The Marketing Trick Samuel Adams Uses To Get You To Buy Its Beer

Like it or not, marketing campaigns often use psychology to convince (or even manipulate) customers to buy products. They send a message through advertising to try to reach your wallet via your heart and your emotions. Samuel Adams beer is no different. The company projects an image in its branding with the hope it will be something you can relate to, attempting to awaken a strong emotional connection with the consumer. In this particular beer company's case, it's a belief that they understand and know what's important to you. They are the "little guys," and we relate to them.

You won't find Samuel Adams airing splashy ads with enormous horses. You may, however, see a Super Bowl ad with its Boston-centric spokesperson: "Your Cousin From Boston," a working-class Bostonian, an everyman. In keeping on-brand, Samuel Adams wants you to believe that it understands the common person — and, ultimately, you. In a video on LinkedIn, digital creator and host of Nickelodeon News, Tejas Hullur, points out that despite Samuel Adams's success, the company still employs a narrative of being an underdog.

Despite being a $3 billion company, Samuel Adams is still independently owned. It is one of the brands of Boston Beer, Co., which has lines of hard ciders, hard seltzers, and (of course) beer. The $3 billion price tag may seem like a lot, but to put that into perspective, brewing giant Anheuser Busch has a net worth of $113 billion. When you look at those numbers, you can see why people think that Samuel Adams tries to portray itself as the little guy or the underdog, even if its earning power is in the billions.

Americans have a long history of rooting for the underdog. According to a 2007 study conducted by the University of South Florida, underdogs are seen as having qualities of optimism, and participants in the study felt they could identify with them. This is exactly how the marketing execs at Samuel Adams want you to feel about the product.

Samuel Adams grew out of a home brew; it started with founder Jim Koch brewing the American Dream in his kitchen and convincing Boston bar owners to add it to their offerings. This underdog was going up against brewing titans, but Koch had optimism and faith in his product to believe he had a chance. Even though Samuel Adams is now worth over $3 billion, Koch continues to take advantage of the story of the underdog and his company's humble beginnings in an effort to win your heart and business.