Being creative as a brand is always a must—and staying creative during a pandemic, well, that’s even more of a must. With so many businesses taking a hit and modifying marketing plans, we’re impressed at those who’ve decided to take a somewhat different approach … as we like to call it, “the smile effect.”
For instance, take Kraft Heinz’s lemonade brand, Country Time. The imaginative group launched a new campaign called “The Littlest Bailout Relief Fund” that will send stimulus checks at random to kids who had to close their summer lemonade stands due to the pandemic. Parents simply enter their kid’s name on a microsite for their chance to win a $100 commemorative check and prepaid gift card. As the voiceover says, “Now the smallest of small businesses are about to get some help.”
Cue the smiles.
Country Time isn’t the only brand focused on the littles. Great Parks of Hamilton County felt the tears from miles away when news broke that playgrounds and picnic areas were off-limits earlier this year. That didn’t stop them, however, from bringing the park (and fun educational content) to the kids.
But it’s not just young ones who are feeling blue this summer. Anyone with PTO on their hands is lamenting canceled cross-country vacation plans. While staycations are likely the most popular option for the foreseeable future, Audible UK tapped into consumers’ pent-up yearning to get out and explore after months of quarantine. Thanks to a new 30-second spot mimicking the oh-so-familiar welcome and safety message airlines broadcast before takeoff, as well as vintage-style images recalling the golden age of flying, “Fly Audible” repositions the audio book seller as a travel company (and reminds us that books truly can take us anywhere). Head to Hogwarts or Mars … no matter which destination you choose, it will be somewhere other than your living room.
Perhaps the most heart-tugging campaign comes by way of Heineken. Their “Ode to Close” commercial puts a spotlight on the closeness we miss—and the closeness we feel by being apart. It’s the perfect happy hour inspiration.
Rather than being stale and stagnant, brands are facing the facts: in order to stay in the black, they’ve got to get inventive in 2020. Scrap the plans and knock consumers’ socks off with something totally new (and smile-worthy) instead. Not only will it build brand loyalty and morale in the midst of the pandemic, but it can boost profits, too. Let the creatives, marketers, product peeps, heck … even management … flex their innovative muscle. If we’re all stuck in this together, why not have a little fun? Your business (and consumers) will thank you
With a big #smile, of course.
This post is part of a series on marketing during and after the pandemic. To read the others, follow this link.