Inspiration

Running the Michelob marathon

Imagine training for your next 5K in total silence. (Yeah, cringeworthy.) The truth is a run isn’t fun without some music or podcasts to keep us moving. That’s why Michelob Ultra teamed up with Spotify to give runners an extra boost with customized beats, from warm-up to cool-down.

The challenge

To reach health-conscious runners, Michelob Ultra wanted to build a campaign that positioned the beer as an aspirational drink for those who want to have it all. Run, drink, relax, repeat.

The big idea

Music motivates runners to go further, faster, and have more fun on the journey. That’s why “running” is the top theme in the 54M+ workout-themed playlists created by users around the world on Spotify, revealing just how varied an individual runner’s tastes can be. So we got to thinking: What if we create hyper-personalized playlists for every runner, and then reward them for a job well done?

The magic

We built a microsite that offers a custom running playlist for each listener who engages with the digital experience, influenced by their recent listening history, the length and intensity of their run, and their current weather conditions. In other words, a highly personalized playlist powering their every stride.

A series of dynamic, contextually relevant audio ads on Spotify brought fans flocking to the experience. After the workout, listeners were invited to log their jog on the site and receive free beer and other rewards in return.

Needless to say, the campaign went far beyond the finish line. Results from our campaign in both the UK and Mexico included 3,000 dynamic audio ads influenced by inputs like time of day and weather conditions, as well as 150,000 unique playlists created to soundtrack our users’ runs. Finishing with an impressive 9M impressions, and reaching 71% of runners in the market.

Listen now

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Michelob x Spotify

  • 3K

    Personalized Ads

    Thousands of audio ads were personalized for listeners.
  • 150K

    Playlists Created

    Over 150K custom running playlists were created.

Looking for something a little more custom? Let's talk.