Title	THE IN-BETWEEN WATER
Brand	ALKO
Product/Service	THE IN-BETWEEN WATER
Category	F03. Innovation & Solution
Entrant	TBWA\HELSINKI, FINLAND
Idea Creation	TBWA\HELSINKI, FINLAND
Media Placement	DAGMAR Helsinki, FINLAND
PR	TBWA\HELSINKI, FINLAND
Production	TBWA\HELSINKI, FINLAND
Production 2	PINATA Helsinki, FINLAND

Name	Company	Position
Jyrki Poutanen	TBWA\Helsinki	Chief Creative Director
Juha-Matti Raunio	TBWA\Helsinki	Vice President
Ella Komulainen	TBWA\Helsinki	Account Director
Ville Ohtonen	TBWA\Helsinki	Creative Director
Lasse Kangasmaa	TBWA\Helsinki	Art Director
Carl-Erik Mosander	TBWA\Helsinki	Senior AD
Atso Wilén	TBWA\Helsinki	Designer
Otto Kilpiö	TBWA\Helsinki	Copywriter
Rosa Kojonkoski	TBWA\Helsinki	Project Coordinator
Pauliina Perkiö	TBWA\Helsinki	Creative Content Strategist
Suvi Höytö	TBWA\Helsinki	Designer Trainee
Anna Lahikainen	TBWA\Helsinki	Designer Trainee
Lasse Perälampi	TBWA\Helsinki	Junior Copywriter
Lara Ala-Olla	TBWA\Helsinki	Designer/Animator
Matti Virtanen	TBWA\Helsinki	Art Director
Erno Reinikainen	TBWA\Helsinki	Art Director
Laura Karppanen	TBWA\SCREEN	Production Coordinator Trainee
Anton Raappana	TBWA\SCREEN	Editor Trainee
Fanny Haga	TBWA\SCREEN	Photographer
Tuukka Tikkanen	TBWA\SCREEN	Production Manager
Mikko Kuoppasalmi	TBWA\SCREEN	Editor, Photographer
Iiro Hokkanen	TBWA\SCREEN	Director, Head of Screen
Lisa Myllymäki	TBWA\SCREEN	Editor
Sini Teppola	TBWA\Helsinki	Creative
Timo Silvennoinen	TBWA\Helsinki	Creative / Creative Director
Tuukka Laitinen	Skål	Video editor
Eemeli Tani	TBWA\Helsinki	Performance & Analytics Manager
Nelli Pätäri	TBWA\Helsinki	Insight Trainee
Marja Aho	Alko Oy	Sustainability Manager
Maritta Iso-Aho	Alko Oy	EVP, Communication
Sari Karjalainen	Alko Oy	Marketing Manager
Iiris Mikkonen	Alko Oy	Communications Specialist
Päivi Sippo	Alko Oy	Marketing Specialist
Kasper Kukkonen	Alko Oy	Category Manager
Virpi Valtonen	Alko Oy	CSR Specialist
Saara Kaihlanen	Alko Oy	Communications Specialist
Jenni Törmä	Alko Oy	Marketing Designer
Minna Alitalo	Alko Oy	EVP, Purchases
Annakaisa Koskinen	Alko Oy	Marketing Specialist
Maiju Sirviö	Alko Oy	Sustainability Specialist
Mikko Vormala	Piñata	Director, Lead Animator
Henri Tani	Piñata	Director, Lead Animator
Jani Toikka	Piñata	3D Artist
Sakari Hakkarainen	Piñata	3D Artist
Veikka Somerma	Piñata	Illustrator, Designer
Harri Hännikäinen	Piñata	Producer
Tuomas Seppänen	Humina	Executive Creative Director
Ina Viljanen	Dagmar	Client Manager
Elina Fronzek	Dagmar	Client Director
Hanna-Stiina Lindström	Dagmar	Digital Planner
Ulla-Maija Mäkinen	Dagmar	Media Planner
Mikko Pietilä	TBWA\Helsinki	Executive Creative Director
Renato Fernandez	TBWA\Chiat\Day	Chief Creative Officer

Background

Alko is a Finnish authority whose mission is to reduce the harm caused by alcohol abuse in Finland. This year, Alko wanted to remind Finns about the importance of drinking water in a fitting retail space – the liquor stores. The ambitious objective was to reach all Finnish adults with a budget of only €200,000.

Describe the creative idea (40% of vote)

As liquor stores’ shelves are already filled with liquor, we designed a product that takes zero shelf space – a bottle that would rest on the shoulders of liquor bottles. It is called Välivesi – the In-Between Water. The “In-Between Water” is a literal translation from a common Finnish word “välivesi”, which is generally used to remind someone to drink water between alcoholic beverages. Basically, it’s Alko’s key message coded inside the witty little word.

Describe the execution (40% of vote)

Even full liquor shelves have natural empty space – right next to the bottles’ necks. By designing the water bottle upside down and placing it to rest in between the necks, Alko could take advantage of that space. In search of the perfect fit, we studied various bottles’ necks we would face on the shelves. With simple design we changed the way people interact with alcohol in liquor stores and disrupted their shopping routines. When a customer grabs a wine bottle, she can not miss our message – which the product ultimately was. Another important design element was surprise. We reminded Finns to observe their drinking habits in the most fitting and surprising space: the point of sale in liquor stores, right between alcohol bottles. The In-Between Waters hit first liquor stores in November. Soon, all Finnish liquor stores one by one adopted the In-Between Water to their selection.

List the results (20% of vote)

The In-Between Water became a social phenomenon: Finns made taste tests, bottle cap challenges, even a song, and started reminding each other to drink water between alcoholic drinks. The In-Between Water was the third most discussed product of 2019 and a huge topic in social media. It got 51 media hits and was covered in all 10 of the largest national newspapers, all the largest TV and radio channels. With earned media, The In-Between Water reached 29,395,076 Finns – over 5 times Finland’s population. Earned media value was €271,905. The In-Between Water rose the demand of the whole non-alcoholic category by 587%. Demand was so high, liquor stores had to order more to keep up with it. The In-Between Water disrupted retail and media rules, and reminded all Finns to drink moderately. Still today, you can find it from every liquor store.