The 14 Wildest Publicity Stunts Ever Attempted
Sometimes the best marketing is to do something totally insane.
Published 6 months ago in Wow
As marketing plays an increasingly larger role in companies’ success, plain old print or TV advertisements just aren’t cutting it anymore.
PR departments need to get people talking, and the best way to get people talking is to do something large-scale, public, and totally insane. Enter, the publicity stunt.
These PR stunts run the gamut from ambitious undertakings executed flawlessly to questionable events executed just as questionably. From breaking world records to breaking consumer trust, these publicity stunts are truly the wildest ones ever attempted.
1
Toothbrush Robots
During the 2020 pandemic, Oral-B needed a way to deliver their brand new Oral-B iO electric toothbrushes without human contact. So, as a PR stunt, the toothpaste company released a fleet of high-tech delivery drones which dropped off the toothbrushes to members of the press and influencers. It was a surprising vision of the future, courtesy of a toothbrush company.
2
Red Bull Stratos
In 2012, Red Bull sponsored skydiver Felix Baumgartner in his most daring feat yet: jumping from 128,000 feet above the Earth’s surface. The event was live streamed, and millions of people watched the record be set for the first human to break the sound barrier without vehicular power.
3
Tinder’s Mass Date
In 2018, Tinder conducted a publicity stunt where they had one woman invite dozens of unwitting men on a date to the same location at the same time. Men showing up assuming they’d be on a one-on-one date found themselves walking up to a crowd of guys with their date standing up on stage. The stunt succeeded in generating a lot of chatter, but some of it was (understandably) negative.
4
Injured T-Rex
In 2015, pedestrians spotted a truck driving around the streets of London, carrying what appeared to be a Tyrannosaurus Rex, with its tongue hanging out of its mouth and a bloodstained sheet strapped over it. This completely bizarre spectacle was a PR stunt by National Geographic to promote their new TV show 'T. Rex Autopsy'.
5
Whopper Sacrifice
In 2009, Burger King created a Facebook app called “Whopper Sacrifice” which gave users a coupon for a free burger. The catch? In order to receive the coupon, you had to delete ten friends from your friend list, and it publicly shared your chosen sacrifices. Over 200,000 people got free burgers from this PR stunt that felt more like a trap from the movie Saw.
6
Boston Mooninite Panic
In 2007, Cartoon Network promoted its show 'Aqua Teen Hunger Force' by placing metal LED signs featuring characters called Mooninites in various cities. In Boston, people who came across these signs mistook them for explosive devices and called the authorities, resulting in panic, traffic shutdowns, and arrests being made. Turner Broadcasting had to pay $2 million in compensation for the stunt, but hey – it got the word out!
7
Popsicle Flood
In 2005, Snapple attempted to create the world’s largest popsicle in NYC’s Union Square to generate chatter about their new line of popsicles. Well, they did generate chatter, but not in the way they wanted. The 25-foot-tall popsicle, which weighed 17.5 tons, melted faster than expected, flooding Union Square and the surrounding streets.
8
Taco Liberty Bell
In 1996, for April Fool’s Day, Taco Bell announced it would be buying the Liberty Bell to “reduce the country’s debt.” They claimed they would change its name to the ‘Taco Liberty Bell’, and that it would spend part of the year in Taco Bell’s corporate headquarters in Irvine, California. Of course, it was all a prank, but many people who didn’t check the calendar were fooled.
9
Blair Witch Project
While today, in the age of social media literacy, we scoff at the idea that the 'Blair Witch Project'’s marketing campaign could have fooled anybody, back in 1999, it was serious business. The low-budget movie had a believable website, missing persons posters for the stars, and strong word of mouth. Their blurring of the line between reality and fiction led to one of the most profitable movies ever made.
11
Virgin UFO
In 1989, drivers on the M25 highway in London were shocked to see what seemed to be a UFO, with flashing lights and blasting heat, landing on the highway. The doors of the UFO opened and a small figure in a silver space suit wearing an E.T. mask disembarked. It was Richard Branson, the founder of the conglomerate Virgin Group.
12
Bee Movie
At the prestigious 2007 Cannes Film Festival, Jerry Seinfeld donned an oversized bee costume and zip-lined clumsily over the crowd from the roof of an eight-story hotel to promote his new film 'Bee Movie'. We’re sure the crowd at the most reputable and distinguished film festival in the world was very receptive.
14
Free Tacos from Space Debris
Another outlandish stunt by Taco Bell took place in 2001. The Russian space station Mir was scheduled to deorbit, so Taco Bell set up a giant floating target in the Pacific Ocean in the area it was predicted to land. If a piece of space debris landed on the target, Taco Bell would give a free taco to every single person in the United States. Luckily for Taco Bell’s finances, the space junk missed the target completely.
Most Popular
