As Anheuser-Busch InBev hypes the spring launch of its new Travis Scott-backed hard seltzer brand, it will bypass the kind of TV ad blitz typically befitting of such a major endorsement deal—and a Super Bowl spot seems out of the question, at least for now. Instead, the brewer will take a social-media heavy approach for Cacti, an agave-infused spiked seltzer that it describes as an extension of the rapper and fashion mogul’s personal brand.
“The goal of any brand nowadays is to be … ‘proud to hold’ or ‘proud to drink,’” says Lana Buchanan, VP of marketing for AB InBev’s so-called Beyond Beer division. “And the way that you really build that now is more around the social, the relevant content, interacting with [consumers] in different mediums, versus going in on TV.”
Of course, that is a lot easier to do with the backing of Scott, who in 2020 burst through as arguably the most powerful brand endorser/influencer/creator of the year. Scott’s two Instagram posts about Cacti drew nearly 1.4 million likes on Thursday within hours of going live, showing the potential of the social-heavy strategy.