You may have already figured out by its name that Naked Granola is a brand that wants to get noticed.
The brand hasn’t stopped at being “naked” though. Recently, it took to the streets of San Francisco with a massive dose of live, wet content marketing in the form of a giant slip-n-slide, right smack dab in the middle of the city.
One Fun Slippery Slope
If you think you’ve been having fun this summer, these slip ‘n sliders may damper your self-assessment. They look like they’re having a real wet blast.
But hey, all you need is a gigantic tarp, a big bunch of soft rubber padding to put under it, and a very very steep street that is closed off to traffic, and you’ll be all set for this kind of funtastic day.
Devin Super Tramp and crew – a well-known YouTuber – documented the wet and wild San Fran fun with their (reportedly $85,000 worth of) cameras. A few dozen thrill seekers apparently took part as well, and some savvy and daring photography got it all on film.
Publicity Stunts as Content Marketing
Publicity stunts are public actions or events so unique, crazy or otherwise attention-grabbing that people stop to watch, the stunt makes the news and garners lots of viral chatter.
They can work well and often do.
Shock value alone can bring a lot of attention to a brand, but with strategic and creative planning, even more can be accomplished. And publicity stunts can be created in the online world as well, through written, audio or visual mediums.
You can generate publicity on a small, local or a large, national scale. Content marketing and publicity stunts can be created on any budget. They typically cost less than advertising and are usually more effective.
How to Market for Publicity
When you want to employ publicity-generating content marketing, either in the form of an active physical display or event, or online, consider the following:
Make it Your Own: You don’t want your stunt to be mixed up with anyone else’s. Find something that hasn’t been done before, or at least give it a brand-personal angle and spin.
Align Your Values: What does your brand represent? What are its values? Make sure the stunt doesn’t violate them, and even better…that it reinforces them. It should demonstrate what you want consumers to feel about your brand.
Naked Granola wanted to be fresh, natural, healthy and fun, presumably. Can’t get more fresh and natural than skin-to-skin contact with water, and the slip ‘n slide is good fun too!
Make it Tweetable: You’ll want to make it easy to pass the word along quickly and easily. Can the concept be grasped from a single photo? If not, simplify.
Make it Positive: Although negative publicity can promote a brand now and then, it’s a serious gamble and could be short lived. Present an idea that people with perceive as positive. Ask yourself whether it could possibly be misconstrued by anyone.
Make it Brand Friendly: Does it tie-in to what the brand stands for, either literally or metaphorically? If not, people may remember the content but have trouble recalling which brand it was representing. There has to be some connection.
Make it Interesting: This seems like a no-brainer, but even with all the other factors perfectly in place, you will need to make sure the content will turn some heads!
Asking yourself those simple questions can help you come up with a slam-dunk promotional content blast, whatever form it takes.