If the decision by Heineken to task Insight Publicis with creating the brand’s first Nigerian campaign was meant as an experiment, then the gamble paid off big time. Insight Publicis has been able to reenact the usually high standard of Heineken’s global campaigns but in a way that excites and resonates with Nigerian consumers across board.
The 58 seconds commercial- Villager- which features Jidenna, the Nigerian born international act, is Heineken’s first Glocalized commercial. A campaign that right from launch, has triggered an outpouring of positive feedback with many commenting on how finally, Heineken has connected with them and now they can relate better with the brand. This aspect of relatability was the missing link in previous Global campaigns.
And because of the success of the campaign, Heineken is in the process of rolling-out the same commercial in 15 other African markets where the premium brand has presence.
Amidst declining sales from last year, Heineken wanted a commercial to recruit and retain younger drinkers between ages 18-24 and regain 5 percent of the lapsed drinkers that represent the 25-34 age group. But all these were to be done within the brand’s global thematic parameter of Internationality, Tradition and its Natural Ingredients. Sinmisola Hughes-Obisesan, Insight Publicis’ Creative Director noted.
“Insight Publicis was tasked with creating a locally relevant thematic campaign for the Heineken brand. We dug deep to search for insights that would resonate and in execution, topped it off with Heineken style wit blended with classic Naija-isms.”
But more importantly, the ad was supposed to highlight the parallels between the world’s most international brand – Heineken and Nigerians. According to Hughes-Obisesan, the commercial was the brand’s way of celebrating the Nigerian spirit by highlighting specifically, the three qualities Heineken and Nigerians share in common, which are global presence, quality and family values.
Heineken can be found in 192 countries, it is celebrated for its unraveled quality. Just in the same way there are Nigerians all over the world and they are making giant strides and contributing positively to growth in their host nations. And of course the high family values shared by Nigerians is also the core attribute of Heineken because it is a family owned brand that understands the importance of family and traditional roots.
All these values are also embodied by the campaign’s lead act, Jidenna, who, like Heineken, is international in stature and still in tune with family roots and tradition… just like Heineken.
