White Claw and other hard seltzers and lemonades are taking to the airwaves and getting results, according to new data from EDO, which tracks the effectiveness of advertising campaigns.
Since the beginning of the year, there has been a 131% surge in airings of commercials for hard seltzers and lemonade.
It’s been money well spent, because EDO says ad effectiveness has spiked by 113% as well.
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White Claw, which launched a new campaign in April, Smirnoff and Twisted Tea have had the strongest campaigns in the category.
Viewers of White Claw ads were 169% more likely to engage with the brand, compared to the average ad for alcoholic beverages.
Commercials for White Claw with the slogan “Grab Life by the Claw” appear to be speaking to Gen Z consumers. Another top-performing spot featured JB Smoove promoting White Claw’s new vodka and soda product.
Smirnoff’s commercials were 129% more likely to engage with consumers and spots for Twisted Tea were 105% more effective, according to EDO.
Hard Seltzer & Lemonade ad airings accounted for 16% of the Beer, Cider, Hard Seltzer and Pre-Mixed Cocktails category, while Alcoholic Beers comprised 80%.
Last year, hard seltzer and lemonade ads accounted for 13% of airing in the category.
Beer ads, which have been on TV for decades, tend to be more effective than ads for hard seltzers, but the seltzers are catching up. Consumers were 69% more likely to engage with hard seltzer and lemonade brands from June 2023 through May 2024 compared to the prior year. The effectiveness of beer ads rose 65% over the same period.
“Hard Seltzer & Lemonade is one of the strongest growing sects of the Beer, Cider, Hard Seltzer, and Pre-Mixed Cocktails category over the past year, driven by strong ad performance from White Claw and Twisted Tea,” EDO senior VP, head of client solutions Laura Grover said.
“Consumers have been 69% more likely to engage with national ads from Hard Seltzer & Lemonade advertisers in the past year, over the same period the year prior, which could be attributed to consumers’ growing affinity for the two brands,” she said.
Grover said that as summer heats up, White Claw and Tea are experiencing strong consumer sales.
“Our ad effectiveness data reflects a similar surge in consumer interest. Nielsen data shows White Claw now controls over 60% of all sales for the segment, and Twisted Tea sales rose 21% in the first quarter and maintained steady growth in 2023,” Grover said.”However, the broader Hard Seltzer & Lemonade category continues to struggle in sales and ad engagement as fad-focused category advertisers fade.”
