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Discovering the secrets behind successful marketing campaigns can be a game-changer for brand awareness. We've gathered six diverse perspectives, including those from a Director of Marketing & Communications and a VP of Marketing, to share their triumphs. From highlighting local impact in food ads to an educational YouTube ad that went viral, these professionals reveal what truly makes a campaign resonate with audiences.
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Alison MountfordDirector of Marketing & Communications · Hope & MainWe are bringing awareness to hundreds of local food businesses which are sold from our hyper-local marketplace. In food, the word 'local' is overused to the point of meaninglessness, so we needed a way to prove it. Our campaign featured three menu items—a salad, a bean burger, and a breakfast bowl—isolated on the page without a background and blown up quite large. The headline says, 'This burger supports four local businesses,' and has an icon pointing to each business's contribution. These banners and ads were successful because the visuals of the large-format food, bold without a background, and the simple and clear headline stopped folks in their tracks—you can't ignore it. And then, by listing the names of the smaller businesses, we demonstrated that 'local,' in our case, does have meaning.
Alex StasiakCEO & Founder · Startup HouseOne example of a marketing campaign that successfully increased brand awareness is the 'Share the Love' campaign by Startup House. We created a viral video showcasing our team's passion for software development and the positive impact our products have on people's lives. The video featured heartwarming customer testimonials and behind-the-scenes footage of our team working tirelessly to create innovative solutions.
We leveraged social media platforms to share the video, encouraging viewers to share their own stories of how our software has helped them. The campaign was successful because it tapped into the emotions of our target audience, highlighting the human aspect of our brand and creating a sense of community. By encouraging user-generated content, we not only increased brand awareness but also fostered a loyal customer base who felt connected to our mission.
Nicholas RobbHead Honcho · Design HeroMarketing campaigns are not just about following trends and adjusting your branding to gain visibility. Some merely follow trends and expect their brand to go viral.
A marketing campaign I used was to position my brand and market it as something that is more than what I offer.
Here's how I did it—
Through multiple channels and applying a different approach for each, I positioned my brand in various contexts.
This increased the audience for my brand, leading to success.
What else? Knowing your audience well.
Do the research. Identify the types of audiences you mostly cater to. Introduce feedback and provide real experiences to ensure that it is as authentic as possible.
Not only did this provide authentic content, but it also showed how relatable customer experiences are.
It lets my audience know about what more they can get with the brand.
Trends are not always reliable. They can undermine the branding you have established.
Know which approach works best.
One of our recent marketing success stories was built on partnership. Working with our city's restaurant association, a local dance studio, and our partners at TVHamilton - the local public access channel - we produced a series of guerrilla dance parties at area bars and eateries in an effort to promote both Hamilton Restaurant Week and the Fitton Showstoppers Series season opener, a concert by the band 'Saved By The '90s.' TVHamilton's video of the first appearance by the dancers went viral and has garnered more than 1.3 million views to date. Restaurant Week and the show were both big hits. Video: It’s a ”pop-up dance party”
Dallin DroubayVP of Marketing · viaPeopleFirst, you need to identify 'who.' A lot of budget can be wasted in the name of awareness, so the best way to avoid this is to figure out who you are actually trying to talk to. Then, craft the campaign as if you were speaking to one real person from that audience. Speak to the personal, emotional, and psychological benefits they will receive from you. Also, make sure your campaign is not focused on 'conversions.' You'll get impressions placed in front of the right audience for less than $0.01 if you aren't trying to optimize for too many things at once.
Jeff MichaelEcommerce Business Owner · Mother's Family RingsOne unintentional, successful marketing campaign we launched was for YouTube. It was our first YouTube ad campaign we ever attempted. It was more educational in nature but included a couple of experts discussing a very interesting topic. This video did pretty well initially, slightly better than expected. What we didn't think about was the potential for it to go viral. And viral it went. A person on Reddit picked it up, shared it, and it hit the homepage. It went to 1,000,000 views overnight. Since then, it goes viral from time to time, now almost hitting 7,000,000 views. This one video is the reason we have 94,000 followers on YouTube and 15,000 fans on Facebook. It took our small business to another level.
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