We don’t know about you, but we’re getting properly excited for 2024. All the economic indicators are pointing in the right direction and our pipeline is indicating a return to traditional levels of PR spending in our sectors. Thus, we felt like you might find some value in a quick look back into what resonated with consumers in the world of marketing and an awesome case study on Hot Ones, an interview talk show on Youtube that should inspire us all! 

Thank you for all your support this year, we’ve felt it. Have an awesome EOY and PLEASE drop us a line if we can do anything for you, we’re eager to return the favor.

Lean into nostalgia: How the best marketing campaigns of 2023 mastered pop culture nostalgia

TL;DR: A few brands stood out this year by taking the fun and creative route instead of playing it safe. Whether it was campaigns like McDonald’s leaning into 90s childhood nostalgia, Mattel reviving Barbie, State Farm getting in on the Tayvis craze, or even Attentive Mobile last holiday season leaning into B2B 90s nostalgia, everyone was leaning into the nostalgia of the past.

Takeaway: These campaigns were so successful because they leveraged something that unites us all – our childhood memories. As generations flow, it’s important to understand the consumers with strong buying power right now. While Millennials are still third in place for buying power, they still make up $322.5 billion in annual spending. All people have a warm spot in their hearts for boybands, retro fashions, and the early days of tech. Pop culture and nostalgia marketing, when done well, can be great tools to reapproach your brand from a unique yet fun angle.

Consider:

• What’s a part of pop culture that you remember from your childhood? Think about how it made you feel, not just the topic/product/person itself.

• The risk of leaning into nostalgia is coming off as cheap or tacky, which is why it should be approached strategically, like any campaign. Nostalgia should complement your messaging and brand, not the other way around (it’s still marketing, after all). How would you talk about your brand in the context of the 70s, 80s, 90s, 00s?

Leading with content: How ‘Hot Ones’ went from YouTube series to a brand of its own

TL;DR: You’ve probably heard of ‘Hot Ones,’ the YouTube show where host Sean Evans interviews celebrities while they eat progressively spicier chicken wings. It began in 2015 and is now in its 22nd season, having since expanded into a line of branded products – a card game, a line of hot sauces, and frozen chicken bites.

Takeaway: Often when we think about content marketing, we think about how we can create content based on our product. But ‘Hot Ones’ prevails in reversing the method and asking: what if we created content that spawns a product? This isn’t us telling you to leave your brand to go start a YouTube channel. But reverse engineering how you talk about your product and brand could stand out from the crowd. We’ve seen it with tech companies investing in blog and SEO content, becoming an editorial outlet to then push readers into their funnel. If the content is good, you might just find your audience loyally following you with their dollars.

Consider:

• If you didn’t have to take a direct sales approach with your content, what would you create? Start by ignoring the costs of production or the effort it takes to create the content, just dream big.

• Reimagine the content you’re already creating through the lens of an audience. What tweaks could you make to your current content to lean into a more informative, entertaining approach?

We want to hear from you! Let us know your thoughts on the newsletter and what you want to see at the link here.