As a leading full service marketing agency in Birmingham, we’ve got our finger on the pulse when it comes to keeping tabs on the biggest and best marketing campaigns around.
We love celebrating and showcasing all those creative, game-changing and, at times, crazily ingenious marketing tactics, delivered by brands the world over.
With that in mind, we simply couldn’t resist creating a compilation of our favourite campaigns from the last 12 months:
Top Pick #1: IKEA’s Seedballs
Most people love ending their IKEA shopping trips with a hotdog and grabbing themselves a bag or two of their iconic meatballs from the freezers to take home with them. Well back in the summer, IKEA tapped into people’s appreciation for its meatballs by producing Fröbullars AKA bug-friendly seedballs.
Launched in collaboration with the World Wildlife Fund, the campaign was aimed at supporting biodiversity in Denmark. The seedballs were given away to people on IKEA’s membership club list. IKEA also produced an online manual to encourage people to make their own seedballs.
Why it’s got our vote: Anything that does its bit for nature is to be championed, but what we love the most about this campaign, is that it was accessible for everybody and based on a simple, but such effective concept.
Top Pick #2: If You Can Dream It, Tweet It
As inspirational campaigns go, this one’s right up there. At the start of the year, Twitter ran its If You Can Dream It, Tweet It campaign. Combining Tweets and physical marketing, the campaign saw Twitter resurrecting old Tweets from celebrities, who have since gone on to find fame and fortune.
Tweets included this one from Grammy winner, Megan Three Stallion, back in 2014 – “I need a team bc I promise rap gone take off for me,” as well as this one from former One Direction band member, Niall Horan – “Applied for X Factor, hope it all wrks out.”
Why it’s got our vote: This campaign was aimed at helping Twitter stand out among social media rivals, such as Facebook. Instead of pushing people to use the platform to drive revenue, it leveraged emotional marketing to outstanding effect.
Top Pick #3: EE’s Hope United Mission
While IKEA was rolling out its seedballs in Denmark this summer, mobile and internet services provider, EE, launched a powerful campaign aimed at tackling online sexist hate.
EE joined forces with the UEFA Women’s Football Championship to deliver its Hope United campaign, which saw women’s Euro Football team players feature in a 90-second advert. They were filmed saying, that’s going to be a problem,’ in relation to issues, such as parenting and menstruation. The advert ends with both men and women’s football players uniting to say, ‘sexist hate stops with men.’ Across social, football players and wider influencers could be seen supporting the campaign, which was further promoted with the hashtags #HopeUnited and #NotHerProblem.
Why it’s got our vote: This was such a highly topical campaign that tackled a highly emotive issue head-on. Taking current societal issues and turning them into key messages that ran across digital PR and social, this campaign saw people rallying together with powerful results.
Top Pick #4: Kia’s Robo Dog
As part of the launch of its new electric car, the EV6, Kia ran an advert, featuring an cute robotic mascot called Robo Dog. The video tells the tale of Robo Dog as he looks for his forever home where he can be loved and his battery kept fully charged.
We all watch as Robo Dog sees his new owner, the EV6, and chases it; only to run out of battery the moment he reaches it. Fortunately, he wakes up, having been fully charged by the EV6 driver and new Robo Dog owner. The end!
Why it’s got our vote: This is such a heart-warming campaign, you can’t help but find yourself willing Robo Dog on to catch up with the EV6 and live happily ever after. What’s more, Kia went on to really ramp up the appeal of Robo Dog by putting 10,000 NFT Robo Dogs up for adoption.
Top Pick #5: Nike’s 3D Billboard
Sports giant, Nike, marked a special milestone in the spring – 35 years since the launch of its much-loved Air Max trainer. The trainer has generated an epic following over the years, so it seemed only right that Nike did something major to celebrate its birthday. And it certainly didn’t disappoint…
Nike produced a larger than life 3D digital billboard in Japan, one of the places where the Air Max trainer has generated a cult following. Passers-by could look up and see a series of Air Max designs literally bursting out of a Nike shoe box above their head.
Why it’s got our vote: There’s no missing this campaign! Using the power of tech, Nike single-handedly reinvited the realms of billboard advertising and thrust its beloved Nike Air Max back into the public domain. What’s more, no matter how many times you see the billboard, you never get tired of it seeing it.
Top Pick #6: LEGO’s MRI Scanner Kits
MRI scans can be daunting, especially for children. With this in mind, toy giant, LEGO, made 600 MRI scanners from its iconic blocks and donated them to hospitals.
The model scanners were aimed at helping children understand the MRI process and how the associated equipment works. In addition to creating the model scanners, LEGO produced a set of separate resources to help hospital staff use the creations in a playful way and make children feel less anxious.
Why it’s got our vote: What a highly creative campaign that’s been executed for such a wonderful cause! This is a great example of excellent corporate social responsibility and out of the box thinking that pushes the boundaries without reinventing the wheel.
How many of these campaigns do you remember? And how many of them grabbed your attention when they were out? We’ve really enjoyed revisiting them again. Of course, they are just a snapshot of some of the marketing greatness from the last 12 months and a precursor for more marketing excellence next year.
Do you want to achieve marketing excellence next year? We’re a marketing agency in Birmingham that works with companies to help them maximise their potential. Contact us to see how we can help level up your business.
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