Putting the Eddies online proves an award-winning performance for Big Rock Brewery

Profile by: Rita Feutl

Most Effective Marketing Startegy for Online Business Development
Finalists: Big Rock Brewery Ltd.; International Productivity Solutions; MarTech College
Winner: Big Rock Brewery Ltd.
Company Description: Big Rock Brewery Ltd. is a regional producer and marketer of premium quality beers in Calgary.

Every spring since 1992, Calgary’s Big Rock Brewery has thrown a big, glitzy bash that lets budding, hip filmmakers show off their 60-second take of what a beer commercial — specifically one about Big Rock should look like. Winners of the Eddies, named after founder and CEO Ed McNally, share $10,000 in prizes.

“The reason Big Rock came to create the Eddies was the fact that we did’t have a lot of money to do marketing and this was a great way to get our name out there,” says marketing co-ordinator Jessica Barrie.

The Academy Awards-style spoof offers celebrity judges, musical guests, food from top local restaurants and, of course, all the beer you’d care to drink. This year more than 2,400 attendees crowded into the Calgary Jubilee auditorium, while Edmonton’s Citadel Theatre sold out its 900-seat venue, with proceeds from ticket sales going to local charities.

“The whole show is designed to leverage our brand,” says Barrie, “but as well to give back to our community.”

Clearly Big Rock had a good thing going. But this year the brewery decided to take it a step further, hoping to generate some of the same sizzle and exposure for its Web site.

“We have a lot of people outside of Alberta that are interested in seeing what the Eddies are about,” said Barrie, noting consumers now regularly contact them from British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, Ontario and even California. “A lot of the people can’t come to Calgary and the event, so we brought it online to get a more robust audience and to make our audience bigger and grow.”

To put the project together, Big Rock brought Stormworks Inc., a branding and online technology company, and Jet Stream Digital Media Inc., which focuses on media and video development, on board. Both Calgary-based companies agreed to provide their services for free, in exchange for exposure on all Eddies promotional items including posters, press releases and ticket sales as sponsor.

Not only did the action plan involve redesigning the Eddies Web site, but a new category was created to incorporate an online winner. On March 8, re-tooling of Big Rock�s homepage began. Fifteen days later, the job was done, and the brewery sent out press releases and pre-event promo e-mails on three different dates.

By May 31, the online voting was completed, and on June 15, Stormworks and Jet Stream made the winning presentation on behalf of Big Rock during a ceremony at IMAX Eau Claire.

But in online marketing terms, the brewery was the big winner. During May, the number of Web site visits increased by 46%, while hits rose by 15% from March to July 2001. Web site visits to One Yellow Rabbit Theatre and the Calgary Women’s Emergency Shelter (the two main gala ticket-sale beneficiaries) also increased.

Barrie notes that the online event garnered significant media interest, as well as piquing the curiosity of filmmakers from around the world.

“We were very pleased this year and we will be continuing with the online version again this next year, with a possibility of a simulcast,” says Barrie. Videographers had better start dusting off their cameras.

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