The Cure For Any Day Of The Week

Earlier this month, Cycle Brewing (St. Petersburg, FL) released a set of barrel-aged stouts themed after each day of the week. By pairing a unique barrel or adjunct treatment to one of seven different variations, the 13-year-old craft brewery uses each day to inform the packaging design and perhaps even suggest when to enjoy each recipe. This annual event has been taking place for ten years, but dovetails with a more recent trend in beverage alcohol from both start-up brands, and major producers alike.

At the time Cycle first released their Days of the Week, the concept leaned into the red hot enthusiast market built around a collector’s mindset, especially with barrel-aged beers. Not dissimilar, The Bruery (Placentia, CA) had a 12 Days of Christmas set built for cellaring, while serving as the originator of this days of the week branding, starting with their famous barrel-aged stout, Black Tuesday and variants.

Nowadays, new beverage brands are trending toward telling you who (Girl Beer, Mom Water, Outlaw, Real American, Ultra Right), what (Pizza Wine, Dad Strength, Small Beer), where (Garage Beer, Tailgate Pack, Pool Pack), and in the case of the days of the week, when. So let’s use the famous song by The Cure to explore the land grab for each day of the week:

Monday You Can Fall Apart 🎶

Tuesday, Wednesday, Break My Heart 🎶

Oh, Thursday Doesn't Even Start 🎶

It's Friday, I'm In Love 🎶

Saturdayyyyyyy, wait 🎶

And Sunday Always Comes Too Late 🎶

RTBs (Reasons to Believe)

1. Evoking a Specific Mood and Association: Days of the week carry with them a strong emotional connotation, whether it’s getting over the hump or universally signaling the end of the workweek. A day can remind consumers of reasons for relaxation, celebration, or a bright spot on an otherwise dreaded day (Monday), instantly tapping into a specific feeling, making it memorable and relatable to all.

2. Targeting Specific Consumption Occasions: The name directly suggests when the beer is best enjoyed, which can influence consumer behavior, encouraging them to choose a properly themed drink for weekend gatherings or after-work drinks. It creates a built-in marketing hook, allowing for campaigns centered around "Friday feeling" and weekend enjoyment

3. Simplifying Brand Messaging: The name is straightforward and easy to understand, eliminating the need for complex explanations. This clarity can be particularly effective in crowded markets, helping the brand stand out while speeding up the trial and adoption process.

4. Creating a sense of anticipation: People look forward to certain days of the week. By connecting the beer to a specific day, it creates a sense of anticipation for the consumer.

5. Creating Opportunities for Themed Marketing: The day-of-the-week concept lends itself to numerous marketing campaigns, promotions, and social media content. For example, "Friday Beer" could sponsor Friday night events, run social media contests with #FridayFeeling, or offer discounts on that particular day.

6. Year-Round: It might seem limiting to build a brand around a single day that’s only applicable one out of every seven, but at least days are year-round platforms that maintain their relevance through all four seasons. Not all occasion-based concepts are as universal and there’s a few pretty popular restaurant chains that did pretty well with it.

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Whether we’re talking about the who, what, where, when, or why, these audience and occasion-focused brands are destined to be products in a portfolio, versus entire companies in most cases. The trend is proof of just how competitive the market has become and the need for new brands to immediate translate into the person its designed, for or the situation with which it was to be enjoyed.

“The Days Are Long, But the Years Are Short” -Gretchen Rubin