Miller64’s new web series is all about balancing work and play, an idea that the company is currently promoting. The webisodes can be found on YouTube in a series called The Sub.
In each video, a team of friends find themselves to be the underdogs in various recreational sports. The series title comes into play when a professional athlete steps in to help out the underdogs.
With five webisodes in the series, each plays host to a new athlete in their respective sport. The guest athletes include Terrell Owens, Gary Payton, David Justice, Brandi Chastain, and Jen Kessy.
With Miller64 containing only 64 calories per beer, this series makes perfect sense. The beer tries to offer a low calorie alcoholic beverage that is perfect for the recreational athlete. Miller64 won’t undo the calories you burned while playing your latest pickup game.
Each team shares a few common interests; enjoying sports, staying active, and drinking a cold beer with friends afterwards. Targeting recreational athletes is a smart move on Miller64’s part.
Terrell Owens Steps In
To draw some interest to the web series, major athletes are used as promotion. For instance, Bingo Bango Bongo is a flag football team that is playing against their “mortal enemies” TBD. The action kicks off when BBB’s starting quarterback gets injured and Terrell Owens steps in.
After TBD is persuaded to let TO play, the game continues. Bingo Bango Bongo realizes they have a chance with the former six-time Pro Bowler on their team. TO on the other hand, doesn’t seem to know whom he is playing with. At one point, he claims “the ball was late”, like he was playing with Donovan McNabb again.
Eventually, Bingo Bango Bongo goes on to win a close game. Everyone shakes hands and TO thanks the teams for allowing him to play. The humble experience is then enjoyed over some cold Miller64’s.
Gary Payton Still Has It
In episode number two, the Mountaineers face their rivals the Princess Layups. It’s clear from the start that the Princess Layups are the “playground bullies”.
With the Mountaineers behind, Hall of Fame point guard Gary Payton steps onto the court. Everyone’s surprise turns into friendly smack talk. Payton finds himself leading the team even in the war of words. At one point, someone spits a “cane joke” at Payton. You could see the fire in his eyes; the game was on.
Payton ends up being more of a facilitator for the Mountaineers. One of the Princess Layup players exclaimed:
“Definitely still has his field vision. Seeing him no look pass and everything…it was amazing.”
The underdogs end up winning 51-44. Once again, the two teams converge to enjoy a cold Miller64. Everyone sits around telling their version of the game that had just been played, comparing stories.
After watching each of the five webisodes, you will notice a few trends. One major trend happens to be an uplifting and humbled professional athlete. Their ability to lead and inspire their teams is inherent.
Jen Kessy, Brandi Chastain, and David Justice each have their own webisodes as well. Each athlete finds themselves on the losing team, but not for lack of effort. At one point, Jen Kessy meets up with both teams at a beachside restaurant. She explains that the best part of beach volleyball is sitting down with friends to enjoy a Miller64.
It’s Miller Time
The entire series depicts strong themes of camaraderie, motivation, and a lifestyle of balance. It reminds everyone that enjoying a Miller64 won’t undue the calories you just burned playing flag football or a pickup game of softball.
The Sub is a series that is part of a bigger project at Miller called “G0 64”. This campaign also heavily relies on social media and celebrates the same idea of working hard and playing hard.
By promoting both campaigns on social media platforms, Miller64 further instills the camaraderie theme. Like sports and social media, a post-game beer is much more enjoyable with friends.
At the same time, they also manage to reach their target market. Again, the beer has just 64 calories. This makes it the perfect beverage for those aiming to eat healthy, stay fit, and still enjoy a beer. Where better to find that target market than YouTube?
All in all, it’s almost as if Miller64 is saying, “grab some friends, choose a sport, play hard, and most importantly, enjoy a Miller64 with no regrets.”