Carlton Draught brings humour back to the pub with new ad campaign

Could Carlton Draught’s new ad campaign mark the return of big beer advertising?

Carlton Draught’s new ad campaign is the first major campaign to come from the brand in five years.

Carlton Draught takes centre stage at the local pub as the setting for its new ad campaign “Long Live the Keg” – the first major campaign to come from the beer brand in five years.

The campaign is the latest to come under the “Made From Beer” brand platform, which was first created for the brand nearly 20 years ago.

If a brand platform has legs – the idea that a strong phrase can be used for years, or even decades – then Made From Beer is still running its marathon.

It’s a line that has served Carlton Draught with a wide-ranging storytelling berth, with the classic (and Gold Lion-award winning) “Big Ad” campaign from 2005 among them.

The use of humour as an attention-grabbing tactic has been a constant throughout Carlton Draught’s campaigns over the years, from the original Made From Beer campaign that called out the extravagance of craft beers to bad halftime entertainment at the football.

“Made From Beer is an enduring and iconic platform with years of meaning and emotion in it that relies on poking fun at the ridiculousness of the world” said Carlton & United Breweries general manager of marketing Nicole ­McMillan.

“Carlton Draught is a reminder not to take ourselves too seriously, and that starts with beer.”

The new ad campaign comes from creative agency Clemenger BBDO and marks a return to Carlton Draught’s roots, since the phrase was originally created to ­respond to the jovial, goodtime ­elements of Australian culture.

The 90-second spot takes an everyday pub moment – when a keg runs out of beer and requires a changeover – and dramatises the moment with regal pageantry.

Meanwhile, thirsty pub patrons wait patiently for the replacement keg, while the “Carlton Draught Beer Brigade” strides into the bar and a choir sings the lyrics “The keg is dead” to the tune of Amazing Grace.

Marching with precision and pomp, the brigade carries the empty keg out of the pub in funereal formality, while cannon fire marks its final journey out of the premises.

The predicament is resolved when, to the delight of pub-goers waiting patiently in the bar queue, the brigade brings in a new Carlton Draught-filled keg.

The campaign comes off the back of the brewer’s internal marketing insights that show the brand’s audiences are becoming increasingly sophisticated and cynical – however, still love a laugh and appreciate moments of levity.

“From Carlton Draught they expect to be entertained but in a way that is inclusive and does not put others down for the sake of the joke,” Ms McMillan said.

“Carlton Draught is a true reflection of Aussie culture and doesn’t take itself too seriously.”

While digital channels have proliferated since the Made From Beer platform was first created, Ms McMillan told The Growth Agenda that good storytelling should transcend media channels, and that remained a priority for the brand’s marketing strategy.

“The channel informs the format of the storytelling, however, you still need a strong story to tell or at least one that is consistent with your brand DNA so that consumers recognise you across the different platforms,” she said.

Nicole McMillan, general manager of marketing at Carlton & United Breweries. Aaron Francis / The Australian

During the Covid-19 lockdowns, the hospitality sector, ­including pubs, were among the worst-hit businesses and the creative decision to set this ad in a local pub was also a message to the industry and consumers alike.

“Our local pubs are also important to us, and it was the right time to throw our weight behind supporting the on-premise, particularly as inflation and cost-of-living pressures worsen,” Ms McMillan said.

Dani Bassil, chief executive of Clemenger BBDO, reiterated that while “Long Live the Keg” was an important storytelling vehicle, the pub support was also key.

“Obviously, the product is in the pub, but it’s great to see a brand supporting that story, too, rather than just trying to flog its own product,” she said.

The campaign was originally due to launch for the beginning of the 2023 AFL season, however, the brand shifted its timelines to work with internationally renowned Los Angeles director Steve Ayson.

Ayson is no stranger to the brand, having directed the viral “Beer Chase” ad in 2012.

“To come back to a format, or comedic style, that’s part of the family and language of earlier Carlton Draught work was great fun,” Mr Ayson said. “There’s ­always a pursuit of authentic idiocy, comedy that is grounded in real people, but with a higher concept intruding their world.”

From a creative standpoint, while ads from the past have been set outside of the pub, such as “Big Ad” and “Beer Chase”, Mr Ayson said: “The stories always took us to epic scale outside, in a new ‘world’, each time.

“This idea required me to think within just the pub. So my approach centred around just this world and how the palaver of this pompous, keg-changing fanfare could affect and interrupt it. It’s a localised concept, with a more intimate problem at hand. So the comedy had to come from the specific characters affected by it. My approach added a few characters who had a problem with it, and one that decided to join the ceremony.”

Apart from the change in timing (and a couple of sleepless nights as expected when producing a campaign of this scale), the process went according to plan, according to Ms McMillan: “That was really the only trade-off we had to make, and the final creative is so much stronger for it.”

Carlton & United Breweries has worked with Clemenger BBDO on and off for decades as its creative agency, but Ms McMillan notes a distinct international influence within its current talent mix.

“Sometimes, Australian advertising can become so insular, and beer even more so,” she said. “So having that mix of experience in the strategic and creative processes was really valuable.”

Ms Bassil agreed, and said that perspectives from abroad could shape creative work in a positive way. Ms Bassil is also newly repatriated to Australia after 20 years working in advertising leadership roles in Britain.

Also on the roster of talent who helmed the campaign is the agency’s chief creative officer Jim Curtis, who also spent more than four years as a creative director in New York before joining the creative firm in 2020.

“When you have talent that has had a broader perspective, that have either come home or that you engage with on a production, it gives a much richer story,” Ms Bassil said.

“It gives you the ability to tell a much richer story, because it has a different perspective on the world, which is really great. I think it’s important.”

“Long Live the Keg” is now airing on TV, out-of-home and digital channels, and will also form part of Carlton Draught’s AFL sponsorship.

As for the future of Made From Beer, Ms McMillan said while channels continue to change, storytelling will be a focus for the brand as it pushes for audience attention.

“You want consumers to notice, remember and understand your story regardless if it’s a social video, an out-of-home poster or a live stunt,” she said.

“Platforms will continue to evolve and that’s exciting that the canvas we get to tell our stories on will be different.”

Ms McMillan added that brand platform longevity was made possible when the piece of communication was grounded in universal human truths.

“If a platform is built on novelty, it will not endure, it will have a use by date,” she said. “It might be good for getting noticed but it won’t stand the test of time. The key ingredient is to really understand what is going on with your audience in a meaningful and emotional way.

“The value to the business is immense. When audiences recognise your brand immediately and connect with your stories you have the best opportunity to be thought of in the buying situation. For Carlton Draught that’s ordering a cold one at the pub or being top of mind when someone is in a retail outlet buying for home consumption.”