Could Have Been a Heineken.
A WhatsApp bot that swapped long voice notes for free beers, so friends would meet in person instead of trading three-minute monologues.
- Brand
- Heineken
- Agency
- LePub
- Market
- Brazil
- Region
- Global
- Year
- 2025
The challenge
Heineken-commissioned research among 14,000 people found the average person spends almost 150 hours a year sending and receiving voice notes, and 'over half (52%) of those polled feel voice notes are replacing IRL interactions'. Brazil was chosen for the pilot because, Heineken said, Meta's data shows Brazilians send four times as many voice notes as people in any other country.
The idea
WhatsApp users in Brazil who received a voice note of three minutes or more could forward it to Heineken's WhatsApp bot and get a voucher for a free beer, plus suggestions of bars to meet up in (Marketing Dive; MediaCat). The name plays on meetings that 'could have been an email'. LePub Milan and LePub São Paulo built it with WhatsApp and launched it in Brazil in December 2025 with outdoor, creators and a remix of a popular trend (D&AD), and Heineken said more markets would follow.
Case study source: Marketing Dive Source ↗
Awards
- Cannes Lions 2026Social & Creator LionsGrand Prix
- Cannes 2026: Golds in Brand Experience & Activation, Direct, Outdoor and Media (two), Silvers in Audio & Radio and Direct, and a Bronze in Brand Experience & Activation
Credits
- Platform partner
- PR
- The Romans
- PR
- Lema+
- Media
- Dentsu Creative
