Extra! Extra! This is Reactvertising
TV ain’t the only place where you can get the latest news. Every time something happens, thousands of users go to social media to get any piece of information (and memes, lots and lots of memes). This phenomenon gave birth to a unique kind of marketing opportunity, Reactvertising or Real Time Marketing.
What is Reactvertising?
When something happens, my brand can take advantage of the occasion to promote itself. This would be the overall idea. I think this next metaphor sums it up (all those hours watching “National Geographic” will come in handy). Think about sardines.
These fish group up in giant shoals, that’s why fishermen use big nets to catch them. Sardines would be the users, the shoal would be the event why they are gathering. We would be the fishermen and our content would be the net.
When Did Reactvertising First Appear?
To understand the reactvertising concept better, let’s talk about one of the first cases. It happened in the United States, on February the 4th in 2013. The Super Bowl’s final was facing the San Francisco 49ers against the Baltimore Ravens in one of the most important sports events in the world. The only thing more spectacular than the match itself was what happened for 39 minutes. For some reason, there was a power outage.
The stadium’s light went off. TV cameras stopped transmitting the game for almost an hour. And in that moment of darkness, light bulbs sparkled in some bright minds.
360i’s creatives discussed in an urgent meeting the opportunity that appeared in front of their eyes. There, they came up with a tweet that got approved by their client Oreo in just a few minutes.
Oreo’s brand concept is “Twist. Lick. Dunk” which sums up the best way to eat their cookies. That’s why what’s interesting about this tweet is that it reinforces the brand concept through the situation that caught everyone’s attention.
Maybe the numbers they achieved aren’t so shocking nowadays, but at that time, they were insane. In just one hour, without any money, 10.000 people retweeted it.
Tips For Great Reactvertising
Although reactvertising indeed depends a lot on chance (we never know what will happen and where, if you don’t believe me, remember the little bat…), we can be prepared by doing some things for when they happen.
Picasso Was Right
A great catchphrase that this art master left us is “Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working”. In the world of reactvertising, inspiration would be that unexpected situation that catches everyone’s attention. That’s why we need to stay alert and pay special attention to social media because that’s usually where these situations first appear.
So there you have it. The next time your bosses tell you to stop wasting time on Twitter or Instagram, tell them you are looking for inspiration.
Social Media, Sweet Social Media
When social media is your second home, everything gets easier. First of all, because that’s how you understand the tone of each platform. You realize what works and what doesn’t.
This doesn’t mean you must treat your social media like if you were an influencer (need more hints on this subject, check this article). What we mean is that you should be a heavy social media user.
Ready, Set, Go!
Moments don’t last forever, that’s why it’s vital to act fast.
In this matter, there are a lot of things you can take into consideration. For example, we can prepare in advance some images of our products, so all we need to do is add a title that links the trend that’s happening with our brand, and post fast.
Also, we can get someone to focus entirely on social media and trending topics.
Team Play
When working for someone else (aside from our own projects), we usually need someone else’s approval before posting anything online.
As we said before, reactvertising is all about speed. That’s why it’s beneficial to have a well-oiled chain of approval with our clients, so we are good to go as fast as we can each time we need to. Although this is related to the structure of our client and the chain of commands, it’s something useful to keep in mind.
Other Famous Reactvertising Examples
Oreo’s tweet also opened the door for all other brands to join the game.
Some of the cases that stand out the most are:
Ikea – “Game Of Thrones”
The North remembers, and we think that everyone else too, that Game Of Thrones was one of the most important shows of all time.
When its costume designer revealed in an interview that he used Ikea’s rugs to create some of the costumes, the Swedish brand was as swift and lethal as the Night King.
KitKat – “#Bendgate”
Steve Jobs’s legacy is monstrous. He created a brand that turned into a titan of technology and design. However, when the iPhone 6S appeared in our lives, it didn’t do it in the best of ways. Apparently, after some changes in the materials, these smartphones bent when put in the pant’s pockets.
This got everyone talking about it with #Bendgate. Among the brands that hopped to this trend was KitKat, whose brand slogan is “Have a Break, Have a KitKat”.
They came up with this tweet.
Burger King – Megxit
THe world was speechless when Prince Harry and the Duchess of Sussex Megan decided to quit their royal duties. It was one of the 2020s most shocking news.
While everyone was looking for a way to jump into the conversation around it, Burger King delivered an incredible advertising stunt from Argentina.
What did they do?
They just simply offered a job to two persons who were now needing one.
McDonald’s – The World Cup 2014
Brazil’s World Cup had some incredible moments, spectacular goals, plays that amazed the whole world, and a bite that left a mark. Not only on Chiellini’s neck (the player who got bitten), but also on social media, because it got the entire planet talking about the match between Uruguay and Italy.
Millions of tweets were published, but the golden arcs brand stood out with less than 140 characters.
From the McDonald’s Uruguay Twitter account, they posted a simple joke that turned out to be (at least in that moment) in the most retweeted tweet in the whole company’s history.
As you can see, every day new opportunities to communicate appear. Do you remember other famous reactvertising examples? Tell us in the comments section.
