ORLANDO, FL – Responsibility.org today launched Think Responsibly, a new campaign directed to millennial adults, in partnership with Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America (WSWA) and the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS) at the wholesalers’ 76th annual convention in Orlando.
The campaign, geared toward millennials of legal purchase age who choose to drink, aims to increase their intention to drink responsibly through digital messages that underscore responsible drinking decisions.
As part of the campaign, Think Responsibly ads will encourage visitors to take a quiz on responsible drinking. The quiz, along with online messages, will be measured by a Facebook Brand Lift Survey to determine how well the campaign lifts a millennial’s intention to drink responsibly.
“Our member companies recognize the importance of social responsibility. It is inherent in the way we run our businesses,” said WSWA President and CEO Michelle Korsmo. “WSWA is excited to partner with Responsibility.org and DISCUS in making the Think Responsibly campaign a key part of our members’ efforts by promoting this important message in their communities.”
Think Responsibly went through extensive qualitative and quantitative research to better understand millennials’ attitudes around alcohol consumption. Discussions revealed drinking is a social activity that fosters connections. While most respondents feel fine about their drinking, they acknowledge there are times they could be more responsible. The research found that first and foremost, “drink responsibly” means don’t drive drunk and don’t embarrass yourself.
“This campaign provides an excellent opportunity for all tiers in the alcohol industry to work together on an important new social responsibility program,” said Responsibility.org and Distilled Spirits Council President and CEO Chris Swonger. “We all share the same commitment to responsibility and by partnering with WSWA and directly with our wholesale partners, we will be able to extend our reach and get this important message out to millennials across the country. Everyone should drink responsibly but also think responsibly.”
In developing the campaign, a national survey of 1,021 adults 21-28 years of age, who are current drinkers, measured attitudes towards drinking alcohol and drinking behaviors, and tested creative campaign approaches in order to validate focus group findings and determine which concept resonated best among millennials. Think Responsibly is the campaign concept that resonated most with this adult demographic.
The results found that one-third of millennials do not currently use tools or resources to help them drink more responsibly. However, six out of ten are interested in new tools and techniques to achieve this.
“It is my job as President and CEO of Responsibility.org and DISCUS to promote responsibility throughout everything we do at both organizations. This partnership effort with WSWA on Think Responsibly is a perfect fit,” said Swonger. “It is our hope that the greater industry will participate in this new campaign and see it as an important resource to promote responsibility in their communities.