Our brews, Brewery, Ipa, Hop ale
Frequency of Keywords:	Goal(4), For you(3), Enjoy Responsibly(1), Canada(3)	Our Brews(2), Brewery(3), Ipa(2), Hop Ale(2)
Locations of keywords:	Top of the page, middle inside photos(links to more information)	Top of the page, middle of the page as links for more information
Keywords in URL:	None	None
<title>	Budweiser Canada	Alexander Keith’s
<meta name="description" content=“”/>	N/A	“Welcome beer enthusiasts. Learn everything you ever wanted to know about Alexander Keith’s Fine Beers, the Brewing Process or even the great man himself”
<meta name="keywords" content=""/>	N/A	N/A
Site upload speed:
Quality of written content:	8/10	6/10
Quality of Visual Content:	10/10	8/10
Alt Text used:	Twitter, Facebook	Facebook
Captions used:	N/A	N/A
Quality of Layout:	9/10	9/10
Call-to-action:	“Bar Finder: This Bar’s for you” “This gear’s for you”	“Find an Alexander Keith’s”
Anchor Text:	“New Privacy Policy”, “Third Party Advertising”, Terms & Conditions”	N/A
Mobile Friendly:	Yes	Yes
Content is “shareable”:	No	No
Links to Social Media:	Facebook, Twitter	Facebook
SERP ranking results when using keywords from this table:	http://budweiser.ca/goallab/en/innovation/canadas-goal-light/ is ranked 1st in Canada	http://keiths.ca/ is ranked 28th in Canada

 Summary:

Both Webpages need to be updated.  Neither allow you to share any of their content and both pages do not have keywords on their source page.  Only commonly used words on the pages themselves help them show up in search engines.  Alexander Keith’s only has a link to their Facebook page, which is probably why they don’t have many Twitter followers.  Budweiser does not have any Alt Text and Alexander Keith’s has no Anchor text. Both pages are poorly set up and could benefit from actually updating the source codes. Also Alexander Keith’s ranking in the SEO from their commonly used words is ranked 28^th in Canada, which is not good.

Conclusion:

Both companies are well known and loved in Canada.  Alexander Keith’s doesn’t promote much as they let their taste decide who their fans are.  Budweiser uses hockey as its main marketing campaign.  With the goal light and air hockey table gear.  It really likes to stress that it’s the beer for you and your friends.  Overall the winner of the SEO search analysis is Budweiser Canada…The king of beers!

APA Citations:

http://budweiser.ca/en/

http://keiths.ca/#/

https://serps.com/tools/rank_checker
http://tools.pingdom.com/fpt/