Anheuser-Busch’s recent move to partner Bud Light with trans-identifying influencer Dylan Mulvaney has proven to be a “wrong bet to make,” according to Anson Frericks, a former executive at the company. In a recent appearance on Fox & Friends, Frericks stated that instead of hoping customers would forget the controversial partnership, Anheuser-Busch should be steering in the direction the people appear to want them to go.
Though the company has announced a staffing shake-up in response to the backlash, Frericks believes that this isn’t enough. “What the customer wants with Bud Light is they want to have things that bring us together,” he said. “They want humor. They want the ‘Dilly Dilly’ guys. They want football. They want the things that bind us together as co-equal citizens here, not necessarily having Bud Light get involved in political controversies that tear us apart.”
The decision to partner with Mulvaney is indicative of a larger problem with companies joining the woke left and dividing Americans. Many companies have become too loyal to political activist groups and are using their advertising to promote their own ESG policies rather than appealing to potential customers or even their own shareholders. These companies are no longer accountable to anyone and are instead focused on appeasing the loudest voices on the internet.
The truth is, companies should be focused on uniting Americans, not dividing them. They should be trying to appeal to their customers and shareholders, not just to activist groups. Companies should be encouraging constructive dialogue, not just agreeing with whatever is popular at the moment. Companies should be focusing on what brings us together rather than what pulls us apart.
🚨 | BREAKING: Madison Beer replaces Dylan Mulvaney as the face of Budlight. Beer was quoted as “My serve can’t be ignored and her time is up anyways” pic.twitter.com/U4UfABpB8d
— whisper app (@whispers_finest) April 19, 2023
In the end, it’s the customers and shareholders who will decide whether or not a company succeeds. As Frericks said, “Uunfortunately, when you try to be everything to everyone, you end up being accountable to no one.” Companies should strive to be accountable to their customers, not just to the loudest voices on the internet.