A big part of advertising is getting your name noticed among the barrage of noise that consumers are hit with on a daily basis. It’s widely reported within the industry that each of us sees around 4,000 to 10,000 ads, promotions, and brand communications each day.
With so much going on, it can be hard for advertisers to get themselves at the forefront of consumers’ minds.
Over time, companies have tried a myriad of different approaches, such as celebrity endorsements, catchy jingles, and attractive promotions to get consumers to try new products. There are countless examples of each approach working, though the success of individual campaigns does vary on lots of different factors.
Another way that brands have used to help cut through the congested airways is to team up with unusual partners to either license their popular intellectual property or cross-promote their products.
Sometimes, the partnerships make a lot of sense like the time Apple and MasterCard teamed up to promote the card company’s compatibility with Apple Pay. Other times, they’re a little more unusual but are just as successful.
Red Bull and GoPro
On the surface, Red Bull and GoPro are two very different companies. One sells caffeinated sugar water in small metal cans, while the other sells video cameras that are rugged enough to survive being dropped, dunked underwater, and exposed to the elements. So a partnership between the two companies may seem a little strange at first glance.
But actually, when you look a bit deeper, you can begin to see just how similar the two brands are. Both are lifestyle companies, selling products to people that are adventurous and interested in more extreme activities.
Red Bull sponsors all kinds of adrenaline-packed events, including two Formula 1 teams, its annual “soapbox race”, and many other white-knuckle sports.
GoPro has similar agreements with many athletes and famous adventurers, providing them with its cameras to record their antics.
In 2012, the two companies joined forces for the Red Bull Stratos project. It saw the Austrian skydiver, Felix Baumgartner, ascend 24 miles into the planet’s stratosphere on a specially designed balloon. While wearing a spacesuit, parachute, and GoPro camera, Baumgartner jumped from the floating craft, reaching 843.6 mph on the freefall back to Earth.
The stunt dominated news headlines for days, helping both companies acquire a lot of attention from the press and the public.
Who Wants to be a Millionaire Slot
The online casino market in the UK sees around £6 billion being wagered each year. To help serve this huge demand, leading brands have developed a wide selection of online slot games, including popular titles like Pharaoh’s Loot and Age of the Gods.
Competition is fierce, with casinos offering large, progressive jackpots and unique bonus games to try and stand out from the crowd.
However, Big Time Gaming, a company that develops video slots for online casinos, has created a different approach. It’s teamed up with TV companies to create branded slots like the Who Wants To Be A Millionaire Megaways game.
Using the branding of the famous game show, this six-reel, seven-row slot first hit the market in November 2020 and became an instant hit.
Players are presented with graphics that they’ll immediately recognise from watching the show on television. They’ll also be familiar with the lifeline bonus features, such as the “Ask the Audience” feature that unlocks free spins.
McDonald’s – “I’m Lovin’ It”
There are very few places in the world where you won’t find the golden arches. McDonald’s is a brand that’s become as synonymous with global capitalism as much as it is burgers and McNuggets.
Its iconic golden M logo is universally recognisable and the company reportedly feeds around 1% of the entire global population every single day.
But it’s only reached this dominant position by running successful marketing campaign after successful marketing campaign. One of these was the fast food company’s partnership with Justin Timberlake.
In 2003, Timberlake recorded “I’m Lovin’ It” with the now-famous jingle that continues to be featured in McDonald’s ads today. The campaign actually predates the song, with a German campaign called “Ich Liebe Es”, but it went global after the Timberlake single was released.
Timberlake was paid $6 million directly by McDonald’s to record the song, though it also became a chart hit in several countries. It was money well spent for the US giant as it continues to feature its branding around the song’s melody nearly 20 years later.
