To get noticed, sometimes you have to make a little noise. And sometimes you have to be willing to be absolutely ridiculous. Brew a pot of your favorite dark roast this Monday morning and let’s talk about the silliest attention-getting stunts pulled by brands.
SJC will rate each one with one to four stars by its marketing genius as well as disclose whether we’d personally try it.
The Velveeta Veltini: The almost-cheese brand partnered with the BLT Restaurant Group to offer a distinctly cheesy cocktail made from cheese-infused vodka, vermouth and olive brine. A cheesy drip edges the glass and a pick with Velveeta-stuffed olives alternating with Velveeta Shells & Cheese pasta completes the experience.
Marketing Genius: 3 Stars Food snobs might sniff at this one, but it’s funny and maybe just a bit tempting if you don’t contemplate a kind of cheese that doesn’t require refrigeration.
Would we try it? We’ll try anything that ends in “-tini.”
Mr. Clean’s Cleaner of Your Dreams: Move over, Herbal Essence. There’s a new household product tuned into the “needs” of women and it’s Mr. Clean. A line of commercials that aired first in 2017 showed a nearly-not-cartoon Mr. Clean demonstrating the allure of male cleaning, only for Mr. Clean to transform into a very ordinary husband that suddenly holds a lot of appeal for his wife now that he’s holding the mop bucket.
Marketing Genius: 4 Stars It’s funny, even as it makes you wonder how a cartoon could be so real.
Would we try it? Ummm…yes.
Pizza Perfume: A roomful of college students may have been present in this brainstorming session. Pizza Hut Canada teased the launch of a Pizza Hut perfume and when it gained a lot of attention, they decided to release 100 bottles of perfume as part of a Facebook contest.
Marketing Genius: 3 Stars Pretty smart, considering a lot of guys wish their wives would wear bacon-scented perfume. Pizza would probably be acceptable too.
Would we try it? Nope.
The Burger King Sacrifice: Burger King did a marketing stunt where they asked fans of the Whopper to unfriend ten Facebook contacts to get a free Whopper. Over 200,000 consumers participated.
Marketing Genius: 1 Star It turns out that this one violated some Facebook privacy policies and received some negative press.
Would we try it? I mean, it’s a free burger. You have ten Facebook friends you’ve never met in person, right?
Marketing gimmicks help you gain some traction by making some noise, but ideally, they also make your audience laugh. But as demonstrated by Burger King, it’s not easy to hit just the right mix of good, clean, attention-getting fun. Contact us at SJC Marketing for some help in crafting a campaign that’s ridiculous, fun and harmless.