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TLC’s Campaigns of the Month

With the New Year now gone and Easter on the horizon, it is a good time to review how some of the bigger brands have been boosting their marketing in early 2016 (or end of Dec 15 in one case!). Whose campaigns have stood out and why? We’re taking a look back at 3 of the more innovative and quirky campaigns that kicked off the year, just in case you missed them.

We saw pop-up shops from the likes of Crème Egg and Skittles and live-streaming billboards from Land Rover. Take a look at the details below to see if you can draw inspiration from any of them.

Crème Egg Café

January 22nd was an exciting day for all London-based Cadbury Crème Egg lovers, with a new Crème Egg Pop-Up Café opening in Soho, London.

The café is spread across 3 floors, where consumers are able to order takeaway Crème Egg toasties on the first floor, Crème Egg brownies and even Crème Eggs with soldiers on the second floor, and access a Crème Egg ball pool on the third.

According to EventBrite, the tickets were on sale 3 days prior to the opening, and were sold out by the time the café was scheduled to open. The café is open from 5pm Friday – Sunday for 7 weeks, and with nearly every day sold out, I think we can all agree that this is a highly successful campaign.

Land Rover

Land Rover’s Instagram filter OOH billboards definitely brought a new perspective to the people of London and Leeds last month, as part of their #Hibernot campaign.

Land Rover transformed the cities’ landscapes with their Instagram-like live filters on digital billboards, encouraging consumers to ‘see winter differently’. The billboards displayed live images of the immediate area and then applied their own ‘Land Rover filter’, encouraging consumers to follow their Instagram page, and get out and about to explore the season by taking a drive.

Skittles Pawn Shop

Wrigley-owned sweet brand, Skittles, opened a pop-up shop in Toronto on 26th December for 4 days. Consumers were able to exchange unwanted goods for sweets. Now, we understand that this campaign wasn’t quite in January, but we loved the idea so much we wanted to include it.

Consumers were encouraged to bring any items that they no longer wanted, and receive Skittles for them. The store particularly promoted novelty gifts, such as knitted clothing and cuddly toys. All items received were donated to the Goodwill ReUse centre in Toronto’s Scarborough district.

To extend the reach of the campaign, Skittles launched an accompanying digital campaign for those who weren’t in the area at the time, where fans could see how much their unwanted items were worth in exchange for Skittles.

We loved these campaigns and look forward to what 2016 has in store for us. Stay tuned for the best marketing campaigns of February!

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#MarketingTitbits – Edible Adverts, Queen Flakes, Design Mistakes

nakd-queen-email1. Nakd erects an edible advert to get customers trying its goodies
This ‘delightfully different’ snack brand created by Natural Balance Foods, set up shop outside London’s Shepherd’s Bush Westfield shopping centre this week with an edible billboard made up of their fruit and nut bars – what a tasty idea!

The main objective for the campaign was to showcase Nakd’s wide range of products available, but to also promote how healthy and convenient they are. The range of snack bars formed the words “Find Your Fave” – encouraging consumers to find and taste their favourite flavour.

Click here to read more about their ‘nutty’ campaign.

2. Queen Flakes, gingerbread loyalty and more as brands celebrate Queen Elizabeth

Queen Elizabeth II became Britain’s longest-reigning monarch last week, surpassing the previous 63 years and 7 months record held by Queen Victoria. Her Majesty spent the day in Scotland away from the limelight; however that didn’t stop brands from getting involved.

Kellogg’s caught our attention last week with the creation of special ‘Queen Flakes’, which went on sale at Manchester’s Black Milk Cereal Café. Meanwhile, Billingtons have been baking gingerbread men, supposedly the Queen’s favourite biscuit.

To see how more brands have been celebrating, click here.

3. 7 email newsletter design mistakes to avoid

Sublime-looking emails can be easily created with the help of popular email marketing services; however, even small design errors can have a massive impact on the success of the marketing campaign.

Marketing on mobile devices has been proven to be very successful; however, it can also be very tricky to get right. Email marketing templates are now accessible for brands to use for their campaigns, ensuring that the email looks great on small devices, regardless of the dimensions.

Click here to discover 7 email design mistakes.

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#MarketingTitbits – Facebook, Vine, YouTube

Facebook-Vine-YouTube-smaller1. This is what happens on Facebook when you die
You may have never wondered what happens to your social media profiles when you die. It is not something most people would think about. However, different social media channels treat death in different ways. Until recently, Facebook has chosen to restrict a person’s privacy settings to just friends once they have died; however this has now changed.

