Capturing Leads With Timely Content
There’s a certain art to capturing leads during the height of a tech frenzy, fashion trend or national event. Often, unique demands will arise around these events. As an example, the Super Bowl is a national event where companies dig deep into their pockets for ad spots during the three and a half hour sporting event.
Often, temporary demands will arise; temporary because they are part of a trending or viral sensation, but smart marketers will be able to identify and make the most of these situations. This doesn’t mean throwing your budget behind a single campaign responding to essentially what is an ephemeral demand. Although response needs to be quick, it isn’t always necessary to fully meet demand. It may even be advantageous to create an impression of exclusivity through limited supply.
Examples
Last year, Canadian rapper Drake was spotted at an NBA game diligently rolling lint from his pants. Perhaps engaging in an activity not usually associated with rappers watching a basketball game, Drake attracted much media attention from major news outlets with many popular culture sites reporting on the non-event. Capitalising on the social media attention, one of the teams, the Toronto Raptors, teamed up with a sponsor, Bounce, to run a ‘#NoLint’ campaign, handing out 1,200 Drake-themed lint rollers at the next game. This example illustrates that buzzworthy content doesn’t have to be restricted to big events, it can be something as mundane as a celebrity lint rolling their pants – the tricky part is identifying what will be a trending topic.
To illustrate its reach, even Ikea, unaffiliated to the campaign, tried to capitalise on the trending topic:
The following ad is another example of content tailored to a particular event. This was broadcast during the Super Bowl.
This advertisement is particularly powerful because of its emotional resonance with audience members; it is likeable. But aside from that, it is particularly effective and well timed in conveying its message by using athletic and sporting metaphors.
The most important factor is timeliness. With trending topics, companies only have a limited window to seize the opportunity before other companies do the same. It’s good to get the upper hand by being the first to align your company’s offers with what’s buzzworthy, but once the offer campaigns start flooding in, it will be more difficult to stand out. Despite this, it’s still important to carefully consider what will work with your company’s brand and voice. While there are plenty of opportunities to succeed, it isn’t unknown for big companies to miss the mark.
Act quickly but carefully. Don’t throw all your resources behind a single campaign –whatever the trend or event may be, make sure it’s worth the investment.
