Latest / The Marketing Funnel Podcast with Fexingo: Awareness, Interest, Decision, and Action Stages / How the Marketing Funnel Explains Athletic Brewing Non-Alcoholic Beer
Transcript
- Lucas: So the marketing funnel is normally taught as a tool for selling things people already want: coffee, sneakers, software. But what happens when you're trying to sell something the consumer has been taught not to want? Luna: You mean like non-alcoholic beer? Lucas: Exactly. For decades, non-alcoholic beer was the punchline. It was what you drank if you had to drive or if you were in recovery. It tasted bad, the packaging was apologetic, and it was hidden in the bottom shelf. Then around 2017 a brand called Athletic Brewing Company came along and basically rewrote the entire category from scratch. Luna: I've seen their cans in Whole Foods. They look like craft beer, not like a diet soda. Lucas: That's the first thing they changed. Let's walk through how Athletic Brewing used every stage of the AIDA funnel — awareness, interest, decision, action — to build a business that by 2023 had grown over 500 percent year-over-year and now holds roughly 19 percent of the non-alcoholic beer market in the US. They have twelve taprooms across the country. And they did it without ever pretending to be something they're not. Luna: Nineteen percent is huge for a brand that didn't exist ten years ago. So start at the top — awareness. How did they get people to even consider non-alcoholic beer? Lucas: They targeted a specific, growing tribe: the sober-curious athlete. Runners, climbers, CrossFit people, marathoners — people who are obsessed with performance and recovery but still want the social ritual of a beer after a workout. Athletic sponsored races, they put ads in trail-running magazines, they sent samples to fitness influencers. They didn't say 'this is for people who can't drink.' They said 'this is for people who want to crush a workout and still crush a beer.' Luna: So they reframed the entire value prop. It's not about deprivation — it's about optimization. Lucas: Exactly. And they timed it brilliantly. Dry January was already becoming a cultural thing. So they could piggyback on that seasonal awareness spike. By January 2020, they were already the best-known non-alcoholic craft brewer among a certain demo. Then COVID hit, and a lot of people re-evaluated their relationship with alcohol. Athletic was ready. Luna: Let's talk about the interest stage. Once someone hears about Athletic Brewing, what makes them want to learn more? Lucas: The education piece is huge. Most people assume non-alcoholic beer is made by brewing regular beer and then boiling off the alcohol — which is true for most mass-market NA beers, and it destroys the flavor. Athletic uses a different process: they brew to a lower alcohol content from the start, then use a proprietary fermentation method that preserves hop aroma and body. They put out content explaining this. They did YouTube videos with brewmasters. They gave brewery tours. They made the 'how it's made' part of the story. Luna: That's smart because it builds trust. You're not hiding anything. You're saying, 'This is real craft beer, just without the alcohol.' Lucas: Right. And that leads to the decision stage. Here's where Athletic did something really clever with distribution. They didn't just go into the 'non-alcoholic' section of the grocery store. That section is often in a separate aisle or near the soda. People who buy NA beer don't want to feel like they're making a special trip. Athletic fought for placement in the regular beer aisle, right next to Sierra Nevada and Sam Adams. Luna: Which is a huge logistical and psychological win. If you're standing in front of the beer cooler and you grab an Athletic can, no one around you knows it's NA. It's just a beer can. Lucas: Exactly. They also leaned hard into direct to consumer. You can go to their website, order a variety pack, and have it shipped to your door. That was especially important during the early days when retail distribution was sparse. They used subscription as well — 'Athletic Beer Club' — which is a classic action-stage play. Get the recurring revenue, build the habit. Luna: And they made the trial super low friction. The variety packs are like twelve cans of different styles. You can taste your way through without committing to a six-pack of one thing. Lucas: That's a classic decision-stage tactic: reduce the perceived risk. And it worked. By 2023, Athletic was selling more than two million cases a year. They expanded into twelve taprooms, which also serve as community hubs. You can go, have a pint, go for a run with the running club they sponsor. That's the action stage looping back into awareness — happy customers become evangelists. Luna: I want to contrast that with how traditional beer brands have tried to enter the NA space. Heineken 0.0, for example. They have massive distribution, but they don't have the same authenticity. Lucas: Heineken 0.0 is a good product, no question. But it's a line extension. It's the non-alcoholic version of a big macro lager. Athletic is a dedicated craft brewery that happens to make only non-alcoholic beer. That changes the story. When you buy Athletic, you're supporting a company whose entire mission is to make NA beer better. You're not buying a compromise. Luna: And they've been consistent with that mission. They don't make a boozy version. They don't have a 'regular' Athletic that you graduate to. This is the product. Lucas: That focus also helps with the interest stage. People who are genuinely curious about NA beer know that Athletic is the specialist. They're not going to get a half-hearted attempt. The reviews on sites like Untappd and BeerAdvocate are often higher for Athletic than for many alcoholic craft beers. That