2 MOSCOW TRADE FAIR Heineken refreshes partner Adlerbrau soars like an eagle Beer stores in Ontario "Ready? action!"The camera rolls and the models make the movements they have carefully studied before hand. After lengthy rehearsal and many takes, another few seconds of film are in the can. All that rehearsing and practising may seem so unimportant. But it is essential if an advertisement is to come across well on television. Not a single thing is left to chance. The commercial has to make the exact message clear to the viewer within a brief space of time (forTVadvertising is costly)In no other tra de does the slogan "time is money" seem quite as applica ble as in the production of TV spots. Professionals Lots of patience Catchy tunes Adlerbrau, the beer brand introduced by our Spanish brewery El Aguila at the end of last year, is flying high. "Sales over the first few months were considerably above expectations", says F. Bot, El Aguila's marketing manager. Basketball Amstel Brewery in Canada - just like the eight other breweries in Ontario Province - supplies its beer to special beer shops, known as the Brewers Retail Stores. This means that beer is not available in supermarkets and other grocery stores. Why these special stores? General Manager M. Rijkens explains: "The Brewers Retail Organisation is owned by the five biggest breweries in Ontario. The stores operate on a cost-covering basis; they do not aim to make a profit. That's why beer in Ontario is the lowest priced in all Canada. The consumer can buy all the available beer brands in the beer stores. Besides, the beer that is sold is cooled and its quality is controlled. Selling beer via grocery stores wotdd mean higher prices, a smaller range and less quality", says Rijkens. The system of beer stores is favourable for the relatively small Amstel brewery, as it guarantees an optimum distribution system without the need for major investment. To improve the convenience of the Brewers Retail Stores still further, their opening hours have been extended and more self-ser\>ice stores are being opened. Making TV commercials is a matter of patience This month Heineken attended a trade fair held for Dutch businesses in the Soviet capital Moscow. All major Dutch companies were there to present themselves to the Soviet authoritiesAnd Heineken - as one of the main representatives of Dutch industry abroad - made sure that its activities were well publicised at this trade exhibition. Heineken took the opportunity offered by this event to maintain its existing Soviet contacts and to act as host to other authorities. As has become traditional, the Heineken stand contained a Dutch-style bar. Besides an extensive presentation of the company's products, the Heineken Building Bureau also displayed examples of its activities. In the Soviet Union Heineken is engaged not only in supplying Heineken beer to tourist hotels and shops, but also in the construction of Heineken bars in the Intourist Hotels in Moscow, Leningrad,Tallin and in Sochi, the Black Sea resort. At the moment there are seven Heineken bars in Russia and there are plans to extend this number still further. And it is specifically because those twenty or thirty seconds of television are so essential that a lot of time is spent on preparations.The very first decision is what Heineken or one of the Heineken brands in the relevant country wants to tell the consumer. After that, the strategy is translated into an advertising campaign, part of which may be a TV commercial. Of course, a campaign may also be geared to (trade) magazines and/or daily newspapers. After the advertising message has been specified as clearly as possible, the advertising agency sets to work. It is up to the agency to convert this message into a concept, an idea.This idea is worked out in what is referred to in the jargon as a "storyboard".The idea is then clearly visualised in a number of sketches. As soon as Heineken is fully in agreement with the concept and the storyboard, work starts on their realisation.The advertising agency seeks out the best film company for this job which in turn gathers together professionals to handle such aspects as camerawork, sound recording and lighting. The film company also sorts out which actors and/or models should be contracted for the film shots. Then a search is made for suitable locations. Sometimes these can be found in the studios, at other times a lot of travelling is needed before the right film locations are found. On average, the actual filming takes several days.These are long, intensive days which demand lots of patience from both the models and the film crew. The critical director can always see possibilities for improvementand so the scene is shot yet again. Once the action is on film, the cutting and editing work starts.This is possibly the most meticulous part of the whole operation.The director then has to decide which scenes come over best and those have to be 'pasted' together to produce a smoothly running In "Whitbread News", the company magazine of Heineken's licensing partner in the U.K., there is a glowing report on the strengthened cooperation between Whitbread and HeinekenAbout 1 of the Whitbread shares are now owned by Heineken.The front cover carries an article headed "Refreshing agreement" and "Partnership with Heineken stronger than ever before." Inside the magazine more details are given about the history of the cooperation between Heineken and Whitbread. All over the world, making a commercial is a time-consuming business. commercialAnd all this is often done under the supervision of a skilled Heineken employee. In a commercial containing many shots aimed at creating an atmosphere and few explanatory texts, an important role is played by music. Oftena melody is specially composed for the TV spot. A tuneful melody can give a commercial just that little extra something which will make its message linger in the public's mind. Some composers even specialise entirely in creating such catchy tunes for commercials. After months of preparation the advertising message is finally broadcast. All those involved are satisfied with the final resultbut what in fact does the consumer think about it? In view of our operating results and the many words of praise for Heineken advertisements, we can certainly say that our commercials strike a responsive note amongst consumers. This unexpectedly heavy demand for the full-bodied Adlerbrau brew has certainly had some consequences for El Aguila. Mainly in the production area, but specifically in packaging.The plan to market Adlerbrau solely in new bottles soon proved impossible because of the new brand's enormous popularity. Mr. Bot: "On top of that, we've still not got enough stocks in the wholesale trade. But we're working on it." Aone-and-a-half month advertising campaign based onTVcommercials has given a strong boost to consumer awareness of the Adlerbrau brand name. El Aguila has also sponsored a number of major basketball matches which were broadcast on television. Under this sponsorship deal, Adlerbrau display signs were placed along the sidelines.This activity, too, has helped to boost consumer familiarity with the brand.

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Heineken International Magazine | 1987 | | pagina 2