The psychology of selling
Or should I say … Cell-ing? Get it? Because Duracell? Hahahaha. Anyway…
Here’s a (very short) list of things that have gone viral in the past:
~ Pimple popping: we’ve all seen it. Those nasty videos of people squeezing pus out of their pores.
~ Tide pod cHaLLenGE: … young (& dumb) teenagers eating laundry detergent pods.
~ Kylie lip challenge: blowing up your lips in an attempt to look sexy, only to end up looking like a fish. Actually, this fish in particular.
~ Andrew Tate: enough said.
Does anyy of this make sense to you? Reminder: that’s just three things on the list – less than 1% of all the bizarre trends that have gone viral.
The point is: with mega-corporations and their demonic algorithms, anything – and I can’t stress that word enough – can go viral. That word has lost its value. If you’re a meme page, then bagging a viral video is probably great.
But for brands, that’s not the case anymore. As a brand, simply going viral just isn’t enough. You need to make an impact. And you need to sustain it – for long.
With the cut-throat competition and IDGAF consumers, how’s that possible? How can you as a brand make an impact that lasts for years to come – that stands the test of time – that future generations will also remember and cherish?
In today’s blog, I’m going to take you through some of the most creative campaigns of a brand that has managed to do just that: charge through multiple generations: Duracell!
With an adorable brand mascot, well-thought-out ads and a strong brand message, Duracell has a very holistic marketing approach.
I hope this blog helps in unwinding your creative coil. Let’s get right into it!
Table of Contents
Duracell’s Bunny Hop
Do you remember the last time you were scrolling through Instagram, saw a sponsored ad for a battery and thought to yourself “Damn, it’s been so long. Maybe I should buy one of these?”
Yeah, me neither.
That’s the challenge Duracell faced: paid ads as a strategy wouldn’t work. There’s a common saying in marketing: the goal isn’t to get your consumer to buy your product immediately, but it is to stay on top of their mind the next time they need to buy.
So the goal was to come up with a campaign that was organic, engaging and made a long-lasting impact.
This is where things get Bunny.
Have you seen this pink dude?
Yes, that’s Duracell’s bunny mascot, spokesperson, significant stakeholder, and maybe CEO too. Duracell came up with an AR filter game. It was a game of clearing an obstacle course while trying to last the longest (like Temple Run, Subway Surfers, etc).
You’ve probably guessed it by now, the avatar in the game was not a human, but a bunny; THE bunny.
Users had to jump over rocks, cacti and walls with the chance to get a power boost from Duracell batteries along the way. The campaign did exceptionally well with an average playing time of about 2.5 minutes! If you think that isn’t a lot, try & remember the last thing that held your attention on Instagram for more than 15 seconds.
This doesn’t mean that you should go ahead and create an AR game. Fully knowing that practically everybody lives on Instagram in today’s world – Duracell came up with a campaign native to that platform, even though it was a bit of a challenge.
But it’s crucial for you to keep up with the evolving marketplaces. Even the best billboards won’t drive results if you place them in the middle of a desert. Unless you’re a water bottle company or something…
IRL Bunny Hop
Moving on, Duracell has always focused on making an emotional connection with its consumers. And what’s a better way to do that than a wholesome PR stunt?
Duracell’s bunny (yay, again) was an official participant in the Vienna city marathon with 40k runners, 65 spectators and vast media coverage. The bunny raced from the start, animated and motivated fellow runners, interacted with spectators by giving high-fives and hugs AND also finished the race.
It drew the attention of live folk and netizens alike. It was received positively and gained ample traction. Please watch the video, it’s SO CUTE! (Click here to watch)
The goal of the campaign was to connect with the consumers on more than just a transactional level – and it definitely did. It won hearts, many prospective consumers & a certificate for completing the marathon.
Also, since we’re talking about emotional connection, I fully have a crush on that bunny. But in case you think that isn’t connect enough, please take a look at this:
Duracell in the Metaverse
Lastly, if you’re familiar with unwindr, you know that I often talk about marketing. Duracell managed to pull off a pretty rad metaverse campaign without using any of those words – No (Block) Chains Attached.
Once again aiming for where most people were hanging out – Duracell launched a campaign in the Fortnite metaverse in 2021.
Now if you’re not familiar with Web3 terminologies like the Metaverse, consider following me 😀
A Metaverse is a space that combines elements of both the physical and digital worlds and allows users to interact with each other and with virtual objects and environments in real-time. The concept aims at achieving a more immersive internet experience.
Google Maps shifting from a 2D view to a live-street view can be considered an effort towards a more immersive user experience and classified as a neo-metaverse space.
Coming back to the campaign, Duracell cut out the lights in Fortnite. Navigating the game in complete darkness, users had to use just a flashlight to find batteries and get the power back on. This campaign caught the attention of top Twitch streamers & gained massive traction. Everyone was competing to restore the power in Fortnite. Who doesn’t love a fun challenge, am I right? Also can we take a moment and appreciate the brand integration? Amazing!
Conclusion
If we pay close attention to Duracell’s tactics, we’ll notice that their campaigns don’t attempt to Start conversation out of nothingness. Duracell very smartly positions their campaigns where attention is already focused. Vast media coverage at the marathon and the massive fanbase of gamers who already play Fortnite are good examples of this.
Apart from these campaigns, Duracell also assumes an extremely strategic approach towards YouTube ad marketing. One of Duracell’s advertising representatives explains their strategy as such:
Duracell’s first phase of the strategy was to reach an audience with long, 30-second ad stories and to recognize the users who were interested in the brand.
The follow-up strategy was to reinforce the interested viewers with quick six-second ads & keep Duracell on top of their minds.
The next time they want a battery (or are shopping for a bunny), what brand do you think they’re going to think of?
Not just that, Duracell also ran a bunch of 6-seconders simultaneously and used brand lift to identify which version drove the highest lift in purchase intent. It goes without saying, that trial and error testing in marketing is extremely crucial and shouldn’t be ignored.
That’s all about how Duracell aces their creative + strategic marketing game at the same time.
Two birds, one (adorable) pink bunny.
I hope you found this article interesting. Go ahead & hit the subscribe button.
Until next time, Tiddles (that’s me) out.