Heineken USA’s Quinn Kilbury sits with Silverback Social CEO Chris Dessi

On May 15th, 2014 I sat with Quinn Kilbury, Brand Director Newcastle at Heineken USA just moments after he stepped off stage at the Westchester Digital Summit. Quinn sat on a panel titled “Navigating the Digital Landscape” along with colleagues from The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, ESPN, and The Financial Times.

I chatted with Quinn about his role at Heineken USA’s Newcastle brand and how they have evolved to be a powerhouse brand in the world of social media. He shared three compelling points that I’d like to share with you, and I think will help your social media strategy.

1. Understand that it’s “just marketing”

Quinn made it very clear that you can have a huge audience in social media, but if the audience isn’t going to buy your product, it means nothing. He pointed out that ESPN’s content is inherently social. Heineken (Newcastle) needs to work a lot harder at that. They can’t pretend that a beer is ESPN. It’s not inherently what people want to find online. Kilbury noted that If they’re going to invest money on a social media platform, they need to have a marketing objective and plan. Quinn also pointed out that the social platform must have an age gating system.

2. Give the Internet what it wants

Quinn stressed that as a major brand, you need to know what you mean to your consumer, and you need to give your consumer what they want. The consumer certainly doesn’t want to be drinking beer through the Internet. Stressing that you need to know what you mean to your consumer. Your content can be compelling and fun, but geared toward the wrong target and that could lead to disaster.

3. There’s a time to pay and a time to not to

Everyone on the panel agreed that you need to be in social, but the rules change every day. They’re spending the most of their time figuring out how they can keep up with the changes. They’re also figuring out how to work with the large social platforms. Understanding that there is a time to pay for media, and a time not to pay and allow for your organic distribution to work for you is paramount. Quinn noted that the major social networks like Facebook and Twitter will work very closely with you to help you and your brand better understand this delicate dance. He even noted that Facebook has office hours in our office every week. Noting that “If you want to have success you can’t fight what they’re doing.” referring to Facebook & Twitter and their consistent changes to algorithms etc. He stressed to work with them. Partner with the big social platforms that you leverage.

See the full interview below:

Purchase a ticket to next year’s Westchester Digital Summit in advance.