Kopparberg Brings the Sunshine With 5-Star Ad

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How do you communicate sunshine and joy in a beer or cider ad? Plenty of brands take the obvious route – showing friends together, happily drinking in a pub garden. Some start at the other end of the journey and show off the ingredients or the brand’s rich heritage. But Swedish fruit cider brand Kopparberg, alongside agency Neverland, have found a different, delightful route.

Their summer cider ad, “Bring Me Sunshine”, which we tested back in August, ends up with a familiar, convivial scene of cider drinking. But in this ad it’s the journey that makes the difference. The 30-second spot shows a young guy heading out to a garden hangout with friends, carrying a gigantic mirrorball, and the ad follows him and his disco-themed cargo across town. He sheepishly takes it onto the bus. He has to move quick as it starts to roll down a hill. And finally he gets it to its destination, as the perfect whimsical accessory for a summer afternoon with friends.

It’s a charming, funny and silly ad that elegantly sidesteps the usual category conventions to reach the same destination via a very distinctive path. And audiences absolutely love it.

The ad scores 5.0-Stars on our Test Your Ad Pro platform with a general audience, predicting exceptional long-term potential for business growth. It’s one of only eight UK beer and cider ads to have hit that top score, as the category tends to generate solid but unexceptional advertising. That’s probably down to those oh-so-familiar category conventions, which Kopparberg pleasantly subverts in “Bring Me Sunshine”.

With an exceptional short-term Spike Rating too, Kopparberg’s ad is proof of the wisdom of thinking differently when it comes to creative. Category conventions can be important for basic recognition of what’s being advertised but the greatest rewards are often found when you look beyond them and come up with a sparkling new spin. When you can do that and then turn it into a consistent creative angle for your brand – as in classic 80s and 90s drink campaigns like “Probably The Best…” – then you can establish a lasting creative advantage.

In Kopparberg’s case their ad excels because it’s very human as well as very funny. The surrealism isn’t all down to special effects or AI – it’s quite old school prop comedy which gives it a tone of realism that grounds it and makes the protagonist’s adventures more humorous. And the ad also ends very well, with the closing social scene adding a bit more human connection and between-ness to the mix.

The lesson for brands is that a good, simple idea that communicates your brand’s qualities – happiness, community, being something a little different – can excel in a category where most of your competitors are sticking to the standard playbook. Entertaining your audience is never a risk