Drink Vod*a!

Any ads promoting strong alcohol are banned in Russia. The only place allowed for vodka ads are liquor departments in supermarkets or liquor stores. When this new law was introduced Russian alcohol producers easily found a way out. First, they went on with billboards because fines were these kinds of ads were not scary enough. Ad agencies included fines for alcohol ads right into the bill. “Ok, - ad agencies would say, - 200 thousands for placing your billboards plus 200 thousands for fines that authorities would charge us”. But then rules became more strict and strong alcohol producers had to become smarter. Soon a new strategy was found. Billboards promoting ‘absolutely clear, refreshing and pure’ drinking water started popping up all over the place. In Russian ‘water’ is ‘voda’. ‘Voda’ or ‘vodka’ – what’s the difference? I don’t know if drinking water ‘Yat’ was ever produced but consumers at liquor stores always find boxes of ‘Yat’ vodka with exactly the same logo and package design as on broadly advertised ‘Yat’ water bottles.

For dummies, who still didn’t get the hint, advertisers push the message by ‘stronger’ slogans. This ad of ‘Slavyanskaya’ voda – sorry, water – says, “A person can stand three days without drinking. But he can also spend them drinking”. The label on the right goes, "Try it in stores all over the town".

Via mastertext.spb.ru