10 of the Best Marketing Moments From 2024
At Lure, we’re always fishing for marketing inspiration. Here’s the best of 2024. For more of this stuff, follow us on Instagram.
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Method Products: A lesson in creating imaginary products.
Method took their reputation for creating delectable scents to the next level in a US Open campaign destined to go viral.
Enter a tennis ball scented body wash. With notes of pressurised air, fuzzy felt, and rubber compound, it smells exactly like a freshly opened can of balls.
What made this an ace? Exclusivity. Novelty. We all want what we can’t have. Only a few real bottles were made; gifted to certain influencers, featured in social media content, and promoted at events throughout the tournament — but not available for the public to buy. Naturally, this made people want it more.
A product page on their website encouraged interested customers to sign up for email notifications to find out more. I can confirm since signing up that I’ve received plenty of marketing emails, but nothing about the tennis ball body wash. But I’m still holding out hope. What a clever way to fill up the top of their marketing funnel.
Les Mills: A lesson in thinking outside the (spaghetti) box.
Cook your legs, and then cook some pasta.
The Les Mills fitness collective recently released a new workout with a live PT session on Instagram. In itself, that’s a great way to involve customers in a product launch. But there was an added layer of hype when their marketing team created a limited edition ‘Spaghetti Legs’ pasta to be given out to some of the lucky fans who attended.
While it might seem random, it gave the launch a more unique and engaging narrative. In their comms, they found plenty of clever ways to tie the concepts together.
A fun, memorable, and refreshing addition to a product roll out on socials.
We Are Not Really Strangers: A lesson in building a community.
An Instagram passion project turned multi-million dollar company.
We Are Not Really Strangers is a card game where players take turns answering questions designed to encourage connection with each other; questions like “what’s the most pain you’ve ever been in that wasn’t physical?” and “how would you describe the feeling of being in love”.
Before the game, We Are Not Really Strangers was just a girl on Instagram asking her followers thought-provoking questions. This attracted a following of introspective people who love to get 'deep'. Today, the account continues to share a mix of quotes, questions, and affirmations.
They’ve definitely found their aesthetic groove. The grid is a beautiful mood board combining the founder’s love of photojournalism and poetry. At the same time, they continue to advertise the user experience. If you like the content you see on socials, there’s more where that came from. And it’ll only be $25.
We Are Not Really Strangers isn’t defined by its products; it’s a social movement, currently over 5 million people strong.
Crocs: A lesson in using collabs to change your reputation.
From "the world's ugliest shoe" to a streetwear staple.
When it comes to marketing partnerships, sometimes the perfect pairs are the most surprising; high-fashion collaborations are making crocs cool. They’ve walked down the runway for the likes of Simone Rocha, Christopher Kane, and Balenciaga. While the standard range retails for under $100, the designer collabs can sell for as much as $1,750.
Aside from the immediate commercial success of a highly priced collab, the flow-on effect is that the classic clog has also skyrocketed in popularity. While they’d always been a practical footwear choice for fishermen, now Crocs are on everyone’s radar.
The strategy is quite simple at its core. Attach yourself to brands with ‘it’ status, and suddenly everyone thinks you’re ‘it’ too. The right endorsement goes a long way.
Belmond: A lesson in contemporary content.
While 5-star hotel chains usually keep a polished profile, Belmond proves that low-fi can be high-end. Their Instagram showcases a new way to market luxury travel, and the result is an updated perspective on the old-word charm that defines a Belmond experience.
The biggest strategy has been using iPhone footage. Creators like Sam Youkilis, known for their skilled smartphone videography, are often engaged to capture casual snippets of Belmond locations. While shots like these and these are always framed to perfection, they’re obviously not filmed on a state-of-the-art Sony or Nikon camera.
With a legacy spanning over 45 years, Belmond evidently wants to modernise its brand identity — here’s a great article about why low-fi wins with modern audiences.