Now, when a person dies, their Facebook privacy settings stay the same, they say they “are respecting the choices a person made in life while giving their extended community of family and friends ongoing visibility to the same content they could always see.”

Facebook have also added an extra touch for friends and family. If you are a Facebook user you will know that recently you have been able to access your “Look back” video, showing you your life on Facebook. After a father’s plea on YouTube to be able to see his deceased son’s “Look back” video, users can now request to see their friend’s videos upon request after they die.

To read more, click here. 

 

2. 14 best branded Vines of February 2014

Today, many brands are using Vine to connect with their customers. Companies such as McDonalds, Xbox, Microsoft and General Electric are doing great things on Vine and using the relatively new social media platform in an innovative way.

If you’re in need of inspiration on how to use Vine or just want to have a look at who is doing it well, have a look at the 14 best branded Vines of February 2014here. 

 

3. YouTube’s 20 most shared ads of February

Unruly Media have put together a list of the most shared adverts on YouTube from February 2014.

Three’s “Sing It Kitty”, Coca-Cola’s “Social Media Guard” and Budweiser’s “Puppy Love” all feature on the list. To have a look at the full 20, click here.

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#MarketingTitbits – Canon, sexist ads, Waitrose

canon-sexistads-waitrose1. Canon’s marketing strategy: capture moments that count
Canon, the Japanese multinational corporation known for selling cameras and photography equipment, have a new message for their online customer base. They say that everyone can do better than “good enough” in their photography, no matter what the images are for and they have asked their customers to show the world exactly what this means.

To find out how the 77 year old brand stays relevant in the digital era, click here. 

 

2. Sexist ads of the 1960s that companies wish we’d forget

The 1960s was a very different world to the one we live in today. Not only were products, fashions and design different but so too were attitudes towards women and their place in society.

We’ve found an article from Business Insider highlighting some of the most outrageously sexist adverts that were around in the 1960s, we’re sure some of the companies still around today wish we would forget.

To read more, click here. 

 

3. Waitrose boss: ‘Our strategy is to do the opposite of what everyone else is doing’

The majority of supermarkets these days are doing everything they can to compete on price and keep you shopping in their store. Most of these schemes include matching each other on price, having new special offers every week and discounting their products.

However, if you shop in Waitrose you may have already realised that they have come from a different angle to market their brand. Instead of lowering their prices, the supermarket strive to do the “opposite of what everyone else is doing” and focus on giving their customers an improved customer experience and enviable loyalty schemes.

If you would like to read more about Waitrose’s new marketing strategy, click here.

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#MarketingTitbits – customer reviews, domains, John Lewis

reviews-domains-johnlewis-smaller1. What to do when customer reviews turn ugly?
Customer reviews are typically seen as a positive thing for businesses, generating an additional 40% increase in revenue per year if used effectively. And although 83% of reviews written are positive, what happens if they you get a negative one?

Some firms have been known to go as far as hiring freelancers to write either glowing reviews for themselves, or to actually post fake negative reviews about competitors and their products, hoping that this will bring consumers to their door. However, a good way to avoid this can be to use a verification system that can often deter any fake reviews. It is also common for customers to blackmail businesses with dreadful reviews in an attempt to be given discounts and incentives. So, what if this happens to you?

The main things to remember if reviews turn ugly are to stay calm, avoid over-reacting, put the review in context and remember that the good often outweighs the bad.

If you’d like to read more, click here.

2. 5 points to consider when choosing a domain name for your business

Domains are extremely important in determining the presence that your business has on the web. So what should you keep in mind?

Do you go for keywords or your business name – or both? Do you also purchase a series of similar domain names so that even with as spelling mistakes, consumers are still be directed to you?

To find out what else to consider, click here.

3. John Lewis 2014 Christmas ad smashes record for most shared

If you haven’t been living under a rock for the last week or so, you’ll know that John Lewis have released their Christmas ad offering. The clip is set to be the most shared Christmas ad in John Lewis’s history, overtaking previous favourites, such as ’The Bear and the Hare’. In the unlikely event that you have yet to see it, visit Marketing Magazine.

In its first 24 hours, the ad was shared 202,953 times, up 2% on 2013’s edition. People are now starting to believe that launching on a Thursday is the key to success for adverts, due to nearly half of shares taking place between Wednesdays and Fridays.

The campaign, named ‘Monty the Penguin’, has also incorporated in-store experiential marketing with the introduction of ‘Monty’s Den’, allowing customers to buy their own Monty and to see the characters brought to life.

