Jameson® Taps HipCricket to Power St. Patrick’s Day Mobile Marketing Campaign

March 13, 2008 – BELLEVUE, WA
Revelers seeking the perfectly pithy Irish toast this St. Patrick’s Day won’t have to look any further than their mobile phone, thanks to Jameson and HipCricket, a mobile marketing company that creates measurable, real-time, one-to-one relationships between brands and consumers.
America’s fastest-growing whiskey brand has turned to HipCricket's mobile-marketing platform to send unique Irish toasts via text message to consumers who have opted-in to the "Jameson Full-On Irish" Sweepstakes. Irish whiskey is by far the fastest-growing spirits category in the U.S., and those enjoying St. Patrick’s Day festivities can quench their thirst and impress their friends with creative toasts sent daily from February 17 to March 17, and then hourly throughout March 16 and 17.
Jameson’s domestic importer, Pernod Ricard USA, worked with its creative agency, Marketing Drive, to develop the national campaign, built around a sweepstakes featuring five Grand Prize trips to the Old Jameson distillery in Dublin, Ireland. Consumers of legal drinking age can opt-in to receive the toasts and enter the sweepstakes by texting IRISH to 80782; revelers at participating bars and restaurants can text JAMESON to 80782.
HipCricket provides a flexible, scalable platform that will enable thousands of Jameson fans to simultaneously receive these toasts. On the back end, HipCricket’s platform offers Jameson the ability to measure the results of their campaign with drill-down analytics.
"Working with HipCricket further extends Jameson into consumers’ St. Patrick’s Day celebrations. HipCricket empowered us with the means to very easily implement a mobile campaign that will provide us with measurable results,” said Wayne Hartunian, Brand Director for Jameson at Pernod Ricard USA. “Everyone wants the perfect toast on St. Patrick’s Day, and mobile is the ideal medium to quickly distribute these gems to our customers who have opted in. It is the ideal way to be creative and enjoy St. Patrick’s Day with friends and family."
"Working with Jameson this St. Patrick’s Day is an exciting opportunity that truly showcases HipCricket’s capabilities for leading consumer brands,” said Steve Siegel, HipCricket’s Vice President of Brand Solutions. “Brands are looking for creative yet welcomed ways to become an integral part of consumers’ lives; the ‘Jameson Full-On Irish’ campaign and “texted toasts” provide something fun and enjoyable to their customers. Consumers are welcoming Jameson be a part of their lives via a very personal medium, their mobile phones; we’ve helped Jameson to create a fun way to stay top of mind."
Pernod Ricard USA urges all adults to accept responsibility when considering consuming alcoholic beverages. For more information, please visit: http://www.acceptresponsibility.org/.
# # #
About Pernod Ricard USA
Pernod Ricard USA, based in Purchase, N.Y., is a leading producer, importer and marketer of prized spirits and wine brands in the United States and is one of the fastest growing subsidiaries of the world’s #2 spirits company and #4 wine company, Paris, France-based Pernod Ricard, S.A. The completion of Pernod Ricard’s acquisition of Allied Domecq in 2005 vaulted Pernod Ricard USA to the forefront of the U.S. spirits market, doubling the company’s sales value and market share. The company is now the third largest in the U.S. spirits industry by sales value and the fifth largest by sales volume in the U.S.
Pernod Ricard USA's leading brands include Kahlúa® Liqueur, Chivas Regal® Scotch Whisky, Seagram's Extra Dry Gin®, Malibu® flavored Rum, Stolichnaya® Vodkas, Jameson® Irish Whiskey, The Glenlivet® Single Malt Scotch Whisky, Wild Turkey® Bourbon, Beefeater® Gin, Martell™ Cognac, as well as Jacob's Creek® and Brancott Estate® wines, Perrier-Jouët® Champagne, G.H. Mumm® Champagne and Mumm Napa® wines, and Pernod® and Ricard® Liquors.
About Marketing Drive
Marketing Drive (http://www.marketingdrive.com/) is a promotional marketing agency dedicated to helping clients realize their brand’s full potential. We do this by driving incrementality. Our trick, discover an unexpected insight or opportunity to translate into a creative idea that goes Boom – simple to say, hard to do. Marketing Drive is proud to partner with such notable clients as: Dannon; ExxonMobil; New Balance; Novartis Consumer Health; Pernod Ricard, USA; Procter & Gamble; and the US Environmental Protection Agency.

http://bluespotmedia.ning.com/