As is well known, the beer industry is currently a red ocean of competition. In this context, if you were given a brand-new beer brand, what would you do? Would you go big or take small steps; attack offline or start online? There are many paths and methods to choose from, with no one-size-fits-all answer. But how to do it specifically, I want to hear the voices of frontline practitioners, which may bring new inspiration and thinking to innovators and entrepreneurs. Recently, New Distribution had an in-depth exchange with Ms. Cui Hong, Market Director of Tsingtao Beer Innovation Marketing Headquarters. The brand-new brand in her hands, Tsingtao White Beer, born in 2015, within just 5 years has become one of the most growth-potential strategic SKUs under Tsingtao Beer Group (with a market value of over 100 billion yuan), standing alongside the well-known Pure Draft, Classic 1903, and Auguster. As a beer giant with nationwide distribution, Tsingtao White Beer started from zero and has now achieved full regional coverage, with all staff proactively deepening market penetration. What exactly has Tsingtao White Beer done in brand marketing over these 5 years? From 0 to 1, then 1 to 10, and 10 to n, now as a leader in the new category of Chinese craft white beer, an innovator and leader in beer consumption upgrade concepts, entering the "no-man's land" of Chinese craft beer, what should be done next? In nearly 2 hours of in-depth exchange, Ms. Cui Hong, known in the industry as "White Beer Sister," unveiled the entrepreneurial birth story of Tsingtao White Beer. 1. The Birth Background of Tsingtao White Beer 2. The Three Development Stages of Tsingtao White Beer 3. The "No-Man's Land" Strategy of Tsingtao White Beer -01- The Birth Background of Tsingtao White Beer Speaking of the birth of Tsingtao White Beer, we must trace back to the Tsingtao Beer Innovation Marketing Division—a department internally called the "Blue Army." Cui Hong recalls that at the company's annual meeting on January 22, 2014, Sun Mingbo (former Chairman) mentioned innovation. How to innovate? There are usually two paths: one is sustaining innovation, and the other is disruptive innovation. As a leading enterprise in the beer field, the best way for Tsingtao Beer to innovate is to have the left hand fight the right hand, inject new forces, do disruptive innovation, and leverage the catfish effect. Based on this, Tsingtao Beer's "Blue Army" was born. And Tsingtao White Beer was the first brand fully managed by the Blue Army since its establishment. It was precisely the Blue Army's innovative culture and soil that gave the opportunity to make white beer. How did they think about making white beer at that time? Cui Hong said there were mainly three dimensions of consideration: First, the strategic level: based on the industry development stage, there must be market opportunities during the inflection point downturn;** Second, the quality level: how to leverage Tsingtao Beer's brand and technical advantages, conform to the trend of "Made in China" quality, and be "smart" and confident;** Third, the market level: leveraging the consumption upgrade, consumers' demand for new, special, and personalized products,** by triggering curiosity and differentiated marketing, to fully utilize the unique product characteristics of the white beer category. Among these, positioning, mission, and brand goals are paramount.** With these three dimensions in mind, let's look at Ms. Cui Hong's specific thinking path for Tsingtao White Beer at that time. 1. Industry Inflection Point 2. Category Gap 3. Brand Innovation Year 1. Industry Inflection Point 2014 was a critical year for the beer industry, as beer production capacity declined for the first time. The domestic beer market has become saturated, while the share of imported and premium beer has risen. Behind the decline in production capacity, it implies that the era of relying solely on mergers, acquisitions, and capacity expansion for growth is over. This is the background of the times and the industry. Change, innovation, and integration are strong desires for every practitioner deeply engaged in the beer field. Without change, there is no way out; without innovation, there is no growth; without integration, there is no development. 2. Category Gap Cui Hong told New Distribution that they had conducted a round of research. Among imported beers in China, the white beer category accounted for over 60%. Even with such a high share, the Chinese market at that time did not have the term "white beer." Searching Baidu for "white beer" in 2014 was relatively blank. There was no category awareness, no consumption awareness—this was the market status. Looking at the demand side, past beers were mainly light lagers, industrial beers. But with overall consumption upgrades and the guidance of imported beers, consumers were gradually shifting from drinking beer to drinking good beer. Whether from the share of imported beer subcategories or the demand trend of consumption upgrade, both point to the white beer category. This is an opportunity for the category and for demand. White beer was a blank slate in consumers' minds. 