Short Marketing Tips - April Fool's Day Marketing Trends

I recently wrote an Online Press Release for a client who wanted publicity for his sweepstakes drawing that was scheduled for April Fools' Day. Curiosity got the better of me, and I spent a little time researching how other successful marketers used that day, and other special days, in their marketing plan.

Now, April Fools' Day isn't really a day of celebration, but a lot of people get into the action with some type of practical joke or prank. And, when you think back to some April Fools' Day events in your past, don't you remember those pranks or jokes? Admit it, you can probably recall some of the expressions or comments of previous April Fool pranks, even though they are from years ago!

Use this as a marketing idea to "think outside the box" for a moment. If a company promoted a tasteful, non-threatening April Fools' joke in their marketing campaign, don't you think it would increase their brand awareness?

Here are a couple of examples I found through Wikipedia:

In 1996, Taco Bell took out a full-page advertisement in The New York Times announcing that they had purchased the Liberty Bell to "reduce the country's debt" and renamed it the "Taco Liberty Bell". When asked about the sale, White House press secretary Mike McCurry replied tongue-in-cheek that the Lincoln Memorial had also been sold and would henceforth be known as the Lincoln Mercury Memorial.

In 1998, Burger King ran an ad in USA Today, saying that people could get a Whopper for left-handed people whose condiments were designed to drip out of the right side. Not only did customers order the new burgers, but some specifically requested the "old" right-handed burger.

April Fools' jokes online, however, should probably be used with caution if they involve product purchases or downloads. I was searching my sources to purchase rights to use a photo in marketing, and the site changed the purchase page to say "Free - or is it?" with a link to click. I clicked the link, thinking there was a coupon or a package special to buy, and found an April Fools' graphic laughing at me. Needless to say, I decided not to download from that site until the joke disappeared. I was leery of downloading more than I wanted.

So, take some time in your marketing plan to "think outside the box", but think through the end result carefully. How can your business use marketing trends to increase your brand awareness?