Currently running in Brazil, USA, Mexico, Bulgaria, Uruguay, Greece, Italy and Turkey, and with launch plans in more than 10 markets worldwide including Thailand and China, our campaign, ‘Here’s to Real Friends’, is a global one. As such, Branded Entertainment is present in different degrees and under varying restrictions when it comes to alcohol, most notably:•In Brazil alcohol can only be advertised on TV from 9:30pm to 6:00am.•In Mexico, from 10:00pm onwards, there should be no indication of alcohol consumption in ATL media.•In Thailand, TV advertising must not show spirits bottles or glasses with alcohol being consumed.

All of these restrictions apply to Branded Entertainment, especially when commissioned or sponsored by alcohol brands.

Chivas is a premium Scotch whisky blend with high awareness globally. Better yet, most target consumers think it’s a good whisky, just not for them.

Chivas is often perceived as ‘my dad’s drink’ or a great gift. The marketing task is to brand consideration amongst younger target 28-40 YO modern gentlemen, by demonstrating Chivas has a rightful place at their table.For these men, their social life and friends are just as important as their careers and material successes. However, their busy lives – work, partners, children – often make it difficult for them to gather with friends, creating a longing for face-to-face brotherly bonding. When they do, it’s inherently a special occasion. One they want to make the most of.

We called this new drinking occasion ‘The Brotherhood Sessions’. These are nights when modern gentlemen come together with their best friends around the table to tell and re-tell the anecdotes that built their friendship. A form of contemporary male bonding.

We recognised that Chivas, who under the rallying cry ‘Live With Chivalry’, champions living a with greater depth and consideration towards fellow men, could have a key role at these sessions: to honour close friendships.

This thought fuelled the campaign ‘Here’s to Real Friends’ which celebrates the friendship stories of 4 Chivas guys whose wild, entertaining, shared experiences have made their friendship solid.

To drive brand consideration we created 2 short films that encouraged consumers to spend time with the brand. These films, ‘Here’s to Big Bear’ and ‘Here’s to Twinkle’ were showcased on a campaign microsite, YouTube brand channels and Facebook fan pages.

We drove public awareness of the films with TV trailers, film posters/press, digital advertising, blogger exclusives and video seeding.

The films, ‘Here’s to Big Bear’ and ‘Here’s to Twinkle’, were showcased on a campaign microsite, YouTube brand channels and Chivas Facebook fan pages.

We drove public awareness of the films with TV trailers, film posters, press advertising, digital advertising (including rich media banners, Facebook advertising and YouTube promoted videos), blogger exclusives and video seeding.

Additionally, the campaign has inspired some Pernod Ricard ‘firsts’ such as the placement of ‘Here’s to Twinkle’ as a 6 minute TV spot on cable TV in Brazil, and pop up cinemas in Thailand.

At 3 months from launch, ‘Here’s to Real Friends’ is well on its way to achieving its objectives of driving brand consideration:•Google searches for Chivas Regal have grown by 886%, outperforming the category average and searches for Johnnie Walker.•Traffic to chivas.com has grown by 510%.•On launch, the extended trailer was ranked 9th within the YouTube entertainment category.•With a total of 2,208,113 (19/02/12), views of the films and trailers are among the top 0.4% of YouTube videos.•‘Twinkle’ and ‘Big Bear’ have higher audience retention rates than online video standards when watched on chivas.com.•The global Facebook fan base has increased by 25% since launch.With regards to the Chival Regal global brand team, success is also measured via the reception to the campaign by local markets:•‘Here’s to Real Friends’ is the first Chivas fully integrated campaign, covering 8 media channels, each with a distinct role.•At 4 months from launch the campaign is currently running in 8 markets, with launch plans in many more including Thailand and China.•The campaign has inspired Pernod Ricard ‘firsts’ such as the placement of ‘Here’s to Twinkle’ as a 6 minute TV spot and pop-up cinemas.