Diageo boosts Facebook relationship

Diageo has expanded its relationship with social networking site Facebook with the signing of a multimillion-dollar advertising deal.

The arrangement will see the two companies sharing skills and resources as well as the appointment of Diageo’s chief marketing officer Andy Fennell to Facebook’s client council.

Diageo, the world’s biggest drinks company, will work closely with a team from Facebook to drive customer engagement and boost its brands such as Guinness and Smirnoff, which already have 12.6 million fans on the site.

Diageo hopes to utilise the arrangement to target emerging markets such as Brazil and Singapore, where Facebook has established local teams as part of the deal.

Facebook will work with the company’s roster of agencies from concept development through to campaign execution.

The “client council” scheme was launched by Facebook in June and Fennell said: “We are already seeing real value from our work in this space.

“Over 950 Diageo marketers around the world have now been trained in Facebook boot camps to build their social media capabilities and we are seeing significant returns on investment across a number of brands.

“We expect this new way of working to deliver even more commercial value for Diageo.”

Diageo already has experience in creating Facebook-based marketing campaigns, with the website forming a hub for its recent Nightlife Exchange Project.

The move continues the migration of the drinks industry from regular websites to social media.

Earlier this year, Bacardi announced plans to shift 90% of its digital spend to Facebook over the next two years, as it no longer deems dotcom sites relevant.

At this year’s db Conference, Neil Morris, director of innovation at marketing and communications firm Engine Group, made clear that social media is now very much at the heart of modern-day life and, as such, drinks companies would be foolish to ignore the opportunities it offers.

However, recent research from Positive Digital, which works with companies including Treasury Wine Estates, claimed that consumers place less value on a social media presence when buying an alcohol brand than any other product type.