COMMENTS FROM THE MARKETING FRONTLINE - news, views, soapbox observations and general riffs on all things public relations, marketing and communications, PR 2.0, social media, word-of-mouth and brand engagement.
The Art of the Publicity Stunt: Not for the Faint-Hearted, But Still as Effective as Ever!
I love a cunning (publicity) stunt.
And now, with the full gamut of social media in full swing to help spread the word, there's even more reason to consider adding the occasional stunt to your brand's marketing mix (but only if it makes strategic, creative and economic sense!!).
In the marketing PR business, one of the hardest gigs is to create and deliver a creative stunt that ticks all the boxes - and even then you need Lady Luck on your side in terms of making a media splash.
Taylor Herring's Publicity Stunt Hall of Fame - CHECK IT OUT!
From experience I can tell you a lot of blood, sweat and tears would have gone into many of these 'Hall of Fame' stunts; even the relatively 'simple' ones generally would have required ruthless planning and execution.
The Taylor Herring list features a broad range of different types of stunts and not all of them whacky (okay, the guy pushing a peanut along the road with his nose as a protest against his student debt, that was, errr, interesting).
There are 'serious' stunts i.e. the Olympic Torch relay (proven since 1936 and still going strong)...
...the sexy (take your pick, but for sheer audacity the giant image of naked model Gail Porter projected on to Britain's Parliament building for FHM magazine, although Liz Hurley generated massive global attention when she rocked up to the premiere of Four Weddings & a Funeral wearing 'that dress')...
...and the downright bizarre (that would go to electronic duo KLF burning one million quid - WTF? - or perhaps the singer Prince changing his name to an unpronounceable symbol).
I've got a particular favourite which was part of a broader sponsorship campaign but I'll leave that for another post!
Love to hear your feedback!
Here are some previous PR Warrior posts about publicity stunts:
The Art of the Publicity Stunt: Not for the Faint-Hearted, But Still as Effective as Ever!
I love a cunning (publicity) stunt.
And now, with the full gamut of social media in full swing to help spread the word, there's even more reason to consider adding the occasional stunt to your brand's marketing mix (but only if it makes strategic, creative and economic sense!!).
In the marketing PR business, one of the hardest gigs is to create and deliver a creative stunt that ticks all the boxes - and even then you need Lady Luck on your side in terms of making a media splash.
Taylor Herring's Publicity Stunt Hall of Fame - CHECK IT OUT!
From experience I can tell you a lot of blood, sweat and tears would have gone into many of these 'Hall of Fame' stunts; even the relatively 'simple' ones generally would have required ruthless planning and execution.
The Taylor Herring list features a broad range of different types of stunts and not all of them whacky (okay, the guy pushing a peanut along the road with his nose as a protest against his student debt, that was, errr, interesting).
There are 'serious' stunts i.e. the Olympic Torch relay (proven since 1936 and still going strong)...
...the sexy (take your pick, but for sheer audacity the giant image of naked model Gail Porter projected on to Britain's Parliament building for FHM magazine, although Liz Hurley generated massive global attention when she rocked up to the premiere of Four Weddings & a Funeral wearing 'that dress')...
...and the downright bizarre (that would go to electronic duo KLF burning one million quid - WTF? - or perhaps the singer Prince changing his name to an unpronounceable symbol).
I've got a particular favourite which was part of a broader sponsorship campaign but I'll leave that for another post!
Love to hear your feedback!
Here are some previous PR Warrior posts about publicity stunts:
Trevor Young has built PR Warrior into one of the world’s foremost showcases of what can be achieved at the intersection of public relations and social media.” - Brad Howarth, Smart Company, September 2011 More »
