When it comes to alcohol brands, creators with food-forward audiences, like bartenders and chefs, are always top of mind for influencer partnerships. But as influencer marketing has matured, so has the hard beverage sector’s approach to it. Today, new and legacy alcohol brands alike are generating great engagement — and high Estimated Media Value (or EMV, more on that below) — by partnering with a more wide-ranging set of social media influencers. Think athletes, artists, adventurers, and more.
With so much sameness flooding social media feeds, there’s never been a better time for alcohol brands to get creative with influencer marketing. We used our influencer marketing solution to highlight how innovative partnerships are driving delicious results in the alcohol industry.
Table of Contents:
What are the benefits of influencers for alcoholic beverage brands?
Why is Estimated Media Value (EMV) important in influencer marketing?
3 types of influencers driving impact for alcoholic beverage brands
Meme accounts
Artists and creatives
Outdoor enthusiasts and athletes
Key takeaways: Alcohol brands and influencer marketing
FAQ: Alcoholic Beverage Influencer Marketing
What are the benefits of influencers for alcoholic beverage brands?
For alcohol brands, social media influencers are key partners for expanding awareness and boosting exposure with digital-native audiences, like Gen Z. For liquor and other mixed-drink ingredient brands in particular, influencers can show your product in action with walk-through recipes and cocktail-making demonstrations. More broadly, influencers can lend alcohol brands trust and relevance by featuring them as part of a specific lifestyle or digital community.
To learn more about how the world’s leading alcohol brands are successfully leveraging influencer marketing, download the Alcoholic Beverages Influencer Benchmarking Snapshot.
Why is Estimated Media Value (EMV) important in influencer marketing?
Estimated Media Value, or EMV, is a metric that translates influencer campaign performance into ad spend value. It’s important because it allows for ROI comparison between digital and traditional marketing activities. For example, an Instagram post that has $2,000 EMV achieved the same results in terms of visibility and engagement as $2,000 of traditional ad spend. While determining EMV can be complex, Meltwater’s influencer marketing solution calculates EMV automatically, both for individual posts as well as across campaigns.
Get a more in-depth explanation of how EMV is calculated.
3 types of influencers driving impact for alcoholic beverage brands
Foodie influencers will always be important partners for alcohol brands, but that doesn’t mean they’re the only options. Let this handful of examples be your inspiration for exploring the wider possibilities of influencer marketing in the beverage sector.
Note: The EMV values mentioned below were calculated with Meltwater’s influencer marketing solution.
Meme accounts
Yes, you read that correctly. Social media meme pages are some of the most in-demand influencers today. Dealing in the brainrot language of digital spaces, they can drive engagement for even the most serious brands. For beverages looking to associate themselves with carefree fun, meme pages are especially effective partners. For example, guess how much EMV this meme page post generated for Angry Orchard cider?
According to our influencer marketing solution, the above post from meme account @middleclassfancy achieved a 5.68% engagement rate and generated about $1.9 million in EMV. Meanwhile, meme account @dudewithsign’s sponsored post for On the Rocks, seen below, achieved a .18% engagement rate and generated about $365,000 in EMV, another impressive figure.
Both posts use creative ways to promote the sponsored brands by doing away with the normal heavy sell tactics and leaning into irreverence. In the process, they position the alcohol beverage brands as being relevant to, and well-versed in, Gen Z and Millennial internet culture.
Artists and creatives
Social media content creators don’t only make videos. Many “analog” creators like painters, illustrators, and musicians also have large social media followings and partner with a wide range of brands.
The above post from illustrator Violet Clair (@violetclair) promoting Yes Way Rosé in a personal carousel about facing uncertainty achieved a .95% engagement rate and generated about $29,600 in EMV.
Meanwhile, professional makeup artist Abby Wren (@abbywrenartistry) achieved a 1.31% engagement rate and about $57,000 in EMV with the above Reel promoting Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. at the Outside Lands music festival.
Both creators used their artistic work, expertly edited and packaged for Instagram, to position each brand as positive parts of their lifestyles. As a result, their posts resonated with their music- and visual art-loving audiences.
Outdoor enthusiasts and athletes
For many beer and liquor aficionados, the great outdoors go hand in hand with their favorite hard beverages. Après ski is synonymous with cocktails while beers are ever-present on fishing boats around the world. Depending on their target market, it’s a no brainer for many alcohol brands to partner with outdoorsy influencers. For example, the below Reel from professional skier Cody Townsend (@codytownsend) highlights Tin Cup Whiskey as one of the provisions he took on a backcountry skiing excursion in Alaska.
The social ad was a good fit for a whiskey brand whose tagline is “Your Ultimate Partner in Adventure” — it achieved a 1.16% engagement rate and about $9,200 in EMV.
Adventure travel duo @theloverspassport took a similar approach in the above Reel, highlighting how they used Four Roses Bourbon to make cocktails on a beach camping trip. The post had a 0.15% engagement rate, but generated about $111,200 in EMV.
Both posts do a great job of using beautiful landscapes and personal storytelling to promote their respective sponsoring brands. As a result, Tin Cup Whiskey and Four Roses Bourbon shine as drinks of choice for consumers’ next big outdoor adventures.
| Influencer Type / Example | Brand | Engagement Rate | EMV (Estimated Media Value) | Key Takeaway |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Meme accounts | Angry Orchard, On the Rocks | 0.18% – 5.68% | ~$365K – $1.9M | Meme pages drum up engagement for alcohol brands by translating brand identity into the language of social media.> |
| Artists and creatives | Yes Way Rosé, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. | 0.95% – 1.31% | ~$29.6K – $57K | Artists help raise visibility of alcohol brands among creativity loving audiences. |
| Outdoor enthusiasts and athletes | Tin Cup Whiskey, Four Roses Bourbon | 0.15% – 0.16% | ~$9.2K – $111.2K | Outdoorsy influencers promote alcohol as part of an adventurous lifestyle. |
Note: The data in the table above was drawn from Meltwater’s influencer marketing solution based on a small selection of influencer posts.
Key takeaways: Alcohol brands and influencer marketing
Food and beverage influencers aren’t the only options for alcohol brands. Influencers with engaged followings in niche online communities can introduce alcoholic beverage brands to audiences based on their shared interests. Through partnerships with meme, arts, and outdoors influencers, among others, alcohol brands are getting creative with influencer marketing and seeing great results. To learn more about how alcohol brands are leveraging influencer marketing, check out the Alcoholic Beverages Influencer Benchmarking Snapshot.
FAQ: Alcoholic Beverage Influencer Marketing
What is influencer marketing in the alcoholic beverage industry?
Influencer marketing in the alcoholic beverage industry involves partnering with social media creators to feature products in their content. It helps alcohol brands build trust, reach younger audiences, and generate engagement through authentic storytelling.
How do alcoholic brands measure influencer marketing ROI?
Some use Estimated Media Value (EMV), which translates engagement and reach into a dollar amount equivalent to paid media spend. This helps compare influencer performance with that of traditional ad campaigns.
Why are influencers effective for alcoholic beverage marketing?
Because they speak each social media platform’s language. From meme pages to artists, influencers lend alcohol brands relevance by integrating them into the social media conversation of the moment.
Which alcohol brands are leading in influencer marketing?
Angry Orchard, On the Rocks Cocktails, and Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. are just three of the many, many alcohol brands getting creative with influencer marketing. However, in Meltwater’s influencer benchmarking analysis of eight global alcoholic beverage brands, Guinness generated the highest EMV from social media influencers.
Take a data-driven approach to influencer marketing. Tour our AI-powered influencer marketing solution or fill out the form below for a free demo.
