Guinness goes after African American middle class

I saw a really cool commercial for guinness beer today. You might have noticed it recently as it just came out on the 9th of this month. It's called Fortune Favors The Bold.

The concept of the commercial is a lone pint of Guinness beer is poured and then sent sliding down a bar. It continues across a rail, over the hood of a taxi, down the street on a skateboard, across a construction I-beam, to a window sill. Inside the office of that same window sill we see a smartly dress Black guy closing a deal with another businessman. The Black guy obviously has the upper hand and the beer arrives just as he closes the deal to his satisfaction. He then picks up the beer and toasts the deal.

I've been looking for the video of this commercial but have yet to find it. [Update - thanks to a reader, I know have the video]



It's really well done on multiple levels. It's obviously targeted to African Americans and the middle class. It's not about hip hop or being ghettofabulous. It's smooth and interesting.

Of the many commercials that are targeted solely to African Americans this is one of the best I've seen in a long time. In fact I think that McDonald's, Burger King, and American Express can learn a lot from this commercial - just to name a companies that seem to have no idea how to market to the Black community without blaring music and hip hop.

It's yet another sign that some in advertising understand that the Black community is not a single uniform entity that can only be approached with street slang and minstrel-like joviality. Nor are we so unaware of what is happening that we don't notice when we are made to be the butt of jokes or marginalized in a commercial that seemingly is supposed to endear us to this brand or that.

Considering the roughly $1 trillion in buying power that African Americans use every year, the approach by Guinness is a refreshing change of pace.

Now if I can just find that video clip.