creates social proof that feeds back into awareness. Luna: One thing I find fascinating is how they've used events as a funnel accelerator. They sponsor races, they host post-run socials, they have 'brewery runs' where you run from the taproom, do a loop, and come back for a beer. That's pure top of funnel — non-runners see a group of fit people drinking beer and think, 'Wait, what? That's allowed?' Lucas: It's brilliant because it bypasses all the traditional advertising skepticism. You see real people doing real things, and the product is naturally part of the scene. And it's not just running — they sponsor cycling events, rock climbing comps, even surfing. They've created a whole 'active lifestyle' brand ecosystem. Luna: And it's all anchored in a very specific insight: that the social part of drinking — the clink of glasses, the taste of hops, the ritual — is often more important than the alcohol itself. Athletic gives you the ritual without the cost. Lucas: Which brings us to the action stage beyond the first purchase. How do you get someone to buy again? Athletic uses a subscription model, which is rare in beer. Most beer purchases are impulse — you grab a six-pack at the store. But Athletic's Beer Club ships fresh beer to your door every month. They also have a loyalty program called 'Athletic Miles' — you earn points for purchases, reviews, and social sharing. Luna: That's smart because it gamifies the behavior. You're not just buying beer, you're building status in a community. Lucas: Exactly. And they've extended that community online. Their social media is incredibly active. They post user-generated content constantly — people running, hiking, drinking an Athletic beer at the summit. That content then serves as awareness for new people who see it on their feed. So the funnel becomes a perpetual motion machine. Luna: There's a risk here, though. If the category grows, bigger players will pile in. We've already seen Budweiser launch Budweiser Zero, and Corona has Corona NA. Athletic has first-mover advantage, but can they hold it? Lucas: That's the question. Their moat is authenticity and specialization. Big brewers can match the product — maybe even exceed it on price. But they can't easily match the community and the mission. Athletic's early adopters are fiercely loyal. The question is whether that loyalty can expand to the mass market without diluting the brand. Luna: And that's the classic challenge of any category creator: you have to educate the market, then you have to defend it. It's like what Red Bull did for energy drinks — they created the category, but then Monster came in with a different angle. Lucas: It's a good parallel. Red Bull focused on extreme sports and premium pricing. Monster went bigger, cheaper, and more mainstream. Athletic seems to be following the Red Bull playbook: stay premium, stay niche, grow carefully. They're opening taprooms in cities with active outdoor cultures — San Diego, Denver, Portland. They're not trying to be in every gas station. Luna: And that keeps the brand signal strong. If you see Athletic, you know it's the real craft NA option. Lucas: Before we wrap up, I want to highlight one more thing about their strategy that is very funnel-aware. They have a product called 'Run Wild' — an IPA — and 'Free Wave' — a hazy IPA. The names themselves are mini-funnel tools. 'Run Wild' evokes action, freedom, movement. It's not 'Alcohol-Free Beer.' It's a name that invites you into a lifestyle. That's top of funnel in a single phrase. Luna: The naming is brilliant. It's aspirational. It makes you want to be the kind of person who runs wild and then drinks a beer. Lucas: Right. And that's the whole funnel compressed into branding. If you can get the awareness and interest to happen just from the name and the can design, you've done half the work. Luna: You know, it occurs to me that these marketing conversations we have on the show — they're free, ad-free, and we keep doing them because we genuinely find this stuff interesting. And we've heard from listeners who say they've actually used some of these frameworks in their own work. That's the best feedback we could get. Lucas: It really is. And we want to keep it that way — no ads, no sponsors, no interruption. If you find value in what we do and want to support the show staying independent and ad-free, there's a simple way to do it. It's buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. That's it. No tiers, no perks, just a way to say 'keep going.' And it genuinely helps us keep the lights on. Luna: Agreed. And thank you to everyone who has already done that. It means the world. Lucas: So back to Athletic Brewing. I think their story is a masterclass in using the marketing funnel not to sell an existing product, but to create a new category. They started with a deep understanding of a specific audience — active, health-conscious people who missed the ritual of beer. They educated that audience through content and events. They made trial easy through variety packs and retail placement. And they locked in loyalty through subscription and community. Luna: And now they're the default. When someone says 'I'm trying to drink less but I still want a beer,' the first name that comes up is Athletic. That's the ultimate funnel win. Lucas: If you were to take one thing from this episode, let it be this: the funnel works best when you're not just selling a product, but a new way of thinking about a category. Athletic Brewing didn't just make better non-alcoholic beer. They made it cool, aspirational, and socially normal. That's a much bigger lift — and a much bigger payoff. Luna: So next time you're at the store and you see a six-pack of Athletic, you'll know the funnel that got it there. Lucas: Exactly. And maybe you'll grab one. I know I will.