{"id":878,"date":"2021-05-28T01:11:14","date_gmt":"2021-05-28T05:11:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/2021\/05\/28\/reactive-marketing-why-timing-is-everything\/"},"modified":"2021-05-28T01:11:14","modified_gmt":"2021-05-28T05:11:14","slug":"reactive-marketing-why-timing-is-everything","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/reactive-marketing-why-timing-is-everything\/878\/","title":{"rendered":"Reactive Marketing: Why Timing Is Everything"},"content":{"rendered":"<!-- shortcode [asyncjs] -->\n        <script type=\"text\/javascript\">if (!window.AdButler) {\n                (function () {\n                    var s = document.createElement(\"script\");\n                    s.async = true;\n                    s.type = \"text\/javascript\";\n                    s.src = 'https:\/\/servedbyadbutler.com\/app.js';\n                    var n = document.getElementsByTagName(\"script\")[0];\n                    n.parentNode.insertBefore(s, n);\n                }());\n            }<\/script>\n        <script type=\"text\/javascript\">\n            var AdButler = AdButler || {};\n            AdButler.ads = AdButler.ads || [];\n            var abkw = window.abkw || '';\n            var plc376258 = window.plc376258 || 0;\n            document.write('<' + 'div id=\"placement_376258_' + plc376258+ '\"><\/' + 'div>');\n            AdButler.ads.push({\n                handler: function (opt) {\n                    AdButler.register(167788,376258, [300,250], 'placement_376258_' + opt.place, opt);\n                },\n                opt: {\n                    place: plc376258++,\n                    keywords: abkw ,\n                    domain: 'servedbyadbutler.com'\n                }\n            });\n        <\/script>\n        \n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em><strong>By David Alexander, Creative Director and Head of Studio, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theframeworks.com\/\">The Frameworks<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Unlikely associations between seemingly disparate brands can be a stroke of reactive marketing genius.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Reactive marketing is the effort by brands to quickly produce content that responds to a current event, talking point or faux pas in a clever or thought-provoking way. It has roots in the newsprint advertising industry, but social media has been instrumental in its meteoric rise. Today, reactive content can be conceptualised, created and shared within minutes. And, when it\u2019s done right, the public response can be just as fast \u2013 and astonishingly valuable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Don\u2019t be fooled into thinking the good stuff comes out of nowhere though. As with all great marketing, there are smart people and sharp-thinking brands behind the memes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Striking the right tone with reactive marketing <\/strong><\/h3>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Success with reactive marketing comes when a brand masters a light, humorous tone that\u2019s just edgy enough to be funny but doesn\u2019t belittle another brand or the audience.\u00ad\u00ad<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In November 2020, just as England was preparing to enter its second national lockdown, fast-food chain Burger King released a statement on Twitter titled \u201cOrder from McDonald\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p>&mdash; Burger King (@BurgerKingUK) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BurgerKingUK\/status\/1323246831686606851?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">November 2, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The tweet encouraged customers to order from a number of its rivals, going on to explain how <em>\u201crestaurants employing thousands of staff really need your support at the moment.\u201d <\/em>It quickly went viral, racking up over 60,000 retweets and quote tweets and 168,000 likes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It was a bold move from the fast. food giant but seemed to capture the mood of the nation that had just suffered an incredibly difficult eight months, with the near future again looking uncertain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n<!-- shortcode [asyncjs] -->\n        <script type=\"text\/javascript\">if (!window.AdButler) {\n                (function () {\n                    var s = document.createElement(\"script\");\n                    s.async = true;\n                    s.type = \"text\/javascript\";\n                    s.src = 'https:\/\/servedbyadbutler.com\/app.js';\n                    var n = document.getElementsByTagName(\"script\")[0];\n                    n.parentNode.insertBefore(s, n);\n                }());\n            }<\/script>\n        <script type=\"text\/javascript\">\n            var AdButler = AdButler || {};\n            AdButler.ads = AdButler.ads || [];\n            var abkw = window.abkw || '';\n            var plc428354 = window.plc428354 || 0;\n            document.write('<' + 'div id=\"placement_428354_' + plc428354+ '\"><\/' + 'div>');\n            AdButler.ads.push({\n                handler: function (opt) {\n                    AdButler.register(167788,428354, [300,250], 'placement_428354_' + opt.place, opt);\n                },\n                opt: {\n                    place: plc428354++,\n                    keywords: abkw ,\n                    domain: 'servedbyadbutler.com'\n                }\n            });\n        <\/script>\n        \n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Critics would argue it was just a cheap way to score publicity off the back of a global pandemic. But to openly promote your arch-rival\u2019s products is a big deal, especially at a time when companies are increasingly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.androidauthority.com\/samsung-apple-charger-box-1169323\">taking aim at their rival\u2019s products<\/a>, or indeed shutting down the use of competing products. Doing their bit for the entire industry also bolstered Burger King\u2019s brand reputation for caring about more than just selling burgers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Tesco was another brand that successfully reacted to events caused by the pandemic, this time in April 2021, the day England began lifting some of the third national lockdown restrictions that would see many pubs able to open for the first time in four