I am trying to update this Blog about once a week.
But some people may have noticed already that I started to have English version in parallel, which made me busy for translation for the past few days. It’s been already more than 6 months since I had not used English. My (English speaking) brain squeaks as if it is covered with full of rust… Finally, writing of this topic gets me to catch up with Japanese version.
But why English pages?
(Like I wrote in my profile,) it is for very personal reason. I do not want to lose English, but I do not have any chance to use it after I left the Company. I must force myself to use it, or I cannot retain it. Is there anyone coming to this Blog? Can I retain this if very few people come to read? Can’t promise anything now…
Today, it’ll be relatively small chat.
I like Sapporo Beer. (That means Sapporo cannot become No.1? Don’t know. → See this page.)
They are so “good at making good beer”, but somehow, so “bad at making good marketing”. Indeed, it makes me like the brand more. Recently, they launched a new beer brand with extremely high TV spending, which is a hotchpotch of many other brands’ promises. For instance, it says 70% calories-off! 70%... half-done. But, as it is from Sapporo, it must be that they wanted to sell tasty beer and to do so, 70% must have been the best balance… They did it again.
Hang in there, Sapporo! (I am not at all joking. I mean it.)
In the premium beer segment, it gets super competitive, and Premium Molts (from Suntory) is doing very well. YEBISU, historic leading brand in the segment, must hang in there now. Particularly, in Kansai area I am living, it is quite hard to find beer from Sapporo other than YEBISU. For Sapporo fans like me, Sapporo must fight hard to defend it.
From the YEBISU brand, they are now selling fall-limited seasonal flavor of “Amber-YEBISU”. I like its package design so let me talk about it today.
It is a kind of design job that gives a designer headache.
“Communicate clearly that it is limited seasonal offer.”
“Must be obvious it is a part of YEBISU line.”
“But, make it clear it is different and special flavor.”
“Don’t lose premium look.”
“Of course, it must stand out in the store.”
“Don’t lose YEBISU-ness, and strengthen its total image.”
“Use the color (scheme) that connotes color of amber and flavor of it.”
You as a designer have to do them all.
But, this design did it well.
And I like it.
(Of course, I am in big favor of Sapporo, and YEBISU, and in fact I like the color they use. And I am putting big big strategic question aside, if they should in the first place keep launching line extensions one after another, Black, Green, and White, and then Red, whereas the competitor, Premium Molts, is trying hard to steal its key color, Gold.)
Shade and touch of its crimson red are very nice on the can, and moreover, I love its design treatment of making them small. It actually wipes out all the challenges above.
Look of seasonal offer and feel of premium can go together, so it might not have been a show stopper. What it makes it great is their belief to their brand’s strength to decide to make the logo and trademark small.
Small looks premium/exclusive. It is a common sense in people’s mind. But it is a brave call in the marketing/merchandising world. The idea would have got killed if they had one, only one from their management, raised question “It does not get attention on the shelf.” End of the story.
But fortunately, they made it, and it works even harder as you can feel the color and quality of it.
Good job!
(I have to confess here that the taste of the Red YEBISU was not as great as the design to me, who prefer the Green YEBISU to the Gold YEBISU being a bit too sweet. But, forget it. I am a big fan of YEBISU anyways.)
I am hoping that it would be cool if they change the entire line package according to this upon a renewal for the next new year day. With this selfish dream, I sipped YEBISU tonight, too.
“O.”
