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Sun City is a popular entertainment centre about one-
and-a-half hour's drive from Johannesburg. Situated in a
setting of natural beauty, it borders on a game reserve in
which the elephants, lions and other wildlife roam around
freely. Sun City is a 'city' that consists of hotels, a casino, an
openair theatre (where many pop concerts are staged) and
two golf resorts. In one of those resorts top-name golfers
from all over the world compete for the million dollars in
prize money. This event traditionally receives a lot of TV
coverage and, as Hilary Jamieson emphasises, Heineken
visibility at several of the important holes is invaluable. The
association between the event and Heineken was further
reinforced by special TV commercials.
During the build-up to this event a promotion was orga
nised in South Africa's many golf clubs. That promotion
ultimately leads to the Million Rand Golfers Challenge for
amateurs, which is staged on the ninth hole of the Sun City
golf course. The twelve prizewinners receive VIP treatment
in Sun City, play their own challenge match after the close
of the day's play for the professionals and then form a two
some with one of those professionals.
The results of the sponsorship and of the promotion
were spectacular for Heineken. Consumers associated
Heineken with the Million Dollar Golf Challenge and - just
as importantly - sales figures shot upwards. Sales were also
higher in the month that followed the end of the promotion
when no other promotional activities were undertaken.
ENORMOUS BOOST
Heineken Beer is available at the moment in a number of
pockets in South Africa, notably in and around
Johannesburg and Pretoria, in Natal and Cape Town. Over
the short term the aim is to strengthen distribution, not so
much in terms of geographical expansion but more in the
form of a more tightly meshed distribution in existing
pockets. Trial and sales promotion materials should help
Mr Van Geldern and his team to build the Heineken brand
name further.
"We already have a good name and Heineken is perceiv
ed as an international beer brand. It is now a matter of
letting people get to know the taste of Heineken. The pro
motion that we organised to mark the 125th anniversary of
the Heineken brand proved a great success. In some outlets
fifty to sixty cases were sold on one promotion evening and
that's an excellent result for a premium and expensive
brand."
The promotion underlined the international character
of Heineken and its setup was simple yet effective. The pro
motion evening started at around eight at night. Everyone
who ordered a bottle of Heineken received a ticket which
was then placed in a big bowl. At the end of the evening
one ticket was drawn from the bowl. The lucky winner
could travel at Heineken's expense to a faraway destina
tion: Rome, Amsterdam, London, etc.
Brian Bingham, SAB's on premise sales manager in
