2019 has kicked off with a bang. We’ve seen a flurry of creative activity with the PR industry focusing its efforts and budgets on the ‘wow factor’ and shock value, often opting for stunts as a route to the forefront of the public’s minds. The nature of the comms industry in general forces agencies and PR practitioners to constantly innovate and think outside the box and this has resulted in brands stepping into uncharted territory. We take a look at some of the key PR stunts so far this year:
Carlsberg: We Probably Weren’t the Best After All
Carlsberg took a brave and honest stance when they decided to launch an entire marketing campaign around the obvious mediocrity of their beer, launching the below ad.
The acknowledgement comes as part of their recent rebranding to ‘Carlsberg Danish Pilsner’ and a brand new recipe that promises to completely change the hops, barley, brew and taste.
There is no risk without reward and it’s safe to say Carlsberg have reaped the rewards here. The change in branding, colour scheme and taste has served to shift public perception from a weak and bland beer to a modern one that should be the go-to choice for the UK beer drinker. Cheers!
Huawei – Northern Lights in London
Huawei took to the skies above Tower of London to mesmerise on-lookers with a laser art installation that mimicked the Northern Lights (or the Aurora Borealis), commissioning immersive artist Dan Archer to create a bespoke installation.
The inspiration for the project came off the back of research conducted by the innovative tech company, revealing that witnessing the real-life natural phenomenon tops UK millennials’ bucket list. This is a perfect example of how the combination of a visually striking campaign with hard stats to back up a creative idea can be a potent PR mix that appeals to a wide variety of publications.
Ford UK – Backbone of Britain Campaign
Ford decided to go against the grain and stand by ‘white-van drivers’ and the vehicles they drive, despite the sea of negative press they receive, championing them as the ‘backbone of Britain’ in a minute-long celebration video of them.
In a statement, Ford UK wrote: “Here at Ford, we know it’s not our vans alone that keep Britain running, it’s the people that drive them – you.’’ It’s a very clever and effective idea that highlights the work behind the scenes that these individuals do to keep our nation ticking over, but also a brilliant ad ploy to market the various car models they offer. Again, brilliant work in giving these often-maligned van drivers a moment in the spotlight.
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Heathrow Express – #FlowerExpress
……. And we unleashed a flurry of flower power for Heathrow Express to celebrate the Chelsea Flower Show 2019, creating the #FlowerExpress featuring over 3,000 flowers.
This was part of a wider campaign urging passengers to snap a picture of the colourful carriage, using the #FlowerExpress for a chance to win 2 tickets to the show. But the visual campaign garnered hard-hitting results too, landing widespread media coverage across print and digital publications including Sun, Metro, MSN, Mirror and Independent.
Stunts often take up more budget, more time and more effort to create than other types of campaigns, but when they come off, the impact can be seismic, with the best campaigns combining a unique blend of insights, timing, trend and visual pull.