Bud Light launches summer marketing campaign in wake of Mulvaney controversy

Bud Light is launching its new summer marketing campaign as the country nears the Fourth of July holiday and the beer brand looks to move past the Dylvan Mulvaney controversy.

Anheuser-Busch InBev, the parent company of Bud Light, announced that the brand’s summer campaign will feature a national summer music tour in addition to giveaways and rebates for fans who buy Bud Light and Budweiser brands. The company said in a press release that the “Easy to Summer” campaign will be the “biggest summer campaign ever” and will feature social media content with NFL stars like Travis Kelce, George Kittle and Dak Prescott.

The move comes amid a sales slump that began after the company sent personalized Bud Light cans to a number of social media influencers, including transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, who identifies as female. On April 1, when Mulvaney’s post with the personalized can went viral, many came to assume the cans were being sold in stores even though they were only sent to the individuals depicted. 

Nonetheless, some Bud Light consumers opted to boycott the brand and other Anheuser-Busch products in response, prompting a decline in sales that is yet to rebound from the slump that began this spring. According to NielsenIQ data provided to FOX Business by Bump Williams Consulting, Bud Light sales are down 11.1% on a dollar basis year-to-date through June 17 and 15.6% on a volume basis through the same period.

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Despite the recent declines, Bud Light remains America’s top-selling beer year-to-date through June 17 but Modelo surpassed it in U.S. retail store sales during the last four weeks prior to that date, racking up 8.4% sales share versus Bud’s 7.3% in the same four-week period.

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The brand is hoping to reverse that trend with its new “Easy to Summer” marketing campaign.

Todd Allen, VP of marketing for Bud Light, told FOX Business: “For over 40 years, Bud Light has been delivering great quality beer for our 21+ consumers that’s easy to drink and easy to enjoy. We celebrate time with family and friends, whether through sports, music or small moments together, because that is what easy enjoyment is about. That’s where I’m taking inspiration for our summer campaign.”

“It’s incredibly clear the amount of love and passion people have for Bud Light, and we care deeply about our consumers. And what I’ve heard over the past few weeks is that people want us to get back to what we do best: being the beer of easy enjoyment. This new work is really about reaffirming the role that Bud Light plays for our drinkers: celebrating a summer of fun and entertainment through music, backyard grilling, football, and easy enjoyment,” Allen added.

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Bud Light also signaled in a tweet Monday that one of the characters that appeared in past marketing campaigns will be making a comeback for this summer’s campaign.

“Since inception, the Bud Knight has shown up to remind fans that the best moments are made better when celebrated with a Bud Light,” Allen told FOX Business. “The Bud Knight is an iconic character, and he’s coming back to delight fans on social media, reinforcing our message that Bud Light is Easy to Drink, Easy to Enjoy this summer.”

The Bud Knight previously appeared in several Bud Light ads from 2017 to 2019 – including the brand’s Super Bowl ads – as part of the “Dilly Dilly” campaign.