CLIENT: Campari
PRODUCT: Baron Samedi Rum
TARGET: Millennials who drink rum and seek social capital.
THE BRIEF: How do we get our target excited about Baron Samedi rum before it even hits shelves?
THE CONCEPT:
Creating a series of 9 glitch art pieces designed for instagram, we told the brand story and built intrigue pre-launch. Combined, all 9 posts formed an illustration of The Baron Samedi’s face, which could be seen as a whole on the brand’s instagram profile.
The Baron Samedi comes from Haitian voodoo, a dark character tasked with guarding the veil between the living and the dead. Imagined in a top hat with a skull-like face, the Baron is known for disruption, obscenity, debauchery, and having a particular fondness for rum.
Each post used a collection of spooky and unnerving imagery, paired with glitch effects and sounds, and always resolving on the tagline “SUMMON THE BARON SAMEDI AND HE WILL COME.” Each caption further teased the character of the Baron, offering a taste of the lore.
The audience’s reaction was exactly what we hoped: confusion, intrigue, and engagement. As people began to put together that these were in fact advertisements, excitement built. People left comments asking when the rum would hit shelves, eager to try it. The brand tone we established pre-launch carries through to today, having garnered a loyal following of nearly 3,000 fans and followers.
A post shared by The Baron Samedi (@thebaronsamedi) on
A post shared by The Baron Samedi (@thebaronsamedi) on
