RICHMOND, Va.--If you have questions about a cigar, you might turn to the Internet. But what if you could ask the manufacturer those questions, while you're smoking that cigar in another part of the country?
That's part of the premise behind Serie N Day, a virtual cigar tasting being put on by Team La Gloria Cubana.
The event, on Friday, March 25th, includes a virtual tasting broadcast from the El Credito Cigar Factory in Miami's Little Havana district, where the Serie N cigars are made. Live streaming video of the tasting will be available beginning at 6 p.m. on the Team La Gloria [image-nocss] Web site, and will move around the country with additional interactive broadcasts at 6 p.m. central and 6 p.m. pacific times. Participating retailers are located in Florida, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Illinois, New Mexico and Texas.
The company placed coupons in Cigar Afficianado magazine for a free cigar. "And it will drive the consumers to retail where they can redeem it," Michael Giannini, director of marketing for Team La Gloria told Tobacco E-News. "Hopefully, while they're there they'll buy lots of Serie N."
The event also includes interactive conversations via Skype. And there are different activities in conjunction with the launch, including an "I spy the letter N" promotion, where consumers submit pictures online of items with the letter "N," and can win free cigars. "So that's a fun thing. And we have different promotions running every day just to try to get consumers involved with the brand. That's what social media is about: Bringing people closer to the brand."
He added, "We're so technologically savvy now, and most of our cigar folks are. And I figured why don't we do a live Web streaming, almost like a Dick Clark New Year's Eve rolling-in Serie N Day?"
He chose March 25th, because of college basketball's March Madness. "There's a lot of excitement anyway, and you have a lot of consumers that go to smoke shops, smoke cigars, bring their own libations and watch basketball. So there's already an excitement built in, and I figured I'd like to be involved in part of that excitement."
The cigar itself also features a uniqueness. "Cigar bling," as Giannini calls it, is a punched-out piece of tobacco shaped like the letter "N" and applied to the Nicaraguan cigar. The tobacco is a different color, and provides a "little pop of flavor," when smoked over. And there's something else: "If you take the band off, you still know what you're smoking because you see the 'N' on there." Giannini said.
"I think this is an extraordinary cigar, so I figured either go big or go home in promoting it."
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