Budweiser Budvar is one of the most cherished Czech beers because it has been standing its ground for its entire history and it always said NO to things it did not believe in. It has said NO to cheapening its ingredients, NO to moving from the original factory, NO to the globalization, NO to selling its name to Americans… These NOs defined Budvar and kept it true to itself.

In the YES world it is even more applicable. In this campaign Budweiser Budvar wants to use its history of saying NO and inspire others to do the same. We want to give those who want to stand up some power to do so. NO IS WHAT DEFINES US ALL.

The campaign fazes…

Firstly, the product campaign (print and outdoor) was done to remind Czech people of the fact that Budvar has been saying NO throughout its entire history.

Being a beer country these facts were very topical as Budvar is the last true Czech brewery not owned by foreign conglomerates. At the same time journalists were writing articles on the importance of saying NO. The image campaign followed using respected people whose lives followed the “NO” attitude. They were 6 in total. However, the biggest aim was to get ordinary people involved. Therefore the NO gallery and Facebook page were launched. The NO gallery, an online content project, was run by independent journalists who collected real stories of ordinary people fighting for what they believe in and this way their message could reach the public. This part of the campaign was connected with Facebook. To reach the best effect possible, Budvar only once appeared as a sponsor. Though, the main message of the campaign was pushed through its brand promise.

Budvar is a high quality beer and it is no mass product so the campaign was only directed to a limited market. But still, the campaign helped to spread its message much further.

Across the whole country, the product is now perceived as the highest quality Czech beer, 3 times higher than Pilsner Urquell. Of course, it had a record year in sales as well. Though, there was just a decent amount of free generated media. Spreading the NO attitude was the most important thing and helping those who are striving for it. Concerning figures: over 3 dozen articles from the NO gallery were reprinted in other media and got public recognition for 45 ordinary people with the power to say NO (45 so far). The gallery itself was read by 200,000 Czechs, not counting all the reprinted articles. This is an ongoing project with new elements being added constantly.