Comfort, utility, service, purpose: How Diageo has responded to the COVID-19 pandemic

Diageo, the spirits manufacturer, has mixed consumer engagement with purposeful marketing as it responds to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“In mid-March, overnight, 20% of our business disappeared,” reported Ed Pilkington, chief marketing and innovation officer for North America at Diageo, the alcoholic drinks manufacturer.“And we had to adapt pretty quickly.”

That volume represented the sales from the bars and restaurants that were shuttered as the novel coronavirus became a major facet of American life.

The immediate assessment, Pilkington told an online Advertising Week 2020 audience, landed on a series of related questions.

  • Are people going to keep drinking?
  • If so, what are the trends?
  • What happens when we go into crisis?
In thinking about these issues, the company...

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