3. Brand Innovation Year In January 2014, Tsingtao Beer decided to establish the Blue Army, and in June, recruitment notices were issued. At that time, Cui Hong, who was the Assistant General Manager of Tsingtao Beer's Shandong Province and had served as the first Brand Director of Tsingtao Beer Company, resolutely decided to join the Blue Army. ∆ Cui Hong, Market Director of Tsingtao Beer Innovation Marketing Headquarters She reported to duty on August 1, and on August 6, the company authorized the Blue Army to make a white beer. In Cui Hong's understanding at the time, this was the "first year" of Tsingtao Beer's innovation. How to innovate? From the establishment of the Blue Army in August 2014 to the promotion of Tsingtao White Beer's launch in June 2015, Tsingtao White Beer spent less than a year in gestation, constantly thinking. "We cannot consider issues solely from the perspective of white beer. Tsingtao White Beer is a member of the Tsingtao Beer brand family and must align with the company's overall brand strategy. Tsingtao White Beer and other Tsingtao products have a complementary relationship. The true meaning of left-hand-right-hand competition is mutual encouragement and a spirit of learning and surpassing. Secondly, as its personalized characteristics, especially at the inflection point of the beer industry and the trend of cognitive and consumption upgrades, Tsingtao White Beer will definitely have far more value than the novelty value of a new product and category. It will also have the opportunity to create a new culture of beer consumption upgrade and lead the industry's new development, bringing social and industry value. Tsingtao White Beer must be different! Of course, we must also consider a major challenge: educating and guiding consumers about the new category and taste of white beer," Cui Hong said. This was the starting point and principle of Tsingtao White Beer's thinking during the gestation period. Without this thinking, if they had started immediately without core guiding principles, they could easily have gone astray. Once the direction was clarified, opportunities identified, and positioning determined, the next step was to "get to work"! -02- The Three Development Stages of Tsingtao White Beer First, brand positioning: to be the explorer of Chinese craft beer—this was the first thing Tsingtao White Beer did. Second, product positioning: not high-end, not ordinary, but mid-to-high-end, the future mainstream tier. Setting it too high would limit the consumer base and directly affect the category's demand capacity; setting it too low would fail to differentiate from ordinary beer and compromise quality. Positioning it mid-to-high-end cultivates the white beer category and captures the future mainstream. It has both quality and quantity. Tsingtao White Beer's original intention was based on consumer changes, creating new demand while satisfying existing demand, allowing more people to enjoy the unique flavor of this product while also feeling a sense of pleasure. Therefore, from the beginning, we proposed the brand vision of "Ancient Method Craft Brewing, Noble Enjoyment" and have used it as the endorsement of the Enjoyment Culture to this day. The third thing was to build a new value marketing system, namely: use brand thinking to do marketing, use craft brewing thinking to build a value marketing system centered on life-oriented consumers, and open up a new market landscape. What is a value marketing system? Four dimensions: social value, industry value, enterprise value, and consumer value. The first three need no elaboration; let's focus on consumer value. Craft beer heart life, a lifestyle with ritual, with a beautiful yearning and pursuit of life. Craft white beer is not just a glass of beer; it's more about the quality life behind the beer. Of course, this also became the brand value proposition of the innovative product: Enjoy Craft Beer Heart Life. "The Craft Beer Community WeChat public account was planned from the early stages of brand planning. It was one of the convenient, flexible, low-investment, and quick-return new marketing methods at the time," Cui Hong recalled. Although it was an innovative brand, there were not many resources—no TV, no outdoor advertising, very limited resources. Doing the Craft Beer Community was internally a content production platform, and externally a way to focus on circles and precision marketing, equivalent to a core communication and interaction window to reach the mainstream consumer group. In fact, looking back now, the Craft Beer Community was also a form of digitalization, doing content marketing, such as White Beer Knowledge Lecture Hall, White Beer Sister Talks Craft Beer column, 24 Solar Terms White Beer Food Lab short videos, etc., to resonate and empathize with consumers and build a new discourse system. To date, the Craft Beer Community public account has accumulated over 800 original articles. These contents tell what Tsingtao White Beer has done and how, and more importantly, through this community, consumers can feel the beautiful life experience brought by craft beer from multiple angles and ways. "No strategy, no marketing!" The above is the gestation period before the official