Heineken: Real Madrid vs AC Milan

The video really explains it all - Heineken's offline activation for last years UEFA Champion's League Real Madrid vs AC Milan match.

Absolut Drinkspiration 2.0

You may remember last July I wrote about the iPhone App launched by Absolut: Absolut Drinkspiration. The post got a huge amount of traffic and I thought you might be interested in an update of the campaign. Drinkspiration version 2.0 is now available for download and it features a host of updates including even more drinks based on mood, time of day, bar vibe, drink colour, etc. However, this time around Absolut has also launched an Android version of Drinkspiration for non-iPhone folk.

Drinkspiration by Absolut
A sophisticated drink application combining the latest mobile technology with GPS, Twitter and Facebook. Drinkspiration by Absolut is an interactive encyclopaedia of recipes, that helps you find and share personalized drink recommendations based on taste, weather, time of day, bar vibe, sound volume, real-time drink trends and much more. The application gives you a glimpse of the international nightlife scene, allowing you to see what drinks are ordered in real time across the globe and highlights in global drink trends and top lists – all made possible by GPS technology.

“We wanted to create the first interactive spirits application of its kind, combining top-of-the line mobile technology with social media interaction and user generated content,” said Fredrick Tallroth, “Drinkspiration by Absolut solves any drink dilemma quickly and in an inspiring way.”

- Drinkspiration by Absolut for Google Android is available for download in the Android Market
- Download the update of Drinkspiration by Absolut for iPhone here
- Please visit www.absolutdrinks.com/drinkspiration for more information

St. Patrick's and the Guinness Grin

A cool offering from Guinness for St. Patrick's Day.

"St. Patricks is almost here and to celebrate, we want you to show off your finest Guinness Grin! Thats right, the one just after a sip of the black stuff, when your top lip and nose are covered in creamy Guinness. All you have to do is upload a photo of your Grin on our 'Guinness Grin' tab and you could win a once-in-a-lifetime prize! *Terms and Conditions apply."

New Challenges & Opportunities

A short time ago I made the decision that it was time to make a subtle but important career change. While the previous two and a half years with Cybercom have been absolutely brilliant, teaching me more then I could have imagined and giving me incredible experience working with some of Ireland's top brands, I realised that I would be better suited to focusing all my attention on Social Media and Digital PR.

These are the areas of the modern marketing mix that I have the most fun with and, to be honest, the areas that I am best at, and ultimately this is where I want my career to go. So I started looking at the UK and Irish markets to see what was happening.

So [cue drum roll], having spoken to a number of different agencies and companies, I have accepted an offer from Simply Zesty and will start in two weeks as their Director of Strategy.

Match.com: 'Accidental Duet'

Every now and then you see an ad that just clicks. It works. It grabs your attention and really makes you pay attention. The following ad did just that for me. While I didn't feel compelled to go out and use the service promoted, I did instantly focus all attention on the ad and became fully aware of what the ad was for. It's kinda quirky and has a somewhat mushy sentimental feeling to it, but all that aside, I like the idea and the way it has been brought together. This is yet another example of some stunning work by Mother.

This is the first ad for match.com following the retirement of the dating site's "Jack and Jill" animated lovers that have been used for the last five years. The new £7m campaign, which is called "Start Your Love Story", is the first major work on the account for Mother since winning it last October. The new ad sees a couple finding love while singing a duet in a small music store. Amid an impromptu musical "conversation" between the two people who also play instruments across the shop, they fall in love. The advert closes by reminding the audience that to start their love story, they should visit match.com. The campaign aims to "capture that butterfly moment you feel when you find someone special".

"This campaign aims to capture that moment when you realise you have met someone you have genuine chemistry with,” said UK Country Manager, Karl Gregory. “The moment you know that this could be the start of something, the start of a love story. In our experience, we’ve found that it is often the little things such as a shared interest or common love – like that of music - which sparks a relationship."

The song that is used in the ad, called "just like me", was written especially for the commercial and is available as a two-minute version. The ad was filmed using anamorphic lenses to give the look and feel of a movie. Shot by Academy Film’s directors Si and Ad, it features new acting talents Amber Anderson and James Connelly in the starring roles.

Media Agency: Initiative
Production Company: Academy
Director: Si & Ad
Producer: Lucy Gossage
Editor: Jonnie Scarlet
Post-production: MPC
Audio Post-production: Factory