Adam Ferrier

It’s easy to see why foreign beer brands like Heineken and Stella Artois have lost little of their consumer appeal by being brewed in Australia, says consumer psychologist Adam Ferrier.

Ferrier said the actual provenance of the liquid is only a very small part of its ‘brand promise’ to consumers – timely comments, given today’s announcement that Coopers will brew New York City’s Brooklyn Lager in Australia.

“A beer’s brand promise is made up of everything a brand does, everything that brand stands for, the image of it, the label, the advertising, what’s in the actual liquid itself,” he told Radio Brews News.

He said a beer offers both rational and emotional benefits to consumers, and the latter can survive regardless of where the beer’s brewed.

“A Belgian beer is still a Belgian beer because that’s the promise, that’s what it communicates, that’s its image – even if it’s brewed here,” he said.

“If you’re drinking for example a Stella and you’re drinking it because you want want to be seen as premium… a bit European or a bit arty… then as long as that brand is communicating all that stuff about you and the beer tastes alright, then you’re going to forgive that brand very quickly for being brewed in Australia.

“Therefore it kinds of makes sense that it has very little impact on sales or very few people would reject it, based on the fact that it’s brewed here,” Ferrier said.

Episode 55 of Radio Brews News is available here.

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