• by Karlene Lukovitz  @KLmarketdaily, October 13, 2016

Buchanan’s, the Diageo blended Scotch whiskey brand, has launched its largest U.S. campaign to date. 

The campaign, which aims to accelerate the brand’s already rapid sales growth among U.S. Hispanics, stars global Latin music star J Balvin. Balvin, a vocal advocate of Latino culture and winner of Hispanic Heritage and Latin Grammy awards, takes pride in continuing to sing in his native Spanish. 

Themed “Es Nuestro Momento” (“This Is Our Moment”), the campaign includes TV spots, digital advertising, social media, out-of-home, public relations, and a consumer contest set to launch next year. 

The ads debuted Oct. 9 on Telemundo and CNN. A 30-second spot, in both Spanish and English (below) versions, shows Hispanics enjoying Buchanan’s, food and convivial company in a community restaurant, segueing to Balvin making his way onto a stage to the roar of a crowd.  

The voiceover messaging: “This is a toast to us, the unstoppables, and our thirst to move forward. To leave our legacy. We are one, and the stage is ours. We are an undeniable force, and nothing will stop us. Just watch. Es Nuestro Momento.”
A 15-second video focused on Balvin has a voiceover in Spanish, with English subtitles. 

The creative, from Anomaly, reflects a positioning shift, with Buchanan’s looking to play a more “active and meaningful” role in the U.S. Hispanic culture, according to the marketing team. 

The brand is the leading deluxe Scotch in Mexico and Venezuela, and the fastest-growing Scotch in the U.S., where it has been showing double-digit sales increases. 

“Buchanan’s has deep roots in the Latino community, going back generations and across borders,” said Tara King, brand manager for Buchanan’s at Diageo.

Balvin represents his heritage through his craft and embodies the whisky’s brand message that “true greatness comes from embracing who you are and where you come from,” says Buchanan’s. This is the first time Buchanan’s has used a celebrity artist as a brand representative. 

Balvin has also composed a song titled “Es Nuestro Momento.” In February 2017, after the song is released, Buchanan’s will invite consumers of legal drinking age to create and remix their own version of it for a chance to meet Balvin at the 2017 Billboard Latin Music Awards in Miami.

Buchanan’s will be a sponsor of the Latin Grammy Awards for a third consecutive year. This year’s event is scheduled for Nov. 17.