carlito sells out?

[neoflex]

Bud =

[Dogwatch Dale]

Originally Posted by Franksmith

At the end of the day it is just a paycheck... we shouldn't throw stones, most of us would have done the same when we saw the exposure potential and $$$ offered.

I don't see this as a sell out at all. Fuente is in business to make money. They have great products and this is another way of promoting those products. Bud has great products (even though it's not my cup o' beer) and does an outstanding job of marketing. I view this as a great way to get the cigar message to more folks (including voters!) Very important to keep in mind with all the anti-smoking legislation going on around the country.

[hollywood]

Originally Posted by mmblz

I wonder who's paying for what.
First thing I thought of when I saw it was that Bud was paying A.F.

DING DING DING!!! Absolutely!! Don't think for one minute AF went out trying to associate with Bud!

[mels95yj]

Originally Posted by altbier

what he said. plenty of bud drinkers out there that dont know good taste.

Hey now! I resemble that remark.

My name is Mel, and I'm a Bud drinker. Yes, it's true. I'm standing up and announcing my addiction. Actually, I do drink Bud, but will say it's not the best beer by any stretch of the imagination. I just haven't found many other beers I like enough to spend the extra $$ on.

Ok, flamesuit on.

Mel

[hollywood]

Originally Posted by Dogwatch Dale

I don't see this as a sell out at all. Fuente is in business to make money. They have great products and this is another way of promoting those products. Bud has great products (even though it's not my cup o' beer) and does an outstanding job of marketing. I view this as a great way to get the cigar message to more folks (including voters!) Very important to keep in mind with all the anti-smoking legislation going on around the country.

Great points made Dale. Not that i thought they were selling out, but they made the most of the business decision they were presented with. Exposure + lots of $$$ = easy choice!!

[rumballs]

Originally Posted by Dogwatch Dale

I don't see this as a sell out at all. Fuente is in business to make money. They have great products and this is another way of promoting those products. Bud has great products (even though it's not my cup o' beer) and does an outstanding job of marketing. I view this as a great way to get the cigar message to more folks (including voters!) Very important to keep in mind with all the anti-smoking legislation going on around the country.

eh... I disagree. Primarily I see it as a sell-out because Fuente does make great products. As Carlito is always talking about, cigars are his life, and he is utterly devoted to making the best cigars possible. Budweiser simply doesn't have the same mentality. They're not making beer for the sake of great beer, they're making cheap beer for the sake of making money. They're like Swisher sweets.

Second, I have to wonder what they accomplish by appearing in this ad. Sure, some Budweiser drinkers may see it and decide to try AF - but how many of these people will end up being cigar smokers or appreciate that AFs actually have some flavor? Based on their beer choice, even if they go for a "premium" cigar, they'll probably want a Macanudo. Seems like for the most part they may only try one or two AFs. Cigar smokers may see the ad, but they are already likely to know about AF, and the Bud association is most likely negative.

[DonJefe]

Originally Posted by mmblz

eh... I disagree. Primarily I see it as a sell-out because Fuente does make great products. As Carlito is always talking about, cigars are his life, and he is utterly devoted to making the best cigars possible. Budweiser simply doesn't have the same mentality. They're not making beer for the sake of great beer, they're making cheap beer for the sake of making money. They're like Swisher sweets.

Second, I have to wonder what they accomplish by appearing in this ad. Sure, some Budweiser drinkers may see it and decide to try AF - but how many of these people will end up being cigar smokers or appreciate that AFs actually have some flavor? Based on their beer choice, even if they go for a "premium" cigar, they'll probably want a Macanudo. Seems like for the most part they may only try one or two AFs. Cigar smokers may see the ad, but they are already likely to know about AF, and the Bud association is most likely negative.

So, if you drink Budweiser you wouldn't know a good cigar from a Swisher?

[hollywood]

o here we go.

[DonJefe]

Originally Posted by hollywood

o here we go.

I just asked a question.

[rumballs]

Originally Posted by DonJefe

So, if you drink Budweiser you wouldn't know a good cigar from a Swisher?

No, just the business model of Budweiser is much more like Swisher than AF.

[DonJefe]

Originally Posted by mmblz

No, just the business model of Budweiser is much more like Swisher than AF.

Gotcha, but when all is said and done the only thing that matters to any of these people is the bottom line.

Do you think Fuente would continue to make great cigars if there was no money in it?

[rumballs]

Originally Posted by DonJefe

Gotcha, but when all is said and done the only thing that matters to any of these people is the bottom line.

Do you think Fuente would continue to make great cigars if there was no money in it?

No.
But I just wonder how much this ad will really help them.
Their high-end marketing (partnering with Prometheus, ST Dupont, the cognac, etc) make much more sense to me.

[RcktS4]

Originally Posted by mmblz

No.
But I just wonder how much this ad will really help them.
Their high-end marketing (partnering with Prometheus, ST Dupont, the cognac, etc) make much more sense to me.

This marketing works because the vast majority of the people who see it will not read much more into it than "wow. beautiful cigars." - the message here is that Fuentes are so completely identifiable as fantastic cigars that they make Bud look good. Same idea as using a car like a GT350 in a beer ad - the car is placed in the "pefection" spot, which refers some of its standing to the beer.

In this case it works two ways: since everyone implicitly understands the model (irreproachable perfection tied to product) the ad reinforces the idea that Fuente are a par excellence product, and this enhances Budweiser's image.

I think that anyone who believes that this ad will tarnish Fuente's image is crazy. I would bet it is a joint campaign, that both parts are contributing to.
Most people won't see anything more than "Oh - those must be the world's best cigars".

But even for those of you that think it was a sell-out: did this ad make you think Fuentes were lower quality than they are? No - your hatred of Bud plays out as "How coule Fuente stoop so low" - which STILL reinforces the fuente quality message.

IMO, the ad works. Very well.

[DonJefe]

Originally Posted by RcktS4

This marketing works because the vast majority of the people who see it will not read much more into it than "wow. beautiful cigars." - the message here is that Fuentes are so completely identifiable as fantastic cigars that they make Bud look good. Same idea as using a car like a GT350 in a beer ad - the car is placed in the "pefection" spot, which refers some of its standing to the beer.

In this case it works two ways: since everyone implicitly understands the model (irreproachable perfection tied to product) the ad reinforces the idea that Fuente are a par excellence product, and this enhances Budweiser's image.

I think that anyone who believes that this ad will tarnish Fuente's image is crazy. I would bet it is a joint campaign, that both parts are contributing to.
Most people won't see anything more than "Oh - those must be the world's best cigars".

But even for those of you that think it was a sell-out: did this ad make you think Fuentes were lower quality than they are? No - your hatred of Bud plays out as "How coule Fuente stoop so low" - which STILL reinforces the fuente quality message.

IMO, the ad works. Very well.

Thanks Raney!

[rumballs]

Good points Raney. You would think that the "Language, Truth, and Advertising" class that I took in college would allow me to have thought about it more along those lines, but I guess I was blinded by the Budweiser logo