What’s the key to a winning beer pitch?
Product testing. Lots and lots of product testing.

The Story

Cheers! We just won a beer account.

After learning one of Canada's most revered breweries had put a portion of their account in play, I was contracted by an agency to develop a winning pitch. 

 We began by sending We’re Thirsty. On the strength of that letter, the agency made the first cut. Our high fives and excitement were short lived however when we realized practically every agency in the city did as well. Then came Round 2: The proposal.

 While we were confident our proposal was solid, the agency's credentials were less than stellar in this category. We needed something audacious for this next round if we were to be seen as a contender. So I decided to put our proposal on ice. Literally.

 On the final day of submissions,we anonymously delivered our proposal inside a 400lb block of solid ice and dropped it on their front steps before anyone arrived at work. There was no indication of what was inside or who it was from. Just a cryptic headline seen shimmering through the ice. By 8:30 that morning, every Sleeman employee had seen it and was talking about it. 

 Then at noon we sent a second letter with the ice pick. 

 My initial excitement in pulling off this stunt turned to mild panic as a full week went by without a word. Just when I figured I’d better start dusting off the ol’ resume, a Sleeman truck rolled up and dropped 50 cases of beer on our front steps. We either won the account I thought, or it’s one hell of a consolation prize. 

 Then the driver handed us a letter. It read:
Congratulations.
You're in.