3 ways to be unexpected in the world of Marketing

Photo by Ben White on Unsplash

According to Kevin Alloca, there are 3 reasons why videos go viral (2012). First, when taste makers help shed light on a specific video causing it to go viral. Second is communities of participation, where several people sharing the same values may provoke conversation and sharing. And the third is the unexpectedness! In this post, the focus will be on exploring how to be unexpected in the world of marketing.

Check out the below video of Coca-Cola’s happiness machine surprising its customers, as they don’t expect to receive anything more than a can of coke from the vending machine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqT_dPApj9U

Like some of the movies with unexpected endings people still talk about, for example, 'Gone Girl' and 'The Sixth Sense', it is evident that unexpectedness remains a winner in brand recognition and product recall. This is backed up by the Harvard Business Review, stating that "surprise is still the most powerful tool", this is explained through the 3 key points:

1. Surprises change behaviour. By focusing on the desired consumer behaviour, innovative marketing strategies can emerge.

2. Surprises turbocharge emotions. Whatever a consumer is feeling, a surprise will amplify that feeling, and

3. Surprises Fuels passionate relationships. Likewise, in business relationships, marketers typically spend the bulk of their creative energy to make themselves look attractive to potential customers and forgetting to charm their current ones and keep the spark alive.

So when it comes to digital marketing and with all the content online, how do you become unexpected, surprising and stand out from the crowd?

Here are the 3 gambits to surprise your fans with the unexpected!

One: As suggested by Kaya Ismail, know your users and what they are doing, then capitalize on the two points to deliver a memorable customer experience.

Two: Steven MacDonald recommends to create an emotional connection with your customers. This will allow you to have emotionally engaged customers and their sentiments shape the attitudes that drive decisions.

Three: Neil Patel proposed that a healthy dose of mockery and tasteful humour increases a brand's amiability and is seen as a breath of fresh air in a world of cloned marketing tactics.

Briefly, understanding the effects of surprises and your target market will allow you to produce effective marketing campaigns that will resonate with your brand's users.

Do you remember the last time you were surprised by a specific campaign or commercial? What tactics or strategies do you think were used?

*GIF's source - Wix