• by Tanya Gazdik , September 30, 2011

Mike's Hard Lemonade is launching a Halloween promotion including a Facebook application where consumers can "zombify" photos and share them on their page.

The "Keep the Party Screaming" campaign -- conceived and created by AgencyNet, Mike's Hard Lemonade digital agency of record -- is the latest effort in a program to encourage consumers to think of the flavored malt beverage for year-round occasions, not just for summertime consumption.

In stores, a mobile QR code within "Monster Mansion" displays will point shoppers to the online experience. Consumers will also learn about the app via online ads. A link from Mike's main Facebook application links to the Zombifier, where consumers can transform their standard Facebook photos into macabre portraits by manipulating their pictures with blood, gore and ghoulish facial details.

In addition to sharing with friends and posting on Facebook feeds and galleries, consumers can put their photos in a gallery on the Mike's brand site of Facebook, where a new randomly selected photo will be featured every day through Halloween.

The app is the latest in a Facebook strategy aimed at leveraging peer influence to change consumer behavior, says said Rich Lent, CEO and founder of Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based AgencyNet. In other words, when friends see their friends engaging with Mike's, they are more apt to bring the brand to a party.

"Seeing friends champion Mike's within social media helps build brand affinity and drive additional advocacy for the brand," Lent tells Marketing Daily. "We'd be hard-pressed to create that effect via passive advertising. On Facebook, we've really been able to create the appropriate social environment for people to engage with Mike's. It's a powerful platform for creating natural occasions for the brand year-round."

The Halloween campaign comes on the heels of the Seattle-based brand's summertime "Hard Sports" campaign from AgencyNet, which portrayed Mike's as the official drink of alternative sports such as Dodgeball, Kickball and Cornhole. An online video contest for the best personal tales of sports glory grew Mike's Facebook presence by more than 60%. Phase two of that campaign breaks later this fall, when the winners of the summertime video contest will appear in Mike's online ads.