How to build a brand Like Corona

I'm a fan of the Corona brand. Think their advertising is very smart. Here is some analysis on how they've managed to position it as premium beer. Found via HBR

Become part of their ritual.

Did you know that putting a lime slice in your corona bottle only dates back to 1981?

I didn't. I always thought it was something to do with killing the bacteria that might be around the bottle when in storage.

Nope. According to famous brand guy, Martin Lindstrom, the ritual started as a bet by a barman and his mate to see if others in the bar would do the same. Clearly they did. Lindstrom makes the point that the lime slice ritual had contributed significantly to Corona's success.

We use rituals as a shortcut. We perform lots of rituals every day. Often without thinking. Lindstrom places them into different categories. For example, 'preparing for battle' is all the stuff we do each day from brushing our teeth, showering, checking our email or buying a coffee in the morning from the coffee angel when we get off the bus.

In his book Buyology, Lindstrom points to other brands that inject rituals into the way we buy or use stuff. Guinness turned a potential weakness (waiting for slower pint) into a ritual that is expected and appreciated by proper Guinness drinkers - good things come to those who wait.

Become part of their daily ritual and your brand is in a good place.

Nude beach - clever Corona ad

I've heard Corona punch above their weight when it comes to advertising. They don't spend as much as their competitors on advertising - but people remember their ads.

They achieve this by consistently keeping with their beach idea, relaxed tone, the lime slice and clever play on words and visual - such as having no label on a nude beach.

I like their greedy execution too.

More nice outdoor: Corona

Corona do strong outdoor advertising. By consistently using relaxing beach scenes and the lime, I'm told they get comparably higher recall than many competitors despite lower budgets.

This ad follows most of the good outdoor principles: Simple message. Strong branding. One visual - while strictly it is not a single image (3 bottles, not one), it is probably fair to say they form one visual, as they are grouped together. Short headline. And humour.

Executionally, the minor amends I'd do is

1. Try and give the ad more blue sky. To do this, I'd either cut back on some of the tree leaves or cut back on the excessive space given to the wood table at the bottom of the image and pull everything down a bit. This would allow for more blue sky.
2. With more blue sky available, I'd make the "greedy" headline bigger.
   
3. And I'd see if I could get more contrast between the white headline font and the light blue sky behind it. Perhaps a slightly darker blue around the headline.

They are minor changes though. It's a good ad.