Many of their professional shoots, when commissioned, are also heading in a far more contemporary direction. The Eastern & Oriental Express is a great example.
Photo by Stefanie Moshammer.
Jacquemus: A lesson in winning the gold medal for creative direction.
What do Jacquemus and the 2024 Olympics have in common? Aside from both being French, not much. That didn’t stop the label’s genius creative team from using the occasion to inspire an Instagram series.
Playful, imaginative, and picturesque, the content was all shot on iPhone (an emerging theme with high-end brands this year). It featured the kind of surrealist scenes that have now become the brand’s signature. To produce such a strong representation of their visual DNA while still involving sports references? Bravo.
This is why consumers and other marketers alike talk about Jacquemus with such reverence. We’re all tuning in excitedly to see what they’ll shoot next, even if we can’t afford the brand’s luxury pieces. The content is commodity enough.
Rhode Skincare: A lesson in product innovation.
Taking your lip products everywhere is a huge beauty trend. So Rhode attached a lip balm to the one item that’s glued to our hands 24/7; our phones. The Lip Case started as a limited marketing promotion, but is now a core product that has its own waitlist.
Why the hype? Well, the product actually solves a big problem for consumers (losing their favourite lippie). And since it’s moulded to the unique shape of the Rhode Peptide Lip Tint, it's a solution you can only buy at Rhode. Essentially, the brand has a monopoly on this particular innovation — until Temu gets its hands on a knockoff.
Other brands have taken note. The Sonny Angel x CASETiFY phone case collab is a great example. Sonny Angels are the year’s hottest accessory, and likewise CASETiFY is hugely successful. When they join forces, both brands stand to benefit from heightened awareness.
Go-To Skincare: A lesson in finding your voice.
Our go-to for copywriting inspiration when witty is your brief but you have actual information to convey.
Go-To Skincare’s copywriters are working overtime to keep the TOV playfully practical, funny yet functional; whether it’s explaining the effects of ingredients or naming a new product.
To stand out in a saturated market, identity is everything. Two brands offering similar products will ultimately be set apart by personality (and price).
Every beauty brand has a cleanser, but they’re not all called Fancy Face. They all use skin-loving ingredients, but do they use Simpsons references to explain how they work? If given the choice between a basic brand and a fun brand, most people will choose fun.
Brat: A lesson in reading the culture.
Brat is 2024’s Barbie. Lime green is the new pink.
It’s hard to pinpoint exactly when Charli XCX’s album become the zeitgeist. Was it when the hottest and most unhinged “internet cool girls” like Julia Fox and Chloë Sevigny popped up in the 360 music video? Or when the term “brat summer” was coined? Maybe it’s when political figures started using Brat in their campaigns (CNN literally hosted a political panel discussion about it).
Having a signature colour and font gave the album cover instant meme-ability. TikTok was also a huge contributor, with song snippets going insanely viral on the app. A suite of OOH campaigns and live events also played a big part in building the brat-osphere.
One thing’s for sure: Brat’s impact was profound. Collins Dictionary just announced “brat” as its 2024 word of the year:
“More than a hugely successful album, ‘brat’ is a cultural phenomenon that has resonated with people globally, and ‘brat summer’ established itself as an aesthetic and a way of life.”
Ultimately, Brat is one of those things that you either get, or you don’t. And maybe that’s the point; everyone wants to be in on the joke.
Hot Girl Pickles: A lesson in making boring sexy.
Good Girl Snacks is standing out on supermarket shelves with the best looking pickles by a mile.
Since launching earlier this year, they’re constantly sold out, stocked all over the US, and have over 50 thousand Instagram followers (and counting).
The recipe for their success primarily boils down to genre-defying, Gen Z friendly brand identity. They’re fluent in the internet’s written and visual language, their content is unlike anything else in the category, and they’re cornering the female market — a move more lucrative than ever now that women account for 70-80% of all consumer purchasing.
Are you obsessed yet? We get deeper into Hot Girl Pickles in this blog post.
