The light beer segment in Canada had been steadily growing for more than a decade, dominated by Coors Light. Bud Light, a distant second in market share, recognized an opportunity to accelerate growth and close the gap on Coors Light by connecting with a new generation of beer drinkers: millennials.

Connecting with millennials to drive Bud Light brand perceptions, consideration and purchase – ultimately driving share of market – would demand an approach that would authentically tap into their passion points and deliver a brand experience that would be unmatched by the competition.

That passion point was EDM. And the experience was Sensation. EDM is the music of the millennial generation, a $4 billion global business, growing exponentially year over year (Source: International Music Summit 2013)

And Sensation is the world's leading electronic dance music event. World class DJs create the ultimate soundtrack, set against extraordinary visuals and theatrics, uniting 30,000 people all dressed in white.

Through its partnership with ID&T – Sensation's parent company – Bud Light would be the first brand ever to bring this massive and unprecedented event to Canada.

In forging the relationship with Sensation, Bud Light faced three key challenges: Educate the masses on the Sensation experience, which was relatively unknown in the Canadian marketplace; build association between the Bud Light brand as the purveyor of the Sensation experience; and do both of these things on a national scale, despite the fact that the event would be taking place in only one city, on only one night.

The approach included four executional phases.

First, six months out, the event date, venue and ticket sales were announced by immersing media and influencers into Sensation-themed launch events in Toronto and Montreal, this was supported with national press release and exclusive interviews with key media outlets. Then the brand provided EDM influencers with pre-sale ticket codes to share with their online networks. It also kicked off exclusive media partnership with Blue Ant Media via AUX and V-Tele – Canada's leading EDM hub – to deliver Bud Light Sensation themed content through its networks, and developed a Bud Light Sensation trailer that would immerse all Canadians in the Sensation experience.

Then, four months out, through the partnerships with AUX and V-Tele, a weekly content calendar was developed leading up to the event, including: "Top 10" editorial features that counted down the best of everything when it comes to EDM partying; a dynamic six-part video series; and a 14-part DJ series that profiled some of the best up-and-coming DJs in Canada. To continue to build credibility with the EDM influencer audience, the brand launched a digitally-based National DJ contest inviting up-and-coming DJs to remix Sensation tracks for the opportunity for coveted VIP tickets.

Two months out, a mass awareness campaign was launched, including digital, OOH & radio, promoting Bud Light Sensation. The DJ line-up was announced for the event by inviting the online community – led by key influencers – to "unlock" the list of artists using the event hashtag #budlightsensation.

For the main event, the Rogers Centre was transformed into an immersive Sensation experience, supported by exclusive Bud Light hosted venue sneak peek for key media; live cut-ins at the event and editorial coverage by MuchMusic; and an engaging photo experience to capture attendees and share out to their social networks. Go-pros were given to select attendees to wear throughout the event – the footage captured would be turned into their own personal highlight reel to be shared out with their social networks. And there was a Bud Light themed show moment at the pinnacle of the DJ sets where the Rogers Centre was lit up with a full pyrotechnic show and the tagline "Light it Up."

There was also a post-event trailer and mini-documentary through partners AUX and V-Tele.

Bud Light Sensation achieved strong breakthrough across the entire country, with a third of Canadians outside the host city of Toronto becoming aware of the event.

Of those aware of Bud Light Sensation, relevance of Bud Light increased by 19%, perception of Bud Light as a very refreshing beer (the #1 category driver) increased 13%, perception of Bud Light being a trendsetting brand increased by 30% and purchase consideration of Bud Light increased by 19%. The campaign achieved 45,945,321 earned media impressions and over 160 media stories, and Bud Light Sensation was the second-highest beer sales revenue grossing event in the history of the Rogers Centre.