It’s been a week of April Fools jokes. The web is saturated with stories, videos and photos causing a stir. Is it real? Is it fake? How do they get away with that? You either love them or loathe them, but there’s no denying that a successful April Fools joke is a hugely effective PR tool.
Take Nova radios example; the presenting team tricked management into thinking one had quit live on air and produced this fantastic video:
April Fools is a great excuse to produce and execute some quality content. It’s frequently utilized by advertisers, celebrities, athletes, and politicians. It takes a creative head, an appetite for risk and a willing and co-operative team to pull off a stunt like this, the result…worldwide social media and press attention.
Successful publicity stunts have news value; offer photo, video and sound bite opportunities, and are arranged primarily for media coverage. The purpose is to create talkability - whether it is received in a positive light or not. Trying to break the mould and to be set apart from competitors should be credited. It’s about demonstrating success by thinking outside the conventional means of communicating.
So maybe all organisations should think outside the boundaries…
Not every piece of content from your day-to-day business is going to be news worthy, but it’s about making the most of what is happening in the domain and communicating it in the most effective way. It could just be part of the package - an engaging photo, video or article that will interest the audience and connect them to the brand…
In effect, successful PR stunts are amazing communicators.
Photo credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/ganesha_isis/
