Bud Light is returning to Twitter after a two-month hiatus in the wake of a boycott movement.
On Thursday, Bud Light tweeted, “Crack a cold one: we’ve got an epic summer ahead. Sock tans included.”
It shared an ad featuring people struggling through various circumstances such as severe sunburns, walking into screened-in doors, eating out of a watermelon in apparently hurricane-force winds, and enjoying Bud Light in the midst of the chaos.
Crack a cold one: we've got an epic summer ahead. Sock tans included. pic.twitter.com/CGRCvkHC60
— Bud Light (@budlight) June 22, 2023
As an ad it is OK. It’s kind of weird, but not exactly offensive. It does come off as an ad made by a Gen-Z marketing employee who was given the mission of coming up with an ad to try to appeal to older, white, conservative consumers who are upset with the brand.
And if Bud Light was hoping it could use its return to Twitter and this new ad to try to win back consumers, the reactions are not a good indicator for the company’s future.
Fixed it for you pic.twitter.com/NvEfvJc72u
— Kyle Beckley (@Kyle_Beckley) June 22, 2023
Sorry, nah.
— Henry Rodgers (@henryrodgersdc) June 22, 2023
I'll be drinking my Sam Adams
— Nicole Silverio (@NicoleMSilverio) June 22, 2023
Just fire the PR team already and throw in the towel. It’s over.
— Eric Spracklen🇺🇸 (@EricSpracklen) June 22, 2023
Poor white people are back now I see. https://t.co/3N8qy1TWOp
— Andrew Beck (@AndrewBeckUSA) June 22, 2023
Bud Light is still facing a sales slump after it designed a commemorative can for transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
Earlier this month, it was reported the brand lost a title it held for over two decades: America’s top-selling beer.
It has been replaced by Modelo Especial, a Mexican lager produced by Constellation Brands.
The executives at Bud Light seem to hope they can restore sales without really addressing the Mulvany incident. Yet, Despite the time since Mulvaney posted about the special can, it seems conservatives are still not ready to forgive Bud Light unless the company essentially apologizes.
Even then, it might be too late. The commemorative can may wind up being one of the most expensive marketing flubs in beer brand history if this trend continues.