Pandemic spirits sales were up +32%. And while Americans had every intention to drink the alcohol they bought, amid the new normal they had no time to actually enjoy it. They were grasping at any chance to sit down and sip a cocktail, but with the lack of established pre-pandemic routines, no consistent time or space existed for it.

In our new reality, time seemed blurry, and living and working in the same space was causing a strain on our mental health. With society now working 35% longer, cocktail rituals were lost. Beam Suntory needed to give whisky drinkers a reason to choose Maker’s Mark, reclaim some of that important time for themselves, and increase brand favorability +20% in order to continue 2020’s sales momentum.

Behavior change doesn’t come easy. People wanted to take a break between work time and me time, but they lacked a specific plan for change. So our strategy was to model Maker’s Hour for them, using content to model the behavior change – sipping on Maker’s Mark and taking a well-deserved break. Serving as that much-needed alibi for taking some time for yourself, Maker’s Hour showed us the way.

And with pandemic-influenced consumers rethinking how they spend their time, and increasingly moving toward streaming and digital platforms, we saw Connected TV (CTV), one of the fastest-growing digital channels, as a big opportunity for Maker’s Mark.

We created The Show Next Door, a modern-day Mr. Roger’s neighborhood for adults, partnering with streaming powerhouse Roku. We developed a full-length, six-episode series, reminding viewers to take a moment for themselves after a hard day’s work and enjoy a Maker’s Mark cocktail.

We built this show to meet our consumers where they are – in their living rooms, streaming their favorite shows. In fact, The Show Next Door was the first-ever branded content series to be treated as native, organic content on The Roku Channel, running just like regular programming. This allowed Maker’s Mark to reach streamers regardless of whether they were watching ad-supported or subscription-only content.

Actor Randall Park opens each episode by creating a Maker’s Mark cocktail while delivering his monologue. Guests with diverse voices join Park for interviews and games, including drag queen Trixie Mattel, NFL star Terrell Owens, and musician Jason Mraz.

We captured the spirit of having drinks with friends – in the format of a talk show. And importantly, we established Maker’s Hour by cueing people into their relaxation time - to make a drink and laugh as they began their night “watching something.”

The Show Next Door drove a +25% lift in Maker’s brand favorability, achieving a key campaign goal.

The Show Next Door was the first-ever branded content series to be treated as native, organic content within The Roku Channel, running right alongside other produced entertainment programs.

In total, 42 thousand hours were spent streaming The Show Next Door on the Roku Channel, an average of 7 thousand total hours per episode.

The Show Next Door was Roku’s #7 show in the comedy category for September out of 150+ shows.

And the audience – made up of 61% cord-cutters - was engaged, with 60% of viewers who started an episode streaming the entire show.

As content created to live on a streaming platform alongside other produced shows, The Show Next Door was touted in various articles as best-in-class marketing on streaming, helping it earn 57 million total press impressions across 23 publications.