Hansa Pilsener's new campaign is a cheeky toast to life experience

When Hansa Pilsener asked for a campaign to make the over-30 crowd love them again, Joe Public Cape Town took a cheeky poke at culture’s obsession with the youth.

Many South African brands focus on targeting 18- to 30-year-olds and don’t pay much attention to the 30-plus market — a market that values authenticity over flash.

With all advertising aimed at Gen Z these days — NFTs, TikTok dances and influencers in tow — the Joe Public team saw the opportunity to set Hansa Pilsener apart from the crowd by creating something its more experienced audience would appreciate. 

“Hansa is a beloved brand in SA, with a rich heritage and authentic positioning. It stands out as the only commercial Pilsener available. The Kiss of the Saaz Hop offers a unique drinking experience that is appreciated and loved by consumers,” says Arné Rust, Hansa brand director.

“However, beyond this, the brand lost its way in the minds of our consumers and our objective was to focus on our core user base by reintroducing Hansa with a distinct purpose backed up by a unique value proposition, ‘Brewed From Experience’.”

The Joe Public team created a series of YouTube videos promoting Hansa that harness the social media platforms' skippable ad format, which lets viewers skip an ad that doesn't interest them after six seconds.

The Hansa ads were disguised as content videos on topics that over-30s watch, like building a treehouse or fixing your car, but transformed after six seconds — a clever tactic that ensured that the younger generation would skip the videos.

The videos then served as a reminder to the over-30s generation that they’re the ones with the experience to appreciate Hansa Pilsner’s 150 years of brewing excellence.

“We were excited to shake things up and speak to an experienced generation that may not always be trendsetting, but whose spending power and brand loyalty are undeniable,” says Brendan Hoffmann, Joe Public Cape Town executive creative director.

“In a marketing landscape that frequently skews younger, we view this pivot towards Hansa’s seasoned fans as a timely, strategic move — a new kind of cool, if you will”.

Watch one of the videos in the Hansa 'Have They Skipped' campaign now:

This article was sponsored by Joe Public.