Lisa Weser isn’t your typical rock star, but in the world of brand communications, she’s definitely earned the title. As the head of U.S. brand communications for Anheuser-Busch, the nation’s largest brewer, Lisa navigates the complex landscape of public relations for some of America’s most iconic beer brands. From Budweiser to Stella Artois, her role encompasses managing the reputations and narratives of brands that are deeply woven into the fabric of American culture and entertainment. But what does it actually mean to be a “rock star” in brand communications at this level? Let’s dive into the day-to-day realities and career journey of Lisa Weser, a true leader in her field.
Lisa Weser Headshot Brand Communication Leader
Decoding the Day Job: Brand Communications for a Beer Empire
Overseeing brand PR for Anheuser-Busch is no small feat. Lisa’s responsibilities span a vast portfolio of brands, from household names like Budweiser and Bud Light to specialty and import beers such as Stella Artois, Beck’s, Shock Top, Goose Island, and LandShark Lager. This represents nearly half of all beer sold in the United States, coupled with significant sponsorships across sports, film, and music. “Busy is an understatement,” Lisa admits. Her days are incredibly diverse, ranging from launching new beer products and national advertising campaigns to on-the-ground activations at major events like the Super Bowl or Sundance Film Festival. Managing media relations for top marketing executives and handling a constant stream of journalist inquiries are also key components of her role. Lisa emphasizes the collaborative nature of her work, noting, “It takes a village – I have a small team and about five large PR agencies helping me keep all the trains on the track.” This collaborative leadership style is a hallmark of a true “rock star,” orchestrating numerous moving parts with precision and expertise.
Social Media Navigation in the Adult Beverage Industry: A Tricky Balance
The adult beverage industry presents unique challenges in the social media landscape due to strict regulations and responsible marketing concerns. For Lisa and her team, age-gating is paramount. “The bottom line is that everything must be age-gated. EVERYTHING,” she stresses. This requirement creates hurdles, especially with emerging social platforms that don’t always prioritize brand functionality, particularly in terms of age verification. Even established platforms like Twitter only recently implemented age verification. This means platforms like Instagram and Pinterest, with less robust age-gating features, are largely off-limits for Anheuser-Busch brands. Despite these limitations, Lisa’s team maximizes the potential of compliant channels like Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and Spotify.
Her approach to social media is content-driven and experience-focused. “Luckily, once you get past the platform restrictions, engaging content comes pretty easily in the beer business,” Lisa explains. She prioritizes capturing social-ready content at every opportunity, often accompanied by a videographer and photographer. Building relationships with online influencers, including journalists, is also crucial. This goes beyond simply sending products; it’s about offering exclusive access to information, people, and events. “Taking them out for a beer or two,” Lisa adds, highlighting the enduring relevance of traditional PR tactics in the digital age. This blend of innovative digital strategies with classic relationship-building underscores her “rock star” approach to modern PR.
Dream Job Perks and Unexpected Wows: Beyond the Free Beer
Many might consider working in communications for a major beer company a dream job, filled with fun and unique perks. And Lisa confirms there are definitely some exciting benefits. The most commonly asked-about perk? “Free beer – every employee takes home two free cases a month and we have a lot of happy hours,” she laughs. There’s even “beer school” for employees to learn everything from brewing processes to proper serving techniques.
Lisa Weser Beer Tasting Event
However, for Lisa, the truly exceptional perks are the experiences. Within her first few months at Anheuser-Busch, she attended the Super Bowl and the Grammy Awards. More recently, she’s traveled to Budweiser Made in America festival in Philadelphia, the Toronto Film Festival, and New York Fashion Week. “I swear, it’s been like a decade of career highlights crammed into one year,” she marvels. This whirlwind of high-profile events and experiences is a testament to the dynamic and exciting nature of her role – a lifestyle befitting a “rock star” in the brand world. Quoting a PR industry adage, she jokes, “I’ll sleep when I’m dead.”
Star-Struck Moments and Musician Encounters: From Iowa to Center Stage
Budweiser’s extensive sponsorship of concerts means Lisa has had the chance to meet numerous musicians. Coming from a small town in Iowa, she admits to being easily star-struck. When asked about the most memorable encounter, she immediately names “Mr. and Mrs. Carter, hands down.” Meeting Beyoncé and Jay-Z is undoubtedly a “rock star” moment, even for a PR professional accustomed to high-profile interactions.
From Agency Life to the Corporate Side: Navigating New Challenges
Lisa’s career path includes over five years at Fleishman-Hillard in St. Louis before transitioning to the corporate side at Anheuser-Busch. Having agency experience, she’s gained a new perspective on client-agency relationships. “Agency people always complain about how hard it is to manage their clients,” she observes. “As it turns out, it’s even tougher to be on the client side managing the agencies.” The challenge isn’t with the agency teams themselves, whom she generally finds fantastic, but with the sheer volume of constant communication and decision-making. Lisa believes her agency background makes her a more effective client, allowing her to empathize with agency challenges, provide better support, and proactively remove obstacles. Her agency experience also proves invaluable when reviewing budgets and billing. This understanding of both sides of the PR equation is a key element of her “rock star” leadership.
Telecom to Beer: A Surprisingly Smooth Transition
Moving from telecommunications at AT&T to the adult beverage industry might seem like a significant shift, but Lisa found the transition relatively seamless. Humorously noting her longer history with beer than cell phones, she points out the underlying similarities between the industries. “Anheuser-Busch is a brewery, but it’s also top five CPG and Fortune 100 company,” she explains. Both sectors involve large-scale sponsorships, product launches, and corporate social responsibility campaigns, such as AT&T’s impactful #itcanwait distracted driving initiative. The scale and complexity of these operations share common ground, making her experience transferable and valuable.
Accenture Beginnings: An Unconventional Path to PR Stardom
Lisa’s entry into the communications field was through Accenture, a consulting firm, rather than a traditional PR agency. Initially aiming for a PhD and a career in academia, she discovered business communications consulting through a professor. This unconventional start offered unique benefits. Working at Accenture provided early exposure to diverse organizational structures and leadership styles through travel and consulting projects. She was placed in situations where she advised executives significantly older and more experienced. Lisa credits this period with sparking her PR instincts. While landing at a PR agency was a pivotal career moment, her consulting background laid a strong foundation for her future “rock star” trajectory in public relations.
Interestingly, Lisa reflects on a report ranking “Public Relations Executive” among the most stressful jobs, contrasting it with “College Professor” as one of the least stressful. This humorous observation underscores the high-pressure, fast-paced nature of her “rock star” role in brand communications.
Beer Preferences of a “Rock Star” Beer Executive
Finally, as a self-proclaimed beer enthusiast now working at the helm of a major brewery, what are Lisa’s top beer picks?
- Budweiser: She calls it “an American classic,” quoting her husband’s description: “it tastes like baseball.”
- Goose Island Bourbon County Brand Stout: A bourbon aficionado as well as a beer lover, Lisa was impressed by this beer tasted straight from the barrel at the Goose Island brewery in Chicago. She understands why it has such a dedicated following.
- Urban Chestnut Zwickel: Supporting local craft brewers is also important to Lisa. She highlights this “excellent, hoppy Bavarian-style lager” from a former Anheuser-Busch brewmaster who launched his own brewery in St. Louis.
Lisa Weser’s journey showcases the multifaceted role of a brand communications leader in today’s dynamic media environment. Her expertise, experience, and passion for her work truly solidify her status as a “rock star” in the PR world.
