We’ve all become a bit wise to April Fools’ Day pranks. What was once a day about IRL practical jokes, today, April Fools’ is more of a social moment.
This year 1.6m posts used #AprilFools on Tiktok with 7.8bn views – demonstrating the rising conversation and evolution of the popular calendar moment.
This year more than ever, FMCG brands came out in force to flex their funny bone, from the ingenious and thought provoking to laugh-out-loud funny.
But with so much noise around April Fools, which brands stood out for us and captured media interest?
Here’s our celebration of the true fools of April Fools and the trending tactics that guided their approach:
Grossvertising
Gross and unusual food combinations are both memorable and engaging; who could forget the infamous beans on Weetabix viral content?
Speaking of beans, Innocent encapsulates grossvertising with its collaboration with the Bold Bean Co. to ‘launch’ a blueberry, beans and banana smoothie, sparking conversation on who would try this bold new drink.
Fun word play
There are many ways that brands have used clever word play to shape April Fools’ strategies. One leading the pack is Who Gives a Crap, who created an engaging social campaign geared around sending its toilet paper to Uranus. It featured a fun animated video asset with an engaging CTA to drive social engagement.
Clever category crossovers
The most ingenious tactics we’ve seen this year are the clever crossovers bringing food scents and flavours into unexpected non-food formats. Our favourites include Leon’s tasty aioli flavoured tooth paste, and Dulux’s scratch and sniff chocolate scented paints – designed to stimulate the senses and spark imaginations.
Clever links to actual NPD
Terry’s Chocolate Orange got tongues wagging and mouths watering with its Chocolate Orange juice, made from freshly squeezed chocolate oranges. And while it doesn’t actually exist, consumers don’t have to wait long until the launch of the real, Terry’s Chocolate Orange milkshake. Yum!
Counterintuitive posts to elevate key messages
Sometimes an April Fools post doesn’t have to be bold to make a key point. This was the case for Mr Organic with its canned spaghetti hoops. What was the message? While for many spaghetti hoops is considered a British staple, for Mr Organics Italian team members and Italian suppliers, it’s horrifying. Mr Organics made it into the news round ups for its clever links to the brand’s Italian heritage and foodie expertise.