Bud Light Dreamed Up a 'Summer Stimulus Package' for Post-Covid

Sure, the Biden Administration passed a $1.9 trillion stimulus package to help the U.S. recover from the coronavirus malaise, but how much of that is earmarked for beer, sports passes and branded coolers?

Cue Bud Light, which pours on the social satire while offering $10 million in prizes and special events through its “Summer Stimmy” campaign.

Below, Veep’s Sam Richardson reads proposal highlights on the “B-SPAN” network. (Good gag! Kinda.)

You can imbibe the entire 100-page (!) Stimmy document here. It’s amusing and a tad overwhelming, as the brewer proposes to expand the months of June, July and August to 90 days each, vows to make beach towels easier to spread, goofs on boat shoes worn by dudes named Tristan, Trent and Cooper, and pledges to ban jacuzzi bubbles. (“You know what we’re talking about, Steve. Come on. You know.”)

Along with the beer-boosting wackiness, the push includes 100,000 free sports tickets and live concert experiences, plus complimentary Bud Lights and tricked-out coolers. It’s all designed to put the AB InBev brand up front as the new normal begins to resemble the old normal amid mass vaccinations.

“We didn’t have to do a big strategic exercise to gather the insights on this one,” Bud Light VP of marketing Andy Goeler tells Muse. “Everywhere we looked, we saw the same conversations happening. People were ready and waiting for the chance to safely return to doing the things they’ve missed over the past year. That means going to bars and restaurants with friends, watching their favorite teams play, and seeing their favorite musicians perform in person. We felt like it was our job to help people have some fun this summer when it’s safe.”

Working with 3PM/Weber Shandwick on creative direction, the team decided to take its cues from recent headlines.

“Whatever we did, it had to be big,” agency group creative director Chuck Pagano recalls. “This is Bud Light, after all—and a truly unique moment in time. Consumers are beginning to seek many aspects of their pre-pandemic lives. The idea of the Bud Light Summer Stimmy was inspired by everything great Bud Light has access to like beer, sports tickets, music—simply put, fun. You combine that with all the recent talk about a ‘stimulus,’ and the idea just clicked and took off.”

Biden’s $recovery push approached 600 pages. Bud’s Stimmy isn’t quite as dense. And there’s flatulence humor! Still, asking the brand’s fans to absorb reams of sophomoric jokes might seem like overkill.

“We felt very strongly from the get-go that it needed to feel legit,” Pagano explains. “There had to be a ton of elements of discovery, and the creative would need to flex across many different channels.”

This marks the brewer’s first collaboration with Richardson, who serves as Chief Bud Light Summer Stimmy Reader. (His mom must be proud.)

“We needed someone who could deliver culturally relevant rhetoric inspired by the news cycle, while also bringing a funny delivery,” Pagano says. “Sam Richardson immediately came to mind. He brought his amazing improv skills to the set and made us all look smarter for casting him in the first place.”

As for the spot’s cable-network setup, “we wanted viewers to feel like they stumbled upon a C-SPAN bill reading … in a bar,” Pagano says. “We mimicked their not-so-perfect camera angles, lenses, even the audio.” (The halls of Congress. A TV newsroom. Your local watering hole. Are they really so different?)

In fact, the team “originally wanted to have Sam read the full Stimmy live on C-SPAN in the middle of the night, but as C-SPAN is a not-for-profit, we couldn’t engage as advertisers,” Pagano says.

What’s more, Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end and Bud marketing mainstay Rob Gronkowski has been dubbed Bud Light Secretary of Summer. He gets name checked in the Stimmy, and will contribute social content. (Tom Brady must be proud.)

CREDITS

CLIENT NAME: Bud Light – Bud Light Summer Stimmy

CLIENT: Bud Light
PROJECT NAME: Bud Light Summer Stimmy – Introducing The Bud Light Summer Stimmy
FORMAT: Digital, Social

CLIENT CONTACT: BUD LIGHT, A-B INBEV
US CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER Marcel Pereira Marcondes
VP MARKETING, BUD LIGHT Andy Goeler
SENIOR DIRECTOR, BUD LIGHT BRAND Joe Lennon
SENIOR DIRECTOR, BUD LIGHT SELTZER Conor Mason
DIGITAL BRAND MANAGER, BUD LIGHT Lindsay Cozen
DIRECTOR OF MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS Michael Goon
MEDIA LEAD, BUD LIGHT Lindsay Marzocca
DIRECTOR, SPORTS MARKETING Joe Barnes

AGENCY: 3PM/WEBER SHANDWICK
EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, AGENCY LEAD Brian Williams
CHIEF CREATIVE OFFICER: CIRO SARMIENTO
GROUP CREATIVE DIRECTOR Chuck Pagano
SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT Jessica Brigandi
ASSOCIATE CREATIVE DIRECTOR Jonathan Candelaria
EVP, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER Jennifer Zarrillo
VP, SENIOR PRODUCER Sean LaGamma
SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT Nicholas Goodwin
VP, INTEGRATED MEDIA Kate Valauri
SENIOR ACCOUNT MANAGER Danielle Coppola
ACCOUNT MANAGER Emily Rodriguez

PRODUCTION: GHOST ROBOT
DIRECTOR Joey Garfield
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER / PARTNER Mark DePace
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER / PARTNER Zach Mortensen
PRODUCER Collin Doherty
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY Bryant Jensen
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER Dolly Ave
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER Natt McFee

EDITORIAL: COSMO STREET
EDITOR Jeff Grippe
ASSISTANT EDITOR Andrew Corrales
FLAME ARTIST Evan Guidera
PRODUCER Kacie Gomez
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER Yvette Cobarrubias
HOP Marie Mangahas

CLIENT NAME: Bud Light – Bud Light Summer Stimmy

CLIENT: Bud Light
PROJECT NAME: Bud Light Summer Stimmy – Introducing The Bud Light Summer Stimmy
FORMAT: Digital, Social

COLOR: APACHE
COLORIST Steve Rodriguez
PRODUCER Stefanie Schaldenbrand
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER LaRue Anderson

AUDIO: LIME STUDIOS
MIXER Zac Fisher
MIX ASSISTANT Michael Baran
PRODUCER/EP Susie Boyajan