It’s always disappointing to discover that a scrappy little stick-it-to-the-man brand you have supported for years has either all along been some outpost of a multinational company, or has just been acquired by one.
Tom’s of Maine comes to mind (acquired by Colgate in 2006); Body Shop went to L’Oreal the same year; General Mills bought Food Should Taste Good in 2012 and then set about making sure it still doesn’t. Even Burt’s Bees, was gobbled up by Clorox (yes, I know) ten years back.
Many clever big brands have been quietly sucking up little ones for years. Anheuser-Busch InBev, the giant behind Budweiser, Stella Artois and Corona has lately picked up ten craft brewers, along with a brewing supply company and, last fall, a stake in beer rating site, RateBeer. This would seem to be unpopular.
Beer drinkers and craft brewers alike, are understandably hopping (sorry, I just had to) mad that ABI actually bought into the site in October but only got around to telling anyone last month. So incensed are these craft brewers that they are demanding their ratings be taken off the site, in the name of journalistic integrity.
The folks who run the site have replied in the negative, pointing out that existing ratings of one brewery have exactly nothing to do with ownership by another. That a privately run website should also be subject to a journalism code of ethics is also pretty squishy ground to stand on.
Dissenting Brads Shoot at Both Feet
But here’s the real problem: ABI has the right to buy stuff, even beer rating sites. The people who own RateBeer have the right to sell some or all of their stuff. Never mind that it’s a tone deaf astroturfing move on the part of ABI, the fact is, there is nothing illegal or even particularly unethical going on with this acquisition. It’s a bit skeezy that nobody found out for a while, and I think that fact may ultimately tank this site. Consumers aren’t stupid.
When Dogfish, Sixpoint and other craft breweries get worked up and demand their ratings be removed, they’re taking aim, not at ABI but at their own feet. In the first place, the ratings are important well beyond the confines of the site, and pulling them down in a fit of pique is really only going to damage their SEO and make them look at bit petulant.
In the second place, they may be creating the unintended consequence of deterring beer fans from standing up new review sites. If the pay off for years of lovingly maintaining a community is a cease and desist letter, then who’s going to bother? These brewers have a lot more to lose than a few old reviews by picking this battle.
If craft brewers really want to stick it to ABI, they should be looking for other independent review sites they can support with their advertising dollars.
Brands Are Like Dogs
By giving their raving fans and ideal customers an alternative spot to discuss beer, then RateBeer will wither away and ABI will need to go bother someone else. Or, and it’s a big “Or”, ABI can do with this site what Adobe managed with 99U, and just leave it alone to serve its readers and make life slightly nicer for an engaged few.
Whether they do or they don’t, ABI is doing what it is meant to do, which is create growth for its shareholders. Given the number of craft brewers willing to sell out to them, and other big beverage companies, I’m thinking that’s not a sentiment restricted to multinationals. The truth is there are two parties in these transactions, and the people who don’t actually get a say are, you guessed it, customers and competitors.
Which is okay because brands, as we have seen, are like dogs and need to be owned, cared for and managed by someone. Just because you happen to like the neighbour’s dog does not give you any rights at all to weigh in on its name, ridiculous booties, or obsessive self-grooming habits.
Is it sad to see a renegade brand with a point of view coopted by a multinational? Yup. Does that create a new space for another free thinker to step in and challenge? You bet. I’ll raise an artisanal IPA to that any day.
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BizMarketer is written by Elizabeth Williams
I help companies have better conversations
Drop me a line at ewilliams@candlerchase.com
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