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Final Project

Team Name: PRiorities
Team Members: Chloe H, Claire S, Emma D, Johnny D
Team Leader (Account Supervisor): Claire S.

Case: Heineken – “Worlds Apart” Campaign

Contributions: she said to have at top of doc.

Objectives

  1. Encourage Social Dialogue: The main objective was to promote respectful conversation between individuals with opposing viewpoints, reflecting the brand’s core message of openness and inclusivity. These conversations involved sensitive polarizing topics like climate change, race, gender and religion. Lighthearted disputes over football team rivalries (soccer) broke tense moments during conversations, demonstrating how common interests can diffuse uncomfortable situations.
  2. Strengthen Brand Affinity: Heineken intended to generate emotional engagement with consumers—mainly its target demographic of men—by positioning itself as a socially conscious, conversation-starting brand.
  3. Drive Engagement and Sales: The campaign aimed to increase brand loyalty, visibility, and beer sales in the UK.

Founded in Amsterdam and now a global brand, Heineken produces beer and cider with a purpose: to brew the joy of true togetherness and inspire a better world. Togetherness is the bond between people that sparks joy and lasting memories. Since 1864, Heineken has been bringing people together through its signature lager.

Heineken values the people behind the brand. With sustainability at its core from the start, it stands out for more than just great beer. Beyond crafting a great lager, they’re iconic and stay true to their statement: “Brew a Better World.” Their Marketing team, in particular, stands out as exceptional.

The brand has positioned itself as more than just a product. Holding a Heineken is a lifestyle. With its green bottle, red star, and tagline “Open Your World,” drinking a Heineken also signifies you embody openness and adventure with a touch of cosmopolitan flair.

Strategies

1. Human-Centered Storytelling Through Social Experiment

The campaign evolved into a short film that paired strangers with radically opposing worldviews and tasked them with building furniture together before revealing their ideological differences. This storytelling approach:

  • Created emotional stakes and encouraged viewer empathy.
  • Shows that we are all capable of civil discourse in a highly polarized world.
  • Allowed viewers to project themselves into the situation, promoting self-reflection.

2. Aligning with Scientific Research and Institutions

To strengthen the credibility and depth of the campaign, Heineken partnered with Goldsmiths University of London to validate the psychological foundation of the campaign: that people are more likely to open up and change their views when they first discover shared values or experiences. This added a layer of academic legitimacy to the campaign and positioned Heineken not just as a beer brand, but as a facilitator of meaningful human connection.

Additionally, Heineken collaborated with the Human Library, a nonprofit organization dedicated to challenging stereotypes through dialogue. This partnership extended the campaign beyond the screen into real-life activations across the UK. These included pop-up events at pubs, bars, and music festivals where participants could “check out” a human book and engage in structured conversations across lines of difference.

These collaborations:

  • Reinforced Heineken’s positioning as a socially responsible brand.
  • Transformed abstract campaign themes into tangible, lived experiences.
  • Allowed consumers and employees to engage directly with the campaign’s values, enhancing both internal brand alignment and public trust.

3. Earned Media and Influencer Strategy

Rather than rely on traditional advertising methods, Heineken leaned heavily into earned media and influencer amplification to spread the “Worlds Apart” message organically. The campaign’s short film format was highly shareable and designed for virality—it launched directly on YouTube and was seeded across platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, where emotionally driven, socially conscious content tends to perform well.

The PR team targeted major news outlets and media platforms with press releases and exclusive previews, which led to features in publications like The Guardian, Adweek, Campaign UK, and The Huffington Post. These placements contributed to the campaign’s mainstream visibility and reinforced its position within both cultural and marketing discourse.

Influencer engagement was also crucial. Heineken worked with micro- and macro-influencers whose audiences were aligned with themes of social justice, personal growth, and lifestyle. Rather than promote the beer directly, influencers encouraged their followers to watch the video and reflect on the message—prompting thoughtful commentary and peer-to-peer conversation.

This strategy:

  • Enhanced reach without the cost or intrusion of paid media.
  • Increased audience trust by relying on credible third-party voices.
  • Positioned Heineken as a brand that fosters—not forces—conversations around identity, values, and togetherness.

Key Message

The key message of the “Worlds Apart” campaign was: “There’s more that unites us than divides us—open your world.”This aligned directly with Heineken’s broader brand positioning around openness, togetherness, and global connection. It was powerful because it connected a social issue to a relatable, personal setting (sharing a beer), without being preachy or political. The simplicity and relatability made it resonate emotionally across audiences. While the message was strong, one improvement could have been slightly more emphasis on action—encouraging viewers to continue these conversations beyond the ad. A modified version like “Start a conversation. Open your world.” could have more directly called viewers to participate in this mindset shift.

Communication Tactics

  • Social Experiment Video released online as the central campaign asset. Shared on YouTube and across social platforms.
  • Earned Media Coverage from outlets like The Guardian, Adweek, and HuffPost, which amplified visibility.
  • Influencer Outreach helped distribute the video organically through networks aligned with social justice and lifestyle content.
  • Partnership Activation with the Human Library across UK events, creating real-life extensions of the digital message.
  • Internal Communications bringing the concept in-house to Heineken employees via training and live experiences.

Evaluation of Communication Tactics

The communication tactics were largely effective and aligned with the campaign objectives. The use of organic video sharing and influencer seeding allowed the message to spread authentically. The integration of real-world activations (Human Library) grounded the campaign in community impact. However, a potential area for improvement would be to include more follow-up engagement tactics—such as user-submitted stories or ongoing dialogue platforms—to sustain momentum beyond the initial video release.

Effectiveness of Communication Tactics

  • +7.3% in UK sales over a 12-week post-campaign period.
  • 80% of viewers stated Heineken was “a brand for them.”
  • 78% felt a stronger emotional connection to the brand.
  • Over 50 million views globally, driven mainly by organic sharing.

Sources

  1. Adweek. (2017, April 20). Heineken gets it right with this ad about strangers finding common ground. Retrieved from https://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/heineken-gets-it-right-ad-about-strangers-finding-common-ground-171366/
  2. Goldsmiths, University of London. (2017). Heineken partners with Goldsmiths to support Worlds Apart campaign. Retrieved from https://www.gold.ac.uk/news/heineken-worlds-apart/
  3. Human Library. (2017). Heineken partners with Human Library to promote openness. Retrieved from https://humanlibrary.org/heineken/
  4. Campaign UK. (2017, April 24). Heineken's ‘Worlds Apart’ social experiment pulls emotional strings. Retrieved from https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/heinekens-worlds-apart-social-experiment-pulls-emotional-strings/1431732
  5. Heineken International. (2017). Heineken’s Worlds Apart campaign summary. Retrieved from https://www.theheinekencompany.com/newsroom/heineken-worlds-apart/
  6. Pew Research Center. (2016). The politics of climate. Retrieved from https://www.pewresearch.org/science/2016/10/04/the-politics-of-climate/
  7. YouTube. (2017). Heineken | Worlds Apart | #OpenYourWorld [Video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKggA9k8DKw