Every marketer’s dream is to get the internet buzzing with their latest campaign. Some use cuteness, some use nostalgia, some use slick graphics or beautiful people. And some think up the craziest stunt they can imagine to get their message shared around the internet. I’ve rounded up the four best examples of unconventional marketing campaigns from around the world to make you laugh, make you gasp, and, hopefully, to inspire you.
1/ Samsung’s useless auction
This Indian campaign from Samsung promotes the company’s new 7 inch Tab2 310 that they claim makes other technology, such as TVs, phones, laptops, cameras, and video cameras, redundant. So what else are you going to do with all those useless devices, but auction them off for the lowest bid possible? When you click on the ad (promoted from YouTube, Facebook and Twitter) you are directed to a microsite where you can place a bid on the ‘useless’ gadgets and be entered for the chance to win a Tab2. Not only does the boldness of the claim that all your existing technology is now useless with the Tab2 get your attention, but the seamless way Samsung have connected the ad, the microsite and social media gives the campaign a real buzz.
2/ What would you do with £5,000 to spend on fun?
Volvo UK asked Facebook fans what they would do with £5,000 cash to spend on fun… then showed up at the houses of their five favorites to film the results. Goats, planes, Elvis: nothing was too crazy for these five finalists. Volvo put the films online and fans who voted were put in the draw to win a £5,000 hijack-style experience for themselves. The overall winner won the all-new Volvo V-40 R-Design.
3/ Zombies? No problem
When zombies attack, you want to be ready for them. American company OpticsPlanet developed a Zero Zombie Kit: for a mere $23,000 you got “everything you need to combat the undead.” Of course, this whole campaign was a stunt to bring attention to the range of products OpticsPlanet manufacture, including the weaponry, First Aid, protective gear, batteries and lab equipment that would no doubt be useful in a zombie apocalypse, but are popular in more mundane situations too. The campaign caught the imagination of internet-users, with spoof reviews posted up as the ad went viral.
4/ Red Bull goes out of this world
Forget global campaigns: Red Bull went stratospheric in their mission to break records. Their YouTube video of Felix Baumgartner’s supersonic freefall from the edge of space has now had over 33 million views, and the jump broke the record for breaking the sound barrier without engine power. The Red Bull logo can be seen across the suit and equipment, surely one of the highest profile – and highest altitude – marketing campaigns ever.
4 takeaways for marketers:
- It doesn’t matter that these campaigns had very little to do with the actual product: Red Bull drinkers aren’t likely to jump from space, people don’t usually buy batteries because of the walking dead, bidding low on TVs doesn’t make you think of phones or tablets, and spending cash on a day of fun has very little to do with cars. But these stunts are creative, entertaining and they get people talking.
- Getting your fans involved helps spread your message. Volvo’s voting button gets people interacting with the campaign – and gives them a chance to win a prize, which is great motivation for getting involved. Samsung’s idea of getting people to bid the lowest amount is a great way of getting fans to join in the joke as well as giving them the chance to win a Tab2 of their own.
- Humor is a great tool for getting your campaign to go viral. The Samsung, OpticsPlanet and Volvo campaigns all use humor to reach a wide audience: people like to share what makes them laugh.
- Originality is key to all these campaigns. The combination of the surprising, the inventive and the plain craziness get people talking and sharing… and might even break a world – or even out-of-this-world – record.
What creative marketing campaigns have you seen recently? Have any of them inspired you to try something off-the-wall to publicize your own products?
Originally published in Fast Company