months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Tesco\/status\/1381595555885936643\">https:\/\/twitter.com\/Tesco\/status\/1381595555885936643<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Ads and social posts encouraged Tesco customers to support their local pub instead of popping into their local Tesco store. The timing was impeccable, and it struck the perfect tone with its customers, with many praising the selflessness of the ads, including the wider <a href=\"https:\/\/www.campaignlive.co.uk\/article\/pick-week-tescos-act-generosity-endearing-bit-opportunism\/1712904?bulletin=campaign_breakfast_briefing&#038;utm_medium=EMAIL&#038;utm_campaign=eNews%20Bulletin&#038;utm_source=20210416&#038;utm_content=Campaign%20Breakfast%20Briefing%20(162)::&#038;email_hash=\">media<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/amy_13125\/status\/1381597631894405128\">https:\/\/twitter.com\/amy_13125\/status\/1381597631894405128<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The ads bolstered the brand\u2019s image and strengthened its long-standing brand proposition of \u201cEvery little helps.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>When reactive goes bad<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Reactive marketing doesn\u2019t have to take a light-hearted approach to be effective, but it must strike the right tone. The usual mix of sincerity, authenticity and relevancy applies. But there is a fine line between taking advantage of a situation in good faith and doing it gratuitously. Or even getting it so wrong you unwittingly offend a large number of people. As John Lydgate famously pointed out, \u201cYou can\u2019t please all of the people all of the time,\u201d but for one brand this quickly turned into angering just about everyone over the course of several days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">April Fool\u2019s is traditionally a day when marketers, PR teams and social media managers get to have a bit of fun and show off the lighter side of their brands, hoping to go viral in the process. It\u2019s almost akin to a global reactive marketing day; one where brands get to prepare well in advance. But sometimes even advanced planning can\u2019t help, which is when effective reactive marketing really comes into its own. What follows is a masterclass in how not to handle things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On 29 March 2021, Volkswagen released a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2021\/03\/29\/vw-accidentally-leaks-new-name-for-its-us-operations-voltswagen.html\">press release<\/a> announcing a rebrand of its US operations to <em>Voltswagen of America,<\/em> emphasising the commitment to its electric vehicle endeavours. However, the release, dated 29 April, was swiftly removed from its website before confusingly being confirmed to journalists and republished the following day with an amended date of 30 March. Unbelievably, later that day, VW announced they would <em>not<\/em> be changing their name; it was all an elaborate <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2021\/03\/30\/volkswagens-name-change-of-us-voltswagen-operations-was-april-fools-marketing-prank-source-says.html\">April Fool\u2019s Day ruse<\/a>: \u201cThe renaming was designed to be an announcement in the spirit of April Fool\u2019s Day, highlighting the launch of the all-electric ID.4 SUV.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Not only was the hoax mistimed; the subsequent removal, confirmation and eventual denial was a marketing and PR disaster. By the next afternoon, VW\u2019s social teams were trying to make light of the situation:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/VW\/status\/1377263642702458881\">https:\/\/twitter.com\/VW\/status\/1377263642702458881<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, everyone from the duped journalists to the public was unimpressed, accusing the company of outright lying. Not great for a brand with consumer trust issues thanks to a recent history of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/business-34324772\">deception<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NathanBomey\/status\/1377008091712077829\">https:\/\/twitter.com\/NathanBomey\/status\/1377008091712077829<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This proved it\u2019s often better for brands to hold their hands up to a mistake early and try to turn it into a positive, than attempt to style it out and end up digging yourself deeper, as VW found.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Turning a negative into a positive<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Things go wrong in business. And often it\u2019s the marketing department that\u2019s tasked with cleaning up the mess. A great example of this came in April 2021, when it was announced that food retailer Marks &#038; Spencer had <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/business-56756731\">begun legal proceedings<\/a> for trademark infringement against the supermarket chain Aldi over the similarities between its <em>Cuthbert The Caterpillar<\/em> cake and Marks &#038; Spencer\u2019s iconic and ever-popular <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/CKgTf-rBNOs\/\"><em>Colin The Caterpillar<\/em><\/a>. Aldi\u2019s social media team sprang into action with a series of hilarious posts and memes, using the hashtag <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/FreeCuthbert?src=hashtag_click\">#FreeCuthbert<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AldiUK\/status\/1382740269540466692\">https:\/\/twitter.com\/AldiUK\/status\/1382740269540466692<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AldiUK\/status\/1383022475206873089\">https:\/\/twitter.com\/AldiUK\/status\/1383022475206873089<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AldiUK\/status\/1383050242904444932\">https:\/\/twitter.com\/AldiUK\/status\/1383050242904444932<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AldiUK\/status\/1383062039447408641\">https:\/\/twitter.com\/AldiUK\/status\/1383062039447408641<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AldiUK\/status\/1383076426224705540\">https:\/\/twitter.com\/AldiUK\/status\/1383076426224705540<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AldiUK\/status\/1383089432350298115\">https:\/\/twitter.com\/AldiUK\/status\/1383089432350298115<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AldiUK\/status\/1383099496100466693\">https:\/\/twitter.com\/AldiUK\/status\/1383099496100466693<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While the publicity around this could have tainted Aldi\u2019s brand reputation, they instead saw this as an opportunity to turn a negative into a positive by taking control of the story and gaining support from their audience and the wider public. They also saw it as an opportunity to show the fun and down-to-earth side of the Aldi brand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Planning for the unexpected<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Although there are instances of heat-of-the-moment genius that result in reactive marketing gold, they are the exception. Planning is still key to success. The potential rewards for brands that master the balance between timing and creativity are enormous.