It’s official, Valentine’s Day has become more than just a greeting card and flower holiday. It’s slowly transforming into an opportunity for innovative marketing solutions. Brands are throwing out creative marketing stunts and promotions today in the spirit of February 14th. Here’s a look at some of the most innovative marketing solutions we have found this Valentine’s Day.
Date in a Box
Leave it to a beer company to have the guy’s backs this Valentines. Heineken’s Valentine’s innovative marketing solution combines some of our favorite things: spontaneity, or perhaps procrastination, Instagram, and beer. Anyone could tweet #DateInABox this week to request a red, glittery vault. The vault contained a prearranged date for the couple requesting the box, anything from jujitsu lessons for two to couples tattoos. However, in order to open the vault and reveal the last minute date, the guy needed to admit his love/lack of forward thinking by publically sharing a picture on Instagram.
Emergency Love at First Sight
No surprise here, a flower company has made it onto the list of innovative marketing solutions this Valentine’s Day. The Flower Council of Holland installed 1,500 emergency flower boxes around Paris. The small red boxes, which are appropriately modeled after emergency boxes, contain a single red rose and a line that reads “In case of love at first sight, break glass”. Don’t worry- no trips to the ER will ensue, the “glass” is actually cellophane.
Dumb Ways to Die
Who can forget the train safety PSA from Melbourne Metro? With over 71 million views on YouTube, the original Dumb Ways to Die quickly became a consumer favorite. For this reason, resurrecting it (no pun intended) on Valentine’s Day was a natural next step. The campaign was always an innovative marketing solution, but now, it is an innovative marketing Valentine.
Smart Car Serenades
Smart Car has enlisted the help with Ruben Studdard and R&B singer Case to help make some lucky New Yorker’s Valentine’s Day special this year. For random fans who tweet #smartcrooners with their location (of the location of a loved one), there is a chance they could get surprised with a serenade between 9am and 3pm today. Check out their Twitter account for videos and pictures of the surprises.
Uber Skywriting
Want a big romantic gesture this Valentine’s? Uber, the taxi app, is offering UberSky. If you live in Los Angeles, San Diego, Dallas or New York City, you can request a skywriting plane to write a short message for just $500 through the app. The promotion is a partnership between Uber, MasterCard and AirSign. Keep an eye on the sky for some Valentine’s messages from Uber.
An Ikea Innuendo
Our final example of innovative marketing solutions is actually from Valentine’s Day 2013 but It was certainly worth mentioning. Ikea Australia’s promotion could perhaps be taken as inappropriate but you’ve got to give credit for creativity and cleverness. Last year, Ikea Australia offered a free crib for babies born 9 months from Valentine’s Day. What else is there to say?
So, whether you love the forced romance of Valentine’s Day or see it as more of a manufactured holiday, you can’t deny that these brands are certainly taking advantage of the worldwide involvement in Valentine’s Day through innovative marketing solutions and promotions.