Click here to read more about the campaign’s success.

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#MarketingTitbits – adverts, body language, internet

ads-bodylanguage-internet-smaller1. The top 20 most-shared ads of 2014With 2015 now just around the corner, it’s time to reminisce on the weird and wonderful ads that have been presented to us this past year.

Top of the list, collecting 405 million views and nearly 6 million shares, is Shakira and the team behind this year’s World Cup promotion, which picked up the most-shared ad of all time accolade. Next in line is probably the weirdest of them all. The ‘Devil Baby Prank’ promotion for the film Devils Due is a must-see if you’re a pranking fan. Other ads included offerings from brands such as Volkswagen, Nike and Procter & Gamble.

To watch the full list, click here.

2. How to read body language

Did you know that 55% of the messages people convey are sourced from their body language? The science and psychology behind body language has grown increasingly popular, and Psychology Today has now compiled a list of 17 tactics to help you on the way to reading even the most complicated of people.

If you’d like to read into the meanings behind eye contact, crossed legs, raised voices and more, you can do so by clicking here.

3. Almost half the world’s population will have web access by 2018, says eMarketer

eMarketer believes that by 2018, 3.6 billion people around the world will be able to access the internet at least once a month. This is down to projections that developing nations, such as India and Brazil, will have internet populations that overtake the more established economic powers, such as Japan or even USA. As you might expect, China is expected to have the largest online population by 2018.

To read more about the rise of global internet access,click here.

 

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#MarketingTitbits – Google+, Black Friday emails, worst

googleplus-emails-adverts-smaller1. Former Google+ designer slams the service for being ‘Facebook lite’
One of Google’s former employees has described Google+ as ‘adrift at sea’, with the social network leaving behind big opportunities and a ‘ton of value on the table’.

Chris Messina believes that Google+ is too similar to rival Facebook, and that they should have embraced the concept of identity by creating connections from the information that is shared online by Google users.

Could Google be slowly moving away from its Google+ brand? Right now, it’s unclear. But watch this space.

To read more about Google+, click here.

2. Black Friday email marketing: eight retail examples

Black Friday seemed to cause mayhem across the UK, both online and in shops. Now that the dust has settled, David Moth from Econsultancy reviews the emails he was receiving in the lead-up to the infamous wallet-emptying weekend.

He found that retailers such as Topshop, Urban Outfitters and Quicksilver were all keen to start early, sending out emails offering savings across their lines in advance of the big day. When Black Friday arrived, we were bombarded by emails, declaring 10% – 50% off items.

Brands such as House of Fraser and Office decided to steer clear of a generic Black Friday title and simply presented consumers with sale details. In contrast, other retailers, such as River Island, embraced the event to the full, making the deals available online only.

What was your experience of Black Friday?

To read more, click here.

3. The 10 worst ads of 2014

The time of year has finally come – no, it’s not Christmas just yet. Instead, it is time for us to sit back, relax and look over some of the worst ads from the past year. Business Insider has compiled its rankings of the top 10 fails in advertising. Here is a taste.

The top 10 includes some poor taste humour from brands, such as Paddy Power, who were placing bets on the murder trial of athlete Oscar Pistorious, a spot of corporate feminism from Dove and their ‘Patches’ product and a three-minute Scottish travel agent ad, using a series of questionable effects and props.

From cheesy soundtracks to some odd laxative issues, the list doesn’t fail to disappoint in the ‘really?’ department. So, click here if you can cope with seeing some.

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#MarketingTitbits – YouTube ads, negative SEO, Marmite

youtube-negativeseo-marmite-smaller1. The top 10 most popular YouTube ads of 2014
Now-a-days, the most popular YouTube ads tend to be made for an online campaigns, instead of airing on TV, so it’s no surprise that most of the top 10 featured in Marketing Week’s article have followed this trend.

Included in the list are the likes of Sainsbury’s, John Lewis, Nike, Marks & Spencer, Always and Pepsi, who all created ads with a social media audience in mind, however, also aired shorter versions on TV. A lot of brands are now creating and sharing stories within their advertisements and this can be difficult to do in a TV ad space of typically 30 to 60 seconds, and this is where YouTube comes in. Consumers are now happier to spend time with branded content online, dependent on the entertainment and relevance delivered.

If you’d like to see the top 10 adverts, you can click here.

2. What is Negative SEO and how can you protect your website?

Negative SEO is the process of using techniques similar to those of black hat SEO, but to attack and undermine a rival’s website that can lead on to damage their rankings in search results.

