Where is the big three’s online presence?

Marketing in the beer industry is big business. Companies like Budweiser spend around $134 million dollars annually. This is a huge amount to spend on advertising. Beer companies in the US are unique from the rest of the world. The beer market is dominated by three major companies; Budweiser, Coors, and Miller. The big three own more than 90% of the markets share, while the micro brews and craft breweries share the rest. This has put the big three in an ideal position. They have so much money that they are able to spend so much more on advertising that the small companies can’t compete. Most of the spending on advertising for the big three goes to TV ads. Out of the $134 million that Budweiser spent, only $3.9 million was spent online. That to me is astonishing. To have so much power in the industry and brand recognition, I believe they are falling behind in online presence compared to the small craft breweries. Breweries target market, especially the cheaper less tasting major breweries, is younger males. This target market has a huge presence online and should not be left alone. With this lack of using online marketing techniques, the big three can start to lose some of that market share that they have built so great.

The big three have always been in a prime position and they have had very good success with creating brand awareness and recognition. They have pretty much turned a shoulder on online advertising, but I think that will change soon enough. Micro brews and craft breweries have been on a rise in America. People have started to shell out more money for stronger and better tasting beer. The reason smaller breweries are becoming more known is because of their presence online. These small time breweries can’t compete with the big three in other communication channels because they do not have the capitol to do so. They focus mainly online and have had great success from it. The big three won’t let this go on forever though. They have started to get the picture of how important online presence is. Budweiser has started to created viral videos, social media content, and have even started online games and social reality shows. They are starting behind and it will be interesting to see how long it will take them to catch up. What will the craft breweries do once that happens?