Halloween has taken root as a big event, especially among young people in Tokyo, and the excitement in Shibuya is large enough to draw major TV coverage. As the number of participants grows year after year, plenty of companies run product sales and campaigns to match. In this article we introduce several SNS-centered campaigns that generated buzz ahead of Halloween.
With competition for sales intensifying, Halloween is an event you cannot afford to overlook. This year, amid the spread of COVID-19, online PR to build awareness matters more than ever. It is about time to start thinking about what kind of campaign to run.
Starbucks Coffee: A Limited Frappuccino Plus a Camera Effect
“Starbucks Coffee” (hereafter Starbucks) sold its Halloween-themed “Halloween Dark Night Frappuccino” at stores nationwide on Friday, October 18, 2019. A strawberry frappuccino dusted with black cocoa powder, dark like a Halloween night, it drew attention as a photogenic product, and posts using the hashtag “#HalloweenRedNightFrappuccino” topped 20,000 on Instagram.
For its SNS campaign, Starbucks also generated buzz by adding a limited camera effect to Instagram Stories at launch. The effect placed a mask on the user, like a Halloween costume, and many people posted photos and videos shot with the effect alongside the new product.
Instagram lets you develop and add your own original camera effects. Adding one for a limited period and spreading it can create an opening for buzz. With so many users actively posting photos and videos, a little extra effort to stand out is an important point for winning attention.
Source: Starbucks Coffee Japan
Universal Studios Japan “Halloween Horror Night”: Dance Goes Viral
“Halloween Horror Night” was an event held at Universal Studios Japan (hereafter USJ) from early September to early November last year. The entire park served as the venue, with new attractions and decorations added, and the whole of USJ was wrapped in a Halloween mood.
One of its SNS-driven efforts was a participatory dance performance event, “Zombie de Dance.” EXILE’s “NAOTO” and Sandaime J SOUL BROTHERS’ “Kenjiro Yamashita,” members of hugely popular groups, served as ambassadors, and the choreography was released along with a tie-in song. The dance was easy for anyone to perform, and once contributors posted their dance videos on YouTube and TikTok, it spread and sparked widespread buzz all at once.
The link below is an example of a dance video. Example: I went all out dancing the Rat-tat-tat Dance [Halloween Horror Night]
The song was used more than 40,000 times on TikTok, and videos tagged “#RatataDance” racked up more than 220 million total plays, becoming a social phenomenon. Dance-based campaigns have high visibility and shareability, and given the COVID-19 situation, dance campaigns that can be copied at home in particular are likely to prove popular.
Source: USJ LLC, Universal Studios Japan Halloween Horror Night
Petio “My Pet’s Halloween Photo Campaign”: A Photo Contest
This photo contest was an SNS campaign launched by the pet company Petio Co., Ltd. on October 1 last year. Participants attached the hashtag “PetioHalloween” and posted photos of their own pets in costume to social media.
A Grand Prix and a special award (the Petio Award) were set up, and each winner received a luxurious prize. Close to 10,000 entries came in on Instagram, with participants showing off their beloved pets in costume.
Photo contests are popular campaigns well beyond Halloween, but weaving in a Halloween theme adds extra fun. According to research by Yano Research Institute, the overall pet-related market is expanding, so running Halloween campaigns on social media that incorporate pets, even in forms other than a photo contest, may help draw an audience. Reference: Yano Research Institute Ltd.
Source: Petio Co., Ltd. “My Pet’s Halloween Photo Campaign”
Conclusion: Win Attention with Participatory, Experience-Driven Campaigns
The Halloween campaigns from last year introduced here all combined Halloween with another genre, such as dance or photography. This year, the spread of COVID-19 may make it hard to hold large outdoor events, but you can still run campaigns by making use of social media.
There are many ways to run Halloween PR, including online events using the SNS LIVE feature, calls for posts with a designated hashtag, and giveaway campaigns for users who follow your account. As you plan ahead, adopting participatory, experience-driven hooks like the examples above can help you capture attention. Because it is an important event that can boost sales, this is an opportunity worth making the most of.
