As markets become more competitive and consumers demand more than a simple advert or ordinary social media campaign to grab and maintain their attention, brands must innovate and develop their own, unique personality.
Recently, there has been some standout examples of brands skipping traditional campaigns and opting for a more quirky approach.
One large pizza with extra emojis please
If ordering a pizza over the phone or on a website is too much for US customers, Dominos has the answer in the form of pizza emojis! Hungry social media users can order their food by tweeting a pizza emoji or #EasyOrder to the @Dominos account. Orders are then made using the customer’s preferences on their Easy Order account on the Dominos website.
The idea fits perfectly with Dominos’ main customers – young, tech-savvy individuals who are most likely to be regular users of social media and well versed in the language of emojis.
Vines worth sharing
As video begins to fill our social media timelines, top brands are already ahead of the trend. Many companies regularly share Vines that showcase their product, share useful information, or are just funny! The better the Vine, the more likely it is that social media users will share, therefore extending the reach of the brand.
Vines that hijack current news and events are even more likely to be shared. Marmite (which has a great Twitter account if you’re looking for some inspiration / need a laugh) did this perfectly with its Solar Eclipse hijack: “Only one eclipse we want to see this morning. #eclipse2015 https://vine.co/v/OYmOl5Ztr9r“
Brands fit for a princess
With another royal baby being born on the 2nd of May 2015, many brands including British Airways, Lego and Dominos took the opportunity to welcome Princess Charlotte to the world.
Social media was obviously the most instant way to do this. The home of the princess fairy tale, Disney, created one of the most engaged with tweets. It was simple but effective: a video montage of the most well-known Disney Princesses and baby characters including Simba, Bambi and young Frozen characters Elsa and Anna, along with the message ‘Special delivery! #RoyalBaby’. The post has been retweeted over 7,500 times and favourite by over 9,000 users – all of whom, we’re sure then wanted to break out old videos of The Lion King and Lady and the Tramp!
Getting nostalgic with Tens
To mark the launch of its latest range, Instagram-style filtered sunglasses brand Tens created an 80s inspired infomercial. The infomercial was shot predominantly on VHS and comes complete with cheesy American voiceover. Tens director, Tom Welsh, said the inspiration came from user feedback that wearing the sunglasses gave them a feeling of nostalgia. That’s what makes the infomercial so successful; it not only reflects the young and fun image of the brand but takes the target audience back to their childhood when they were likely watching VHS videos and cheesy American TV shows.
“Lock the windae’s ‘n’ front door” – Edinburgh Police play with Lego
And it’s not just consumer brands that are getting in on the action; public services are doing it too.
Earlier this year, Edinburgh Police hit on an inspired way to show people how easy it could be for burglars to break into their homes. The team used Lego characters to act out sneaky Lego burglars breaking into Lego homes with photography of the scenes being shared on Twitter along with rhymes to offer tips and advice, all in a Scottish accent of course!
“Look how ye get access tae the back o’ yer hame,
“If it’s easy others wull dae the same,
“Restrict access tae the rear,
“And help prevent others fae choring yer gear.”