Walk the Line after booze cruise, urges Bacardi

The activity raises awareness about responsible drinking by testing people's steadiness after they are a few pegs down.

How many times have you been provided a free cab to drop you back home after a drink session in a bar? Not often. However, if you plan to visit a pub or lounge in Delhi this weekend, you might just find yourself lucky.

Stating that 70 per cent of road accidents are caused by drunk driving, spirits company Bacardi has endorsed the message of responsible drinking with 'Walk the Line', a digital on-ground activation that tests people after they are a few pegs down..

The pilot installation was done a while ago at Club Lemp in Gurgaon, where, after a night of partying, people were made to walk on a straight yellow line by placing one foot in front of the other until they reached the other side. If and when the person reached the end of the strip, a set of lasers further confirmed that he or she was sober enough to drive. The lasers, placed on either side of the strip, detected deviations from the strip, triggering an alarm if the patron failed the test: the person was provided chauffeur-driven cabs to drive them back home.

Conceptualised by Webchutney, the activation is a part of the brand's CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) activities which creates fun and real-time human responses. Bacardi claims that experiential advertising is the wave of the future and people love to experience something new and different.

Speaking to afaqs! Manish Seth, director, marketing and sales, Bacardi India, says, "This digital on-ground CSR initiative allowed the brand to interact with people. Bacardi as a brand and company continually strives to create experiences to excite, engage and educate consumers. We target SEC A and SEC B urban male consumers, who spend quality time and get exposed to content on the digital platforms. Hence, we have been creating events like Bacardi Blasts and NH7 Weekender."

Once an app, always an app

Alongside this activation, Bacardi has launched an
Android application
that takes the same concept forward. Users can test their steadiness at any time and if they aren't quite all right, they can call for cabs through the app. Though Bacardi pays for all cabs during an activation, cabs booked through the app have to be paid for by the user. For this, the brand has tied up with cab providers like Meru and Ola Cabs.

Interestingly, on testing the Walk the Line mobile application in our office, we noticed that most of us failed to pass the test, and got the message that we have had 'one too many.' One smart colleague, however, was able to pass the test by keeping the phone steady on the table. We don't drink at work, may we add!

Commenting on the need to extend this on a smartphone application, Seth explains that releasing the Walk the Line mobile app is a way to make the concept available to everyone, so that responsible drinking is not only talked about, but is practised as well.

The walk ahead

Bacardi intends to propagate this module and touch base with a large number of people with activations in Delhi this month. In the coming year, the brand will take this module to all party places across all key Indian cities.

Says Gurbaksh Singh, creative director, Webchutney, "Through the digital route, Bacardi intends to establish a wide database and advocate socials issues and concerns to the targeted group. The brand intends to not only be cool but also to care for consumers."