This can be done in many ways, including:

  • Having a huge number of links directed to your site that are low-quality and spam-heavy with keywords that have little to no relevance.
  • Copying content from your website that is then distributed across the internet, which could possibly interfere with Google’s policy on duplicate content.
  • Damaging your reputation by being negative about your business. That could involve fake social media profiles being created, etc.

You can click here to learn more about negative SEO and the steps you can take for your business to avoid it.

3. Marmite looks to replicate 2013 success by bringing back revamped ‘End Marmite Neglect’ campaign

We spoke about the ‘love it or hate it’ brand back in November when they picked up 2014’s Brand of the Year Award, and as predicted, Unilever have chosen to start a ‘full-scale Marmageddon’ with their parody on animal rescue programmes, entitled ‘End Marmite Neglect’. Although this approach attracted over 500 complaints back in 2013, the ASA chose to take no further action with the ad, allowing the jar to make a comeback this year.

But will this campaign follow in the footsteps of the 14% sales increase that it produced in its first run?

Keep an eye out for the ad, but for now, you can read more by clicking here.

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#MarketingTitbits – Twitter, Aldi, advertising fails

twitter-supermarkets-adverts-smaller1. Twitter officially lets you retweet with comments now
Over the years, Twitter has faced criticism from frustrated users who struggled to warm to the limited functionality of the platform, but their latest change could help allay some of those frustrations.

Gone are the days where you had to cut and paste a URL before adding a comment; now it’s available at the click of a button. The “retweet with comment” feature allows users to embed tweets with their own messages, with photo and video retweets appearing as a small preview.

So far the new feature has gained mixed reviews, but what do you think? To find out more, click here.

2. Aldi replaces Waitrose to become the UK’s sixth biggest supermarket

It’s become clear that the rise of German discounters Aldi and Lidl shows no sign of slowing any time soon, as it’s revealed that in the 12 weeks to March 29, Aldi and Lidl’s sales rose 16.8% and 12.1%, respectively. Aldi is now the UK’s sixth biggest supermarket, holding 5.3% of the market share, overtaking Waitrose which stands at 5.1%.

Figures from Kantar Worldpanel show that the big four supermarkets faced a mixture of growth and decline in sales during this period, all the while remaining in the price war which aims to win back their lost shoppers. But as food prices continue to drop, what will the future landscape be for the UK’s supermarkets?

You can read more on Aldi’s success by clicking here.

3. 23 of the worst online advertising fails

When an online advertisement is placed well, it can be one of the most effective ways of targeting consumers. However, there are often some unfortunate moments where brands are just in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Brands such as Apple, UPS, Samsung, Uber and Nike discovered that there can be a number of unforeseen complications with online ad placement, leading to some unfortunate outcomes.

If you would like to see the list of fails, head to Business Insider.

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#MarketingTitbits – Android Pay, YouTube ads, Pizza Hut projector box

android-youtube-pizza-smaller1. What Google’s Android Pay will mean for brands
Earlier this month, Google announced the launch of the much anticipated Android Pay to take on rival Apple, as they enter the mobile payments market. Google could be seen as already having an advantage over their tech giant rival, as Android holds the majority of smartphone users, but they will require the support of both businesses and consumers in order to succeed.

An advantage of mobile payments that has become clear through the launch of Apple Pay is the low transaction costs for businesses, alongside the increase in security that customers are actively searching for. Brands, therefore, have much greater motivation to support mobile payments as the platform continues to change the way consumers engage with commerce.

To find out more, click here.

2. Watch: the 5 most popular YouTube ads of the past decade

YouTube has gained immense popularity over the past decade since it was introduced to the world in 2005, and now, in honour of its 10th birthday, YouTube has asked viewers to vote for their favourite ads of all time.

Entrepreneur has compiled a list of the top 5 voted for ads, and you may be surprised to discover which one hit the top spot! Click here to take a look at the adverts and see which is your favourite.

3. Pizza Hut has a new box that turns into a movie projector for your smartphone

Pizza Hut’s latest marketing stunt is bringing Hollywood blockbusters to your doorstep through the design of their new ‘Blockbuster Box’. Along with their pizza, Hong Kong residents will find a special lens and a perforated hole with which to begin their movie night.

For customers who aren’t Netflix users, Pizza Hut has printed a QR code that can be scanned with a smartphone to download a free movie. The Blockbuster Box comes in four different styles to appeal to all movie fans: action, sci-fi, romance or scary movie genres.

Click here to find out more about the limited edition boxes.

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