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South Africans have become accustomed to a sultry voice in a thick Russian accent on radio. This mysterious voice, known for her quirky, straight-talking and highly amusing commentary, takes no nonsense, and she only drinks the refreshing spring water and vodka cooler, Vawter. In fact, the mysterious voice has driven thousands of people to the Vawter Facebook page to ‘talk back’ to her.
Combining the wide reach and personal nature of radio with the interactivity of Facebook has allowed the brand to really interact and build relationships with the public. Not only did the radio campaign earn Vawter a place in the Radio Advertising Bureau (RAB) Best of 2011 handbook but they have doubled the brands awareness levels over the last year.
Distell developed Vawter by combining fresh spring water sourced from the Franschhoek Mountains, with premium vodka and adding a splash of flavour. The range consists of three flavours: the original Vawter with lime called Zest and two new additions; Vawter Vortex Energy, which contains no caffeine and Vawter Frost, with an added dash of fruit.
The two new flavours that launched in November last year have given the brand a broader appeal. “Although RTDs are usually preferred by women the new energy variant has been a hit with the male market” says Johann Botha, Regional Marketing Manager of Vawter.
To support the launch, the brand embarked on a national radio campaign. Vawter Global Marketing Manager Claudia Mills says, “As a relatively small brand with small budgets, radio was the perfect medium to achieve our objectives as it has the greatest reach and allows us to use the brand’s identifiable voice. We are amazed by how consumers identify Vawter when they hear the mysterious but recognizable voice. She has become the voice behind the brand.
Partnering the radio campaign is an interactive Facebook page where the Russian voice comments in her unique accent on South Africans’ cultural eccentricities. Her off-beat, straight talking remarks solicits hundreds of comments from the brand’s Facebook fans, who come back to page time and time again to engage with her.
“For a brand with a limited offline spend, we are amazed at the organic growth and high level of engagement that Vawter receives through its ability to drive consumers online”, Says Paula van Heerden from Quirk, Vawter’s digital agency.
It just goes to show that brands can achieve favourable results by combining a personal medium such as radio with an interactive platform such as Facebook where the public has the chance to take part in the conversation.
The success of the Vawter Facebook page lies in the extension of the brand personality from offline to online. The brand’s persona uses content that is fresh and engaging which enables the brand to develop a relationship with its fans while remaining true to the brand’s witty tone. This has resulted in a rapidly growing fan base that is genuinely interested in the Facebook content. The page, which is just over a year old, has grown to 7218 fans. Visit their Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/#!/VawterFans | 
