An ingenious marketing stunt by a Georgian beer company may just be one of the most brilliant uses of VR technology to date, blurring the line between both the virtual and the real world.
The marketing stunt happened in the capital of Georgia, Tbilisi, a city with an interesting mix of Asian and European influences. And although the residents of the city are used to encountering the odd tourist here and there, they certainly weren’t expecting what was about to happen to them in their own city.
Old Irish is a new craft beer with a unique Irish recipe, and to deliver this message home to the Georgian market, the beer company decided to promote their new brew to help drinkers “get a taste of Ireland.”
Screenshot from video below.
As you can see in the video below, the stunt starts off with a pretty young lady approaching people on the streets of Tbilisi asking them if they’d like to discover Ireland (think you know Ireland? Check out our KarryOn Irish quiz).
After soliciting a “yes, please,” the unsuspecting ‘victim’ of the stunt is given a VR headset and headphones to wear.
Then, whilst they’re virtually transported to a world of rolling green fields, wild horses, waterfalls and the odd leprechaun (okay, this is a lie!), something very real is transported around them… namely, a good ol’ Irish pub, full of patrons sinking back a few pints of Guinness.
So you can imagine their surprise when their VR experience comes to an end, and they take off their headsets and headphones, and then find themselves no longer on the streets of the Georgian capital, but in some Irish pub!
Check out the awesome video of the stunt below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3R5J8Je2j_4
Drinking beer, smashing bottles over heads, and taking names – that’s the core message of Old Irish beer it seems! But in all seriousness, the stunt highlights how VR technology can help transport users to a different place and time.
(KarryOn disclaimer: We take no responsibility over your drinking habits. Please drink responsibly!)
In our industry, we’ve already seen how more and more travel companies are leveraging on the power and pull of VR headsets to do a lot of their marketing for them.
For example, New Caledonia Tourism have gotten onboard the VR train to help transport users to the turquoise waters of this French territory just three hours from Sydney, as have Cruiseabout in helping cruisers experience what it’s like onboard Royal Caribbean International’s Voyager of the Seas and Carnival Cruise Line Australia’s Carnival Spirit in full 360 degree glory.
Then, of course, there is forward-thinking youth tour brand Contiki, who have been utilising VR technology to create 360 degree videos in full panoramic vision that puts users right in the centre of all the action.
The use of VR technology by the travel industry is certainly a great step forward and pretty freaking exciting.
Helping users feel as if they’re already part of the landscape and scenery of a different country or city is definitely great destination marketing. If users feel a destination is exciting or pretty enough – which isn’t hard at all on this beautiful planet – then they can be inspired into booking a ticket to visit the destination for real, which is awesome news for the travel industry – #hellonewbookings!