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In April 2021, a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/sport\/football\/56825570\">football story broke<\/a> that sent shockwaves through the sport. Six of the largest English Premier League clubs joined a breakaway <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Proposals_for_a_European_Super_League_in_association_football\">European Super League<\/a> along with six other European teams, in direct competition to UEFA\u2019s Champions League. The plans would see the 12 clubs never having to qualify for their place in the league, locking most other clubs out and devaluing other competitions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The football community, <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BorisJohnson\/status\/1383865356364640259\">politicians<\/a> and even <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KensingtonRoyal\/status\/1384194971322839048\">Prince William<\/a> all united to condemn the plans. Many labelled the move as greed and pointed out the short-sightedness of the plans, announced without fan consultation. Within days, and amid the continuing backlash, the plans began to unravel, leaving the competition in tatters and the \u201cfounding\u201d clubs severely embarrassed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sensing a golden marketing opportunity, up stepped Dutch brewing company and Champions League sponsor Heineken with the perfect embodiment of how everyone connected to the \u201cbeautiful game\u201d was feeling:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Heineken\/status\/1384796309773766658\">https:\/\/twitter.com\/Heineken\/status\/1384796309773766658<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The line \u201cDon\u2019t drink &#038; start a league\u201d, alongside the hashtag #BetterTogether, leveraged Heineken\u2019s long-standing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theheinekencompany.com\/our-sustainability-story\/our-strategy-and-achievements\/responsible-consumption\">responsible drinking<\/a> campaigns and was perfectly timed and on-brand. The creative captivated the hearts and minds of the global football community, including some of its more distinguished fans, almost acting as a celebratory toast to the end of what many agreed would have been a disaster for European football:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/rubentzz\/status\/1384855637755154434\">https:\/\/twitter.com\/rubentzz\/status\/1384855637755154434<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NicoRosberg\/status\/1384947470749347841\">https:\/\/twitter.com\/NicoRosberg\/status\/1384947470749347841<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Conclusion<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Tapping into reactive marketing is simple. Brands need to be on the lookout for the happenings that capture their audiences\u2019 attention, whether that\u2019s something trending on social media or in the news cycle. To make it work, they need to act fast and be the first to enter the arena \u2013 one tweet is all it takes to go viral. And when things go wrong, as they so often do, act decisively and creatively. Sometimes it\u2019s possible to turn a negative into a positive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n<!-- shortcode [asyncjs] -->\n        <script type=\"text\/javascript\">if (!window.AdButler) {\n                (function () {\n                    var s = document.createElement(\"script\");\n                    s.async = true;\n                    s.type = \"text\/javascript\";\n                    s.src = 'https:\/\/servedbyadbutler.com\/app.js';\n                    var n = document.getElementsByTagName(\"script\")[0];\n                    n.parentNode.insertBefore(s, n);\n                }());\n            }<\/script>\n        <script type=\"text\/javascript\">\n            var AdButler = AdButler || {};\n            AdButler.ads = AdButler.ads || [];\n            var abkw = window.abkw || '';\n            var plc376259 = window.plc376259 || 0;\n            document.write('<' + 'div id=\"placement_376259_' + plc376259+ '\"><\/' + 'div>');\n            AdButler.ads.push({\n                handler: function (opt) {\n                    AdButler.register(167788,376259, [300,250], 'placement_376259_' + opt.place, opt);\n                },\n                opt: {\n                    place: plc376259++,\n                    keywords: abkw ,\n                    domain: 'servedbyadbutler.com'\n                }\n            });\n        <\/script>\n        \n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Reactive marketing is the effort by brands to quickly produce content that responds to a current event, talking point or faux pas in a clever or thought-provoking way. It has roots in the newsprint advertising industry, but social media has been instrumental in its meteoric rise.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":879,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","editor_notices":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[3],"topics":[2],"class_list":["post-878","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-brands-marketers","topics-editorial"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v28.0 (Yoast SEO v28.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Reactive Marketing: Why Timing Is Everything | AW360<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/advertisingweek.com\/aw360\/news\/reactive-marketing-why-timing-is-everything\/878\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Reactive Marketing: Why Timing Is Everything\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Reactive marketing is the effort by brands to quickly produce content that responds to a current event, talking point or faux pas in a clever or thought-provoking way. 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