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Personalisation is current for alcohol brands both on and offline.

BrandJose Cuervo Jameson Absolut Smirnoff Media TypeEvent Integrated Mobile Music Video Social Media Product CategoryAlcoholic Drinks SourceNews TagsFacebook Personalisation interactive event series Alcohol
The last few weeks have seen a glut of personalised Facebook efforts, with some of the most intriguing coming from the alcohol sector.

Music band and online viral sensation OK Go are taking part in the latest campaign for Cuervo Tequila in Brazil, through Albion, London this week, with pop-up 'one shot' gigs taking place in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Fans can track down the locations by logging on to www.cuervocold.com. The site gives a taste of what will follow at the final live performance, which will be streamed live online on Thursday 24 November.

Fans will be able to take part in OK Go's music video by signing into the site through Facebook Connect or using the Twitter hashtag #shotcast. This marks the first time that the band - who are long-established as a viral sensation - have given their fans the opportunity to get involved in one of their music videos. Individual avatars will be shown as pixels to form the video's images. Those viewing the content online can hover over the individual images to see fans' comments and tweets.

Meanwhile, Jameson's whiskey heads back in time to create a slick personalised Facebook detective story, with the help of digital agency Evolution Bureau, San Francisco. Users log into Jameson1780.com to be transported to 18th-century Dublin where they have to talk to a variety of colourful characters and undertake a series of challenges to discover which of their Facebook friends has stolen a barrel of the precious liquid. The game scrapes information from one of their friend's details - such as music taste, quotes and comments - to point them in the right direction of who among their friends is the light-fingered one.

Sticking with its artistic heritage, Vodka brand Absolut has created an integrated campaign based around artists, creativity and self-expression, Absolut Blank, through John Doe, London. The campaign features video portraits from 18 artists, an iPhone app, and audio visual installation. In London, Absolut worked with music video director Saam Farahmand to create video portraits of people dancing in front of a vodka bottle. Their bodies act as brushes, with software translating them into patterns in the films. In conjunction with the launch, the brand has created Blank the app, free to download from iTunes, users can then take photos and record sounds that inspire them from their environment.

Also in the live event space, Smirnoff's latest Nightlife Exchange, brought to life by Splendid, took place recently in London, bringing a touch of Jamaica to the city. Here again, personalisation was key, with guests able to pick up an RFID chip and sign in to Facebook on arrival, which allowed pictures to be automatically tagged to Facebook from the night. Smirnoff staff were on hand with iPads to quiz people on their favourite cocktails and post the results to Facebook.

We are getting bored with the sheer number of personalised Facebook films we see that do very little but scrape the odd photo into a poorly produced video. Therefore, offering real-time opportunities to engage with a favourite band in a visually stimulating and intriguing way, or to build up a personal relationship at a live event, offers value and entertainment to attendees. Absolut's opportunities for users to create a remix via its app and Jameson's efforts, with its engaging stories, attention to detail and top-class production value and level of intrigue, thanks to the personalisation really stand out. As with all campaigns, there has to be a level or entertainment, utility or value to give users a reason to take part, and the novelty of uploading your face to a Facebook campaign and calling it personalised has definitely worn off.