Halloween is a time for spooky fun, sweet treats and communications creativity!
As we gear up for October 31st, some companies take the opportunity to showcase wickedly creative public relations and marketing campaigns. These brand storytelling examples not only capture our attention, but also engage target audiences in new ways.
Let’s dive into some of the top Halloween-themed campaigns in recent years and extract valuable lessons for PR pros and marketers alike.
Burger King has become known for its fun Halloween campaigns - and 2024 is no exception!
This year, the brand teamed up with Amazon MGM Studios to celebrate The Addams Family. By launching a limited-time menu inspired by iconic characters from the franchise, Burger King has once again tapped into the holiday spirit with a spooky and fun dining experience designed to capture attention and drive brand engagement.
These creatively crafted menu items aren’t just delicious—they tie into the beloved characters of The Addams Family, blending pop culture nostalgia with Halloween-themed culinary excitement.
The colorful and fun packaging made it perfect for sharing on social media, which helped spread the word. Beyond the menu, Burger King has also introduced Addams Family-themed King Jr. Meal toys, creating an engaging experience for younger customers and families.
By leveraging cultural partnerships, brands can enhance visibility and engage audiences through nostalgia. Creating limited-time offers also generates excitement, while visually appealing packaging increases shareability on social media.
Targeting families with themed toys in kids' meals can drive traffic and enhance brand loyalty. Incorporating storytelling with iconic characters builds emotional connections and maximizes exposure by reaching various markets.
Heinz's Halloween strategy in 2022 centered around the reintroduction of its limited-edition Tomato Blood Ketchup, cleverly designed to tap into the Halloween spirit while engaging consumers through humor and creativity.
By revamping its iconic ketchup with a spooky twist, Heinz aimed to make mealtime fun and thematic for the Halloween season.
The campaign featured Toby, a vegetarian vampire influencer, who served as a whimsical mascot for the product. By promoting a humorous public service announcement (PSA) that encouraged fellow vampires to ditch traditional practices in favor of Heinz Tomato Blood, Heinz created a relatable and entertaining narrative that resonated with its audience. This character-driven approach helped to humanize the brand and foster engagement.
Heinz also teamed up with Six Flags to offer promotional food items featuring their Tomato Blood Ketchup, making the experience interactive and festive.
First, embracing seasonal themes helps brands connect with consumers, as Heinz did by aligning its product with Halloween. Using humor and creativity, such as the whimsical character Toby, a vegetarian vampire, made the brand more memorable.
Experiential opportunities, such as promotional food items at events, boost engagement and create lasting impressions. Unique packaging, like the limited-edition Tomato Blood Ketchup bottle, attracts attention and interest.
Finally, connecting campaigns to broader themes, such as vegetarianism, fosters deeper connections with specific audiences.
Fanta’s Halloween 2024 campaign in the UK featured a new apple-flavored soda called Zero Afterlife, coinciding with the release of Beetlejuice. The packaging features the film's main character with a striking black-and-white striped design, alongside a bold green liquid, ensuring standout visibility on store shelves.
Fanta's marketing strategy includes a multimillion-pound campaign dubbed "Summon What You Wanta," which encompasses a variety of promotional activities such as paid social media ads, influencer marketing, digital and out-of-home advertising and experiential activations.
Additionally, throughout August, Fanta’s entire product range underwent a temporary makeover featuring characters from the Beetlejuice sequel, aimed at generating excitement among fans.
The 2024 campaign is positioned as the brand’s largest and most engaging Halloween initiative yet, featuring exclusive limited editions and collectible packs, encouraging retailers to creatively promote Fanta in-store to capitalize on this seasonal opportunity.
This campaign highlights the importance of cultural partnerships, which enhances brand visibility and resonates with specific audiences.
Creative, eye-catching packaging is also essential for standing out on store shelves during competitive seasons like Halloween, driving impulse purchases.
A comprehensive communications approach that includes social media, influencer collaborations, digital ads and experiential marketing also helps engage consumers at various touchpoints.
Mars launched the "M&M'S Movie Night campaign" during the 2023 Halloween and holiday season, positioning M&M'S as the perfect movie-time snack. The campaign combined brand messaging with the festive mood, encouraging families to enjoy M&M'S while watching their favorite holiday movies.
To enhance the experience, Mars offered a Prime Video credit to customers who purchased a certain number of Mars products. This promotion tied the candy directly to movie watching. The campaign used interactive ads across multiple devices to maximize audience engagement.
Originally launched in the U.S., the campaign was designed with global scalability in mind and successfully expanded to markets like the UK, Mexico and Canada. Mars focused on measurable goals such as return on ad spend (ROAS) and sales lift. This campaign was designed for global reach, expanding to markets like the UK and Canada while achieving impressive results in sales.
By blending fun, memorable brand experiences with strategic incentives and global reach, Mars reinforced M&M'S as a go-to movie snack.
Mars’ campaign highlights the power of aligning with cultural moments like holidays. Offering incentives can encourage immediate action from consumers. A multichannel approach ensures broader visibility by reaching audiences across various devices and platforms.
Additionally, setting clear, measurable objectives and focusing on data-driven results helps optimize campaign performance; analyzing metrics like ROAS can improve future efforts.
Finally, Mars’ emphasis on authentic brand storytelling related to the movie-watching experience fosters emotional connections with consumers, highlighting the importance of creating relatable narratives to build loyalty.
As Halloween approaches, these creative campaigns remind us of the power of engaging brand storytelling. From clever collaborations to interactive experiences, it's important to connect with audiences in fun ways.
By learning from these successful campaigns, communicators can develop their own wickedly creative strategies that resonate with consumers.
Happy Halloween! 🎃
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