Jack Daniel's Creates Order of Gentlemen for Like-Minded Consumers

Jack Daniel’s Gentleman Jack Rare Tennessee Whiskey has created a secret society — the Order of Gentlemen — to drum up intrigue about the super-premium brand.

The Order of Gentlemen plays on the dual idea of “order”: the order of gentlemen society and the order of a Gentleman Jack whiskey. Or, as the campaign says, “Gentleman Jack is The Order (of whiskey) of The Order (of gentlemen).”

Advertising agency Arnold Worldwide created the campaign, which includes a microsite and Facebook content.

The site features the Rules of Gentlemanhood, such as, “A gentleman is generous with his time and his friends,” and, “A gentleman impresses without trying to impress.”

Users can also register to become a Friend of the Order by filling out a form on the site. Those that do so receive the message, “You are hereby considered a Friend of The Order of Gentlemen. Cheers,” and a promise to “contact you further and keep you abreast of our events and intentions.”

The brand would not disclose how many users have signed up so far.

According to the agency, over the next few months, gentlemen will be invited to take challenges, be brought into the fold as official designees of the Order and reap rewards. In addition: the more involved a user becomes, the more Orders from the Order are unlocked.

A TV commercial, “Secret Meetings,” which premiered during the launch of Anthony Bourdain’s “Parts Unknown” on CNN April 14, features what the agency calls the “epitome of Gentlemanhood” describing the order and alluding to a ring and secret meetings. The brand says there will be different rewards for advocacy based on the values of the Order, such as integrity, purpose, generosity, restraint and character, but did not specify what those rewards will be.

The campaign is designed to run for three years, which gives the users who interact the most and become ambassadors plenty of time to reap those rewards, adds Greg Pestinger, senior brand manager.

The video was posted on Gentleman Jack’s Facebook page on April 15. It has 370 likes. As of Monday, Gentleman Jack has 411,000 fans.

This is Gentleman Jack’s first campaign in its 25-year history because of growth in the super-premium whiskey market — or whiskies over $30 a bottle.

According to Pestinger, while Gentleman Jack has been growing 5% a year for the last 25 years, the super-premium market has recently surged to 10 to 15% growth. Because Gentleman Jack is not growing at the pace of the category, this campaign is an opportunity to build awareness for the brand, he says.

A press release says the campaign targets men transitioning from their “carefree single days” to more maturity.

The campaign will also include billboards in major markets with a phone number consumers can call to interact with the Order. They will appear with week of May 6.

Gentleman Jack Rare Tennessee Whiskey is a twice-charcoal-mellowed whiskey from Jack Daniel’s.

Jack Daniel’s is a Brown-Forman brand.