Heineken has unveiled a multi-market campaign for its Desperados flavoured beer brand, featuring a track by Colombian artist Ovy on the Drums created specifically for the push.
The song, called ‘Guao Guao’, is supported by a video featuring the brand, “representing a bold move away from traditional above-the-line advertising”, according to Heineken. The ‘The Beer with Latin Vibe’ campaign will appear in 30 markets across Europe “and beyond” as part of a repositioning of Desperados to appeal to Gen Z and Gen Y consumers.
The activation also includes out-of-home ads in “major” cities along with an ‘AR Snap’ filter that “allows customers to bop their heads along to the track in style”.
“By recognising the passion points of our Gen Z and Gen Y audience, we have been able to tap into the culture they care about and create a suite of assets that will seamlessly engage with them in their day-to-day lives,” said the global head of Desperados at Heineken, Ligia Patrocinio. “Latin spirit is an integral part of our brand identity and central to how we communicate with our consumers.
“Partnering with Latin Grammy award winner Ovy on the Drums … is the perfect way to authentically bring the good vibes Latin music so boldly embodies to a global audience.”
Heineken is scheduled to report its results for 2024 on Wednesday (12 February). For the first nine months of last year, group sales were up 5.1% on the corresponding period in 2023, with CEO Dolf van den Brink saying in October that the company was “materially stepping up our marketing investments in the second half of the year”.




