Traditionally, the non-alcoholic beer category has suffered from negative perceptions around taste. This has led to it being perceived as a niche category that is only purchased or consumed by people when circumstances force them to - drivers, for instance, or pregnant women and dieters. One company active in this market is Bavaria, the biggest independently owned brewery in Europe. Its Bavaria 0.0% alcohol-free beer scores highly in blind taste tests, beating competitor brands on appearance, flavour, bitterness, after-taste, sweetness and refreshment.

We were tasked with raising awareness, driving trial and encouraging purchase of Bavaria 0.0% beer whilst maintaining the beer's position as a cheeky, risqué and fun beer brand. Our PromoSignature tool, assessed the target audience and their propensity to respond to specific promotions, mechanics and media. It indicated that experiential sampling activity would be the most effective way to raise awareness and drive trial. Our Location Ranking tool indicated that County shows, air shows, town centres and beach locations were the most suitable venues for our campaign.

Our experiential campaign used the premise of 'Expect the Unexpected' to accentuate the fact that Bavaria 0.0% tastes unexpectedly good. A Human Vending Machine was created to support the proposition. At the push of a large red button, chilled product samples, unexpected prizes and experiences were handed out through trap doors and hatches in the stand. 150ml sample cans were distributed along with a leaflet containing details of a Facebook competition and a 50p off coupon, redeemable at all major grocery stores. Goody bag sampling was undertaken at a further 20 locations.

All KPIs for the campaign were exceeded The profit for every pound spent on the campaign was £1.08. Bavaria has been able to increase sales of its 0.0% beer by 26.2% year on year.

'We wanted.a memorable brand experience to fit in with our positioning and to use it to address some of the negative consumer preconceptions of alcohol-free beer. smp came back with a range of creative concepts, with a couple that really stood out. Working with smp was straightforward and the campaign was delivered on time and within budget. In terms of results we sampled more than the target, and the consumer feedback regarding the brand experience and likelihood to buy and recommend was positive.' Sean Durkan, Bavaria UK