From the T.G.I. Friday’s® press release:
Facebook Fans Give the Gift of a Cold Brew with T.G.I. Friday’s® Buy Your Friend A Beer App
Custom Facebook Tab Can Treat Dad to a Cold Brew for Father’s Day
CARROLLTON, Texas, June 10, 2011 – Unofficially dubbed the “summer of beer” by Friday’s® and its Better with Brew menu, Facebook users can help their friends cool down during the hot months via the new Buy Your Friend A Beer application. And, just in time for Father’s Day, sons and daughters can finally move on from the go-to gifts of socks or a tie and buy dad a beer for his special day.Any Facebook user 21 years and older can buy their Facebook friends up to five beers simply by “liking” the Friday’s fan page and placing an order through the custom tab. Recipients receive an electronic gift card to redeem in restaurant. The purchase price is set at $5, regardless of the recipient’s regional location, and is redeemable for any beer of choice, non-alcoholic beverage or food item at any local T.G.I. Friday’s.
…
Well, that’s nice! I mean, I’m not really a big fan of Facebook. Or T.G.I. Friday’s. And, while the sample list of craft brews they provide later on in the press release are a break from industrial-brewed American lagers, they’re not all that interesting either. And, of course, it’s a transparent attempt to get more followers on Facebook (and market to them), get more press coverage, and get a few more people in their restaurants.
On the other hand, who wouldn’t like a free beer or two? And, even better, if beer’s not your thing, you can use the $5 on a non-alcoholic beverage or a food item.
Not that there isn’t any controversy. In the USA Today article about this, the main chucklehead at the Neo-Prohibitionist Marin Institute calls it “horrifying” because it is “part of a growing trend to use Facebook and other social media to promote alcohol sales to youth.”
Oh, give me a break. As if some sixteen-year-old is actually going to be able to redeem one of these. I give the servers at T.G.I. Friday’s more credit than that.
I tell you what, though. I wasn’t planning on participating in this, but since the Marin Institute wants to tell me what beverages I, an adult, can or can’t enjoy, I’m going to send out a couple of beers to some Dads I know and maybe redeem one or two myself. If you’d like to send one to me, I’ll toast in your honor.
Related Posts:- Hop Talk Facebook Twitter
- Beer Garden iPhone App (sucks)
- Red White and Brew in Brunswick, MD – July 3, 2009
- Untappd
- More Beer 2.0
- Powered by Contextual Related Posts
Send a beer for Father’s Day is from Hop Talk - Beer. Life. Blog.