Our strategy
Our strategy is built around three main pillars:
Self-regulation: responsible commercial communication
The promotion of responsible consumption is an important element in our alcohol policy. Any advertising, marketing or promotion for any of our brands must comply with the Rules for Responsible Commercial Communication. Our advertising must never encourage alcohol misuse. Our brand communication only targets people above the legal drinking age, never features people who are, or appear to be younger than 25 years of age and our advertising only appears in media whose audience is more than 70 per cent of legal drinking age or above.
Enjoy Heineken Responsibly
The message Enjoy Heineken Responsibly was launched in 2004 on all bottles, cans and packaging of the Heineken brand. In order to help create awareness amongst consumers and support informed decisions and choices, the message was accompanied by a logo displaying the ‘Enjoy Heineken Responsibly’ internet address. It is now displayed on commercial communication across many markets and forms a distinct communication platform for the Heineken brand. In markets such as Italy, the Netherlands, Greece and the USA, the platform has already been used for dedicated television advertising.
The website now appears in eight languages and is the basis for websites being developed for other brands in the Heineken portfolio.
Employees as Ambassadors – Cool@Work
We believe that our employees are the ambassadors of our Company. To this end, a core, Company-wide programme, Cool@Work provides employees with information on the meaning of responsibility and training when necessary. Specific elements such as sales force training and support for individuals who may have a problem dealing with alcohol are also elements of the programme. It is mandatory that all employees are made aware of their special responsibility as Heineken employees at least once every two years. The Cool@Work programme is implemented by the operating companies and supervised by our Group Head office.
Compliance with all three strategic pillars of our Alcohol Policy are subject to periodic audit by our Group Internal Audit department and the results are shared with the responsible Regional Presidents, the Executive Board and the Supervisory Board.