Journey of a brand, cowboy to urban knight

Western theme

It came to South Africa in 1966 when Carling USA licensed South African Breweries (SAB) to produce it with the aim of taking on the then bigger brands, Lion Lager and Castle Lager. The advertising campaign kicked off with a 'cowboy' theme, which played off American masculinity and values.

The cowboy was represented as a lone hero who deserved a cold Carling as a reward for a long day's work. Westerns were still very popular, with classics such as Stagecoach and The Good, The Bad and the Ugly being released in 1966.

Within a year its market share was growing steadily. Unfortunately, the success was short lived. By 1978, the brand went from owning almost 30% to losing market share every year. For the next 15 years, Castle and Lion dominated the mainstream market. As the success of Carling faded, so did the relevance of the 'cowboy' imagery, especially for black beer drinkers.

All that jazz

The 'jazz' advert was launched in 1984 to break the prevailing cowboy theme. It was the era of smooth jazz, with giants like Al Jarreau, Chaka Khan and Sade getting significant airtime. Yet the new campaign failed to have an impact on sales: from over 10% market share in mid-1984, it lost 80% percent to hit an all-time low of 2.1% by the end of the eighties.

Research in 1989 showed how confused its identity was - black consumers saw it, as "a beer for low-down whites," while white's consensus was that it was "a beer black people drank when they caused trouble." The situation had deteriorated so much that distribution of the 750 ml pack - the famous quart - was at its lowest ever in the SAB stable.

Get up or get out

The combination of low sales, muddled brand identity and a consumer shift to milder beers offered a serious challenge for the SAB brand team and their advertising agency, Ogilvy Cape Town. "They were issued with a tough ultimatum: Achieve sales of 50 million litres and boost market share to at least 2.5% or the brand will be withdrawn completely," says Shawn Katz, current marketing manager for the brand.

New target market

With this goal in mind, the first step was to define the target market realistically, taking into account the need for 'unexplored territory' and a consumer base that would respond to a stronger beer. The ABV was actually lowered from 6 to 5.5% but the perception of strength was retained through the red, black and gold packaging and the advertising campaign.

"We wanted to keep the notion that it satisfied thirst at the end of a hard day's work but we also knew we had to move with the times. The early nineties were a time when South African workers were beginning to feel proud of their role in society, thanks to the rise of trade unions within the burgeoning liberation movement. A working class group identity was emerging where workers were 'heroes' who were strong, honest and hardworking," explains Katz. "We retained the idea that they deserved this beer at the end of their day."

Working the numbers

Within two years, the 'worker' repositioning had paid off. In 1992, it had achieved double its target to reach 5.1%. Lessons had been learnt, however, about not allowing public sentiment about the brand to stagnate, as well as about keeping the brand positioning fresh. 1994 heralded momentous changes in the country, which were reflected in the advertising. The target market had to feel that they were contributing to the building of a democratic society so the campaign showed teams of men working together - classic images still strongly associated with Carling.

Quality awarded

To shore up consumers' concerns about the beer's quality, SAB began entering it in tasting competitions. By 1996, it had been honoured twice at the World's Best Bottled Lager competition. Since then it has won 19 more awards, the latest being a gold medal 2010 Australian International Beer Awards.

Cosmopolitan approach pays off

To maintain relevance and resonance with the target audience, the brand has been undergoing a subtle revolution to make it more individual, contemporary, sophisticated, urban and cosmopolitan. As working class aspirations changed, so workers gave way to entrepreneurs. While trade union leaders had been heroes of the political struggle, a new generation of self-made men were becoming the heroes of the economic struggle. Keeping Carling up to date with societal shifts paid excellent dividends. By 2002, it equalled Castle Lager in sales, each owning about 35% of the market.

New man, new image

A recent study commissioned by SAB shows that masculinity increasingly means different things to different people, and that the notion of what is means to be 'a South African man' is changing, thanks to wider social and economic forces within the country.

"Men's responses to these forces are reflected by taking on a greater variety of roles, tasks and identities. Physical labour or traditional 'men's work' - the basis of our successful resurgence since the nineties - no longer holds the same status - men are seeking work that affords them self-expression," says Katz.

Winning attitude

"Today, we admire men who take on life and win. We respect men with values and ambition. Winners who are brave, strong and true have replaced workers. This is captured in the new TV campaign that shows men using their hands to show their skill when rearing a young stallion, bravery when saving a person's life in a deep-sea rescue operation, passion when playing music and pride when playing sport.

"We want to appeal to suburban men who have made their way up the social ladder, are proud to care for their families, and act as role models for others. The new true man is an urban knight who is part of the brotherhood but his individual identity and self-respect is of equal priority. He acts in the interests of the greater good and combines both entrepreneurial and individualistic values.

"Masculinity is more nuanced and the brand is projecting this through recognising the winners and champions. They are entrepreneurs, fathers, community builders, sportsmen and leaders. These are men of character who deserve the reward of champion beer," concludes Katz.