launch of Tsingtao White Beer, also the first stage. First, there was top-level design and marketing system, then specific strategies. The second development stage is the entrepreneurial survival period. Here are three core actions: 1. Selecting Benchmark Markets 2. Enjoyment Mobile Space 3. Precision Marketing 1. Selecting Benchmark Markets At that time, Cui Hong did not choose a single type of market. Instead, she chose three completely different types of markets for brand landing: weak markets, average markets, and leading markets. The purposes of choosing three distinct markets were: one was to break the deadlock—since conventional tactics had been used for years without smooth progress, try a completely differentiated product to see if a breakthrough could be achieved; one was for competition—the market war was still intense, and it could be captured at any time, so it served as a strategic reserve for the brand; and one was to leverage momentum—since it was a leading market for Tsingtao Beer, see if they could ride the momentum and move forward with the new Tsingtao White Beer. First test pilots, then replicate and promote, using points to drive the whole—this was Tsingtao White Beer's strategic choice in brand marketing and market layout. 2. Enjoyment Mobile Space With no advertising and limited resources, how could a new category and brand do offline promotion well? Tsingtao White Beer chose a mobile enjoyment space, similar to a small-scale performance "caravan," for a national tour. At each stop, they talked about city culture, brand propositions, and product features, integrating city culture, team culture, and product culture to implement the Enjoyment Mobile Space City Tour Plan. In this mobile space, consumers could fully experience the brand culture of Tsingtao White Beer and also taste and experience the ritual of beer consumption brought by the Seven Steps of Enjoyment. At the enjoyment space, brand elements, TV videos, plus refrigerators, display racks, and end caps interacted with surrounding consumers in real-time. This was Tsingtao White Beer's "experiential scenario-based promotion" implemented under resource constraints. Cui Hong told New Distribution that in 2015, consumers had almost no awareness of white beer. Therefore, Tsingtao White Beer had to go offline, allowing consumers to experience the first sip's uniqueness through scenario-based experiences, truly understand white beer, and also understand the Enjoyment Culture advocated by Tsingtao White Beer. 3. Precision Marketing For a new product with a new taste to be widely recognized by consumers in a short time, it needs the endorsement of KOLs from different strata and experts from different industries to amplify brand communication. Precision marketing was another new marketing path after the Enjoyment Space experience. Therefore, in addition to the mobile enjoyment space, Cui Hong also chose to proactively go out, "check in" at different circles, learn, exchange, and promote Tsingtao White Beer. The mobile enjoyment space was for consumer communication and experience, while the circle of friends was for sharing original content privately. "With the endorsement of the Tsingtao Beer brand and years of brand practice experience, I am confident in doing circle communication for Tsingtao White Beer," Cui Hong explained. In 2017, Tsingtao White Beer organized the "Craft Beer Heart Life" Cross-Industry Masters Forum and the release of the Chinese Craft Lifestyle White Beer Book, inviting several masters from advertising, media, and industry to gather in Qingdao to discuss the craft beer heart lifestyle under consumption upgrade, forming mass communication led by "opinion leaders." In May 2018, Tsingtao White Beer joined hands with Alibaba Cultural Entertainment Intelligent Marketing Platform to hold the "Precision Intelligence Crowdsourcing Contest," inviting experts, scholars, and contest winners from various industries to attend the press conference, where they performed the most iconic "Seven Steps of Enjoyment" of Tsingtao White Beer's Enjoyment Culture. Through the on-site comments of winners and professional masters, they drove and influenced more young consumers' attention and participation, directly strengthening the interaction between Tsingtao White Beer and consumers, allowing consumers to naturally integrate into the life atmosphere of "Enjoy Craft Beer Heart Life." In August 2018, Tsingtao White Beer organized the "New Era of Craft Beer, Enjoy Heart Life" White Beer Strategy Conference and the release of the 2.0 version of the Chinese Craft Lifestyle White Beer Book. This meeting marked a new stage in Tsingtao White Beer's development. The third stage is setting sail anew. From 2019 to 2020, Tsingtao White Beer did two core things: 1. Brand Renewal 2. Systematic Promotion 1. Brand Renewal After the first three years of development and category evolution, more and more consumers have gained further awareness of the white beer category, laying a foundation for category awareness. At this time, Tsingtao White Beer began a new round of renewal actions. First, in terms of brand value proposition, the overall brand appeal shifted from the past "Enjoy Craft Beer Heart Life" to "Refined Life." In 2019, they proposed "Refined Life, Starting from the Heart," and this year continued with "Refined Life, Heart Selection Journey." Based on advocating a healthy, joyful, quality, and non-compromising craft beer lifestyle, they organized and planned activities like "Travel with White Beer" around the concept of "White Beer Lifestyle Expert." Another renewal action was a brand-new visual packaging, more fashionable and easier to communicate with young people. This new packaging also won the 2020 German Red Dot Design Award and the Gold Award at the American MUSE Design Awards, two international awards. 2. Systematic Promotion Tsingtao White Beer has been on the market for 5 years. In the past, products were promoted to regions; after 2018, it has achieved full regional coverage. At this time, the innovation department's task was to standardize and systematize the content needed for new product launches, including product serialization, communication systematization, and a series of terminal execution standards and terminal promotion methods and tools. In the early entrepreneurial stage, regions needed to follow the standards to promote store by store. For example, to explain clearly that Tsingtao White Beer's first sip is different, and to explain the Seven Steps of Enjoyment: Chill, Pour, Observe, Smell, Taste, Swirl, and Drink. Sales personnel should not directly let the store owner taste it first, but first explain what is different about this beer. Otherwise, the owner might not have tried white beer, and it's an unfamiliar category, easily triggering habitual conditioned reflexes and habitual judgments. First explain the characteristics of Tsingtao White Beer, then let the store see the foam, then smell the floral aroma, and finally let the store taste it. These standardized actions were indeed hard at first, but regional colleagues, for the common brand goal, persisted through this difficult entrepreneurial period. Now, Tsingtao White Beer has become an indispensable part of the mainstream product portfolio in each region. Moreover, regions have gradually upgraded from simple terminal tasting activities to planned, stylish offline themed tasting events, greatly enhancing product brand favorability and scenario experience effects. The essence of marketing is to generate transactions. The ultimate purpose of branding is to empower sales. -03- The "No-Man's Land" Strategy of Tsingtao White Beer 2020 marks the fifth year of Tsingtao White Beer's launch. After 5 years, how should Tsingtao White Beer proceed in the next stage? Cui Hong frankly admits that the pressure is now greater. "At the beginning, it was self-imposed pressure, positioning as an explorer of Chinese craft beer. As a new product without volume, we could explore and experiment with new concepts, new perspectives, and new marketing models. Now, white beer has become a well-known category among consumers, and white beer products from major brands have gathered in the market. Whether Tsingtao White Beer can make new breakthroughs in the new market environment and reach new heights in the next two years is a bigger challenge. Currently, Tsingtao White Beer has become one of the company's strategic products. To make it bigger and stronger, we need to pool the company's resources and capabilities," Cui Hong said after pondering. "Innovation is never about catering to consumer needs, but about creating and leading consumer needs. Especially as a leader in the beer industry, Tsingtao Beer must take on the role of leading the new beer culture under consumption upgrade. It also needs to leverage digital tools to empower brand marketing with new vitality and vigor, to meet new needs, create new value, and thereby enhance the brand's market competitiveness." Cui Hong believes that in the current era, with the popularity of the Internet, past channel barriers are gradually disappearing. Use brand thinking to do marketing, use craft brewing thinking to open up a new market landscape. What Tsingtao White Beer wants to be is not an internet-famous product, not a niche market, but a brand representative in opening up a new pattern in the future beer market! How to become a brand representative in the new pattern? Be the advocate and leader of craft beer with Chinese characteristics. Perhaps in the past, during the entrepreneurial development period, Tsingtao White Beer was just an explorer, but as it grows and strengthens, it must become a leader in the future. As a century-old enterprise, Tsingtao Beer has such confidence and strength. Of course, we can also see that whether it was the implementation of precision marketing in previous years or the release of the Lifestyle White Beer Book, they are essentially practical efforts to become a leader, promoting the industry and occupying a position. Now, facing the big trend of Chinese craft beer, Tsingtao Beer's Blue Army is using white beer as the core starting point, combining categories such as Pilsner, IPA, and Stout to establish a craft beer category matrix with Chinese characteristics, thereby forming synergy and shaping Chinese craft beer! If the tip is adopted, a reward of 400-2000 yuan will be paid.