Today marks the start of the 2014 World Cup, a month-long event highly anticipated by fans – and marketers – around the globe. Social media is expected to play a huge role in this year’s tournament, and we’ve compiled some of the most popular and creative marketing campaigns centered around the event:
Hyundai teams with Tumblr: At the heart of Hyundai’s World Cup sponsorship lies the #BecauseFutbol campaign, driven by a Tumblr microsite. The site will contain 120 pieces of football related art, including GIFs, quotes, illustrations and short films, all to be released periodically throughout the tournament. There will also be a realtime element to the Tumblr site; other pieces of art will be created on the fly based on which threads are most popular as the tournament progresses. Three-fifths of the site’s content will come from six Tumblr influencers/artists, while the remaining artwork will come from Hyundai’s creative team.
Memes will also play a large roll on the site; a new tool allows users to either design their own art or remix existing illustrations, and share them across different social media platforms.
To attract users, some of this artwork has been put on display in New York City’s Times Square.
Hyundai also added a feature to its site called “where to watch“, helping fans in 12 cities find a nearby venue to catch their team’s game.
Adidas is “All in”: Adidas’ “All in or Nothing” ad campaign is projected to be the biggest marketing crusade in company history. The campaign’s official video features global football sensation Lionel Messi, along with a new Kanye West track. In the final frame, the ad asks viewers to click either an “all in” or “nothing” button. Those who click the “all in” button will receive up-to-date Adidas World Cup news through #Allin or Nothing and email, and those who click the “nothing” button will see images of (basically) nothing.
Other Adidas World Cup ads online have featured international football stars David Beckhman, Zinedine Zidane, Gareth Bale and Lucas Moura. One recent ad garnered over 14 million views to date, and the campaign’s signature ad has earned nearly 34 million views (see below).
Adidas is also launching a live YouTube web series called “The Dugout“, allowing fans to take part in interviews, Adidas product reviews, and behind-the-scenes World Cup action.
Coca-Cola celebrates “The World’s Cup”: Coca-Cola is recognizing football as a globally unifying force through “The World’s Cup” campaign. With the “One World, One Game” YouTube ad, the new “World Is Ours” official World Cup anthem, and FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour, Coca-Cola looks to deliver to its audience the most accessible World Cup in history. Also, to kick-off the global event, Coca-Cola has invited fans to be a part of the largest flag photo mosaic ever created, by submitting an image either through Twitter or Facebook. The Happiness Flag will be unveiled before the opening match between Brazil and Croatia.
Coca-Cola has also introduced a new section of branded content in the gaming app QuizUp, which includes 18,000 trivia questions specific to every team competing for the Cup.
McDonald’s “Trick-Shots” the competition: The controversial Trick Shot ad launches McDonald’s “Gol” campaign, which has stolen much of the attention surrounding World Cup social marketing. For the first time in brand history, McDonald’s has redesigned the packaging of the French fry box as part of the new McDonald’s Gol! app. Using one of the twelve new fry boxes, customers can download the app and begin playing. Here’s how it works:
How does your brand plan to keep up with this year’s World Cup?
