Good morning Big Brother…
You’ve all seen it, that iconic eye watching over all of your movements. From out-of-home screens on your commute to TikTok ads through your daily office scroll.
Now Big Brother has returned to our screen after a five-year hiatus, we wanted to explore the “price of hype”.
What do you mean by that we hear you ask…
Well, how much hype is too much hype? With Big Brother, we first had the confirmation of its return over a year ago. We then had the channel confirmed, then the original narration was to return, then the logo and colours, then the hosts, and then finally the line-up.
When you look at Love Island these days… they release the line-up of beautiful people 48 hours before the launch on TikTok… but which method works better? And is the cost worth it?
Creating a buzz…
Launching a new product, a return of a TV show, event, or whatever it may be, it’s an exciting time! But it’s not as simple as unveiling it to the world and expecting immediate success (unless you're Beyoncé perhaps...)
In today’s competitive landscape, building anticipation and momentum ahead of your launch is crucial, even Big Brother knows that – it gives a sense of anticipation amongst your target audience.
Teasers, sneak peeks, use of iconic symbols in places where audiences don’t expect it can pique the interest of your audience and get them on board before you’ve even gone live.
This initial investment into your marketing push is the key time to develop those emotional connections with your audience. This is no small feat, even for the big players.
Building your fanbase
When you invest in momentum, you’re not just hitting an audience for one singular time; you’re building a loyal fanbase each step of the way. Engaging with an audience early on and continuing to provide them with valuable content creates brand loyalty, and these early adopters can become your brand advocates.
They’ll spread the word for you and increase your reach for free! Now that has to be worth some investment, right?
A well-planned campaign that aims to build momentum will also attract potential sponsors or collaborators who see the value in what you have to offer. This can provide additional resources, reach, and expertise that can enhance your campaign’s success.
Last year, we supported our client Hiab on their first influencer marketing campaign to build awareness ahead of the World Crane Championships. With a couple of months to go, we ran social media campaigns, published interviews with previous winners and gave the whole project a new identity. But the thing that really boosted the engagement was the investment into an influencer.
Partnering with a well-known industry influencer gave Hiab the chance to reach an audience of over 700k and build this “momentum” or “hype” with the right audience. UK sign-ups were doubled when compared to previous years with optimistic crane operators even putting themselves forward for the next rounds in 2024.
Creating this hype isn’t just specific to a single event either, even your quarterly campaigns need this push to drive sales and leads and keep your brand front of mind. We work with multiple clients to utilise social media, out-of-home advertising and even radio and TV to maintain momentum throughout campaigns.
Switching up