• by Laurie Sullivan  @lauriesullivan, February 1, 2023

Instacart moved beyond pilots for its shoppable ads, announcing on Wednesday its first major consumer product goods (CPG) co-marketing campaign that will run during the National Football League (NFL) playoffs.

The ad -- co-marketed with Michelob ULTRA -- mark Anheuser-Busch’s first-ever shoppable TV commercials powered by Instacart.

Former NFL quarterback Tony Romo, women’s soccer player Alex Morgan, and boxer Canelo Álvarez -- as well as Instacart as the delivery partner -- are featured in the spot.

Instacart’s co-marketing capability marks one of the company’s significant investments to support brand partners.

The offering includes integration from offsite media including social, linear TV, and connected TV (CTV) and over-the-top (OTT), as well as co-branded activations across Instacart’s marketplace and marketing channels.

The ad encourages fans to scan a QR code, but takes them to a Michelob ULTRA page on Instacart where they can add game-day favorite food and drinks, ranging from ULTRA beer and seltzers to PepsiCo chips and snacks. 

Instacart will promote Michelob from shoppable media on its app, along with email, push notifications, and social posts. 

From the Instacart homepage, consumers can shop from more than 40 brands.

The game day Pop-Up includes Anheuser-Busch products such as Michelob ULTRA, Cutwater, and Stella Artois, as well as PepsiCo beverages, Frito-Lay chips and snacks, spirits from Diageo, Wholly Guacamole and Digiorno pizzas.

Instacart began piloting shoppable CPG ads in spring 2022 and added self-service ads later that year based on objectives rather than intent to automate ad creation, and by the end of the year began announced Instacart Promotions in Ad Manager, giving advertisers a suite of solutions to offer consumers savings on a variety of products.