Clever tactical marketing is something we get really excited about at Tabletalk. The National Portrait Gallery has done it again – taken an everyday ambient media format and transformed it into an engaging, exciting platform that packs a punch. And on a beer mat no less!

Advertising on beer mats in Pubs has always been a cost effective way to reach consumers in a high dwell environment, in a relaxed, receptive frame of mind. Not to mention an opportunity to capitalise on the high traffic and turnover of tables for a multitude of impacts across the day.

We get especially excited when brands like the National Portrait Gallery get creative and look to maximise that impact in an insightful, creative way. With so many exhibits, from age old Shakespeare, to acting royalty like Charlie Chaplin and the real thing in Kings and Queens, not to mention music legends like Paul McCartney, Elton John and modern day magic Ed Sheeran, there really is something for everyone.

The complication comes in trying to raise awareness about not one but all the wonderful things to see at the National Portrait Gallery. Understanding advancements in digital printing and the opportunity to print multiple designs at no extra cost, the National Portrait Gallery have rolled out a series of artwork as part of their campaign, promoting a wide range of exhibits. In fact the final designs are so good, it’s the kind of beer mat collection consumers would pick up and take home as a keepsake.

Considering tourists and locals hanging out in local Pubs in Central London are generally looking for ideas on things to do, beer mats directing them to the National Portrait Gallery are exactly the kind of message that would hit the mark. By advertising on beer mats in a leisure environment like a local pub, the campaign is delivering a relevant prompt in a relevant time and place, where groups of people are socialising and relaxing together, naturally discussing plans or looking for inspiration.