As the world became more and more unchill, it needed something ice-cold and iconic to crash onto the scene and chill everything out. So we looked to Coors Light’s past and transformed the outdated Silver Bullet into the modern and sleek Chill Train. But this time the train didn’t just deliver ice cold beers to the hot and sweaty, it arrived to chill out tense situations of all kinds, evolving how the Chill Train shows up in culture. Even more, the train delivered a dose of nostalgia and introduced a brand legend to a whole new generation.

For the first time in over 30 years, Coors Light had a solo Super Bowl ad and we knew we had to burst in with something memorable and mountain-cold. So we brought back a 50,000-ton Coors Light legend: The Chill Train. This nostalgic force of refreshment crashed onto the scene to chill out an unchill nation with the greatest beer delivery in history. But we didn’t just bring the train back, we created the first ad you could ride. Our interactive website let fans book a seat on board and with over 400,000 people logging on, our daily drops sold out in minutes. Ultimately, 100 lucky passengers got to co-star in their very own version of our commercial. Each passenger received an exclusive, customized video of our Big Game ad featuring them on board…before the broadcast commercial even aired, giving them the ultimate bragging rights on game day.

In an increasingly unchill world, Coors Light knew what we needed to get back on track, their 50,000-ton beer train which hadn’t been seen in over a decade. Ever since it derailed in 2012, people have turned to Twitter to call for its return. Plus, after speaking with over 400 beer drinkers, ages 21-75, a whopping 94.8% remembered the train and the overwhelming majority of drinkers expressed wanting to see it on their screens once again. So we gave the people what they wanted. With Coors Light’s first solo Super Bowl commercial in over three decades set to air, it was the perfect stage to reintroduce the Coors Light Chill Train and inspire a whole new generation of drinkers to Choose Chill.

To hype the return of the Chill Train, we had to get our fans on board…literally. To max out anticipation, we first dropped a cryptic social teaser encouraging people to book their seat. Then, we worked with some of the biggest names in entertainment, music and sports to spread the word. Rather than a staggered roll out, we went live immediately with our top tier influencers, inviting their fans to join them on board and book a seat. We even launched a behind-the-scenes post from Grammy winning artist Lainey Wilson, giving everyone a sneak peek at our Big Game ad. Seats sold out in minutes. Finally, on Super Bowl Sunday, we sent our 100 lucky passengers an exclusive video showcasing them sitting next to Coors Light fans and influencers. And of course, the train was driven by the coolest conductor in the game: LL COOL J.

The return of the Chill Train was a first of its kind fan experience that drove buzz, participation and purchase. Our strategically timed celebrity social posts from Lainey Wilson and LL COOL J helped drive over 8.75 billion earned impressions, a 506% search increase for Coors Light and 90% neutral/positive brand sentiment. In the weeks leading up to the Super Bowl, Molson Coors saw their sales increase by over 12% while our biggest competitor, Bud Light saw a decrease of -27.2%. Against an overall business objective to build market share around the Super Bowl, we grew Coors Light’s dollar share of ‘Premium Lights’ category by +5.91pnts (while Bud Light fell by -10.52pnts). By supercharging engagement with a social-first approach to a highly traditional format, we helped Molson Coors set the ultimate stage for the return of a beloved icon.