College campuses will feel a little different this year, with social distancing and remote learning, but Keylightful, the raspberry-and-lime-flavored beer from Keystone, has a new way for friends to stay connected.
Say hello to Kappa Lambda Woof, the first-ever fraternity for dogs.
Keylightful spokesdog Lil’ Breezy Keezy is inviting 10 dogs to join the inaugural class of Kappa Lambda Woof in an online contest that starts today and lasts through August 31.
“We know that college campuses are going to look different this fall, and we want to provide some light-hearted fun for drinkers who might be missing friends and social experiences on campus,” says Eric Wolfe, associate marketing manager for Keystone. “We hope this contest can continue to introduce the fun and flavorful, easy-drinking world of Keylightful.”
Winners are not only inducted into Kappa Lambda Woof’s inaugural class, but they’ll also win Keylightful gear, pre-paid gift cards to purchase Keylightful and endless fraternal friendship. Swag includes a Kappa Lambda Woof fraternity flag, a plush paddle dog toy, matching fraternity tanks and more.
As part of the program, Keylightful will make a $25,000 donation to ASPCA to support its efforts to care for, protect and rescue at-risk animals across the country. To enter, legal-drinking age humans can upload a photo of their pup showing off his or her best skills – snagging a frisbee, giving a high-paw or balancing a snack, for instance – on the contest’s website, along with relevant information. Judging will be based on originality, personality and creativity. Winners will be announced in mid-September.
The contest comes as Keylightful has exceeded its distribution expectations since its launch in March. The easy-drinking, 4.1% ABV fruit-forward lager has seen higher repeat purchases than competitor Naturdays, Wolfe says, and has boosted the Keystone franchise, with some 74% of purchases incremental.
“Keylightful was able to piggyback on Keystone Light’s recent momentum going into Covid, when we saw a lot of pantry-loading. The halo effect has really benefited Keylightful,” says Vi Tran, marketing manager for Keystone. “Having the credibility of Keystone Light really helped in terms of making sure we have the authenticity for consumers to reach out and buy Keylightful with Keystone Light.”
It’s also provided Molson Coors Beverage Company with a product that appeals to 21- to 24-year-old drinkers who aren’t necessarily inclined to reach for beer.
“Flavor and innovation are really important,” Tran says. “The hard seltzer boom has showed us as much. And I think if you innovate right on flavor in economy beer, you can recruit a new generation of legal-age drinkers to beer.”