Aldi fires salvo in race for drinkers’ dollars with “quirky” marketing campaign poking fun at alcohol snobs

Aldi Australia has taken a friendly swipe at alcohol snobs in its latest marketing campaign, in a bid to outmanoeuvre Coles and Woolworths in the increasingly competitive liquor market.

Aldi is rolling out ads for its alcohol range complete with cheeky phrases including “Pay peanuts, get moscato”, “Don’t pay through the nosé” and “Sauvignon plonk”.

The ads highlight Aldi’s low prices and include the phrase, “Don’t knock it till you try it”.

The ads will also highlight the awards Aldi wine has won, according to Mumbrella.

The campaign comes as Aldi rolls out its expansion in South Australia and Western Australia, eyeing off a larger chunk of the Australian grocery market.

It is not the first time Aldi has zeroed in on concerns over the quality of its products.

In July, Aldi rolled out a marketing campaign aimed at educating consumers about the number of Australian products it stocks.

Michelle Gamble, founder and chief executive of Marketing Angels, told SmartCompany Aldi is very clear about its target market and this is paying dividends.

“Aldi has made huge gains market share-wise in Australia since they launched,” Gamble says.

“But in terms of the advertising, it’s nice to see some marketing that is not just price-driven or relying on celebrity chefs.

“Aldi is becoming a brand like IKEA where they’re very clear about what they do… [meaning] they can be innovative and quirky in their marketing.”

Gamble says Aldi’s strength is people already know its stores offer low prices, so instead its marketing can focus on other areas of the business.

“If you’re very clearly different to your competitors, you can use your advertising to be very succinct about what you’re trying to create,” Gamble says.

“It’s all very simple because they already have a loyal customer base out there advocating them.

“The message for smaller businesses is if you have a very strong point of difference, you can absolutely afford to have a bit more fun with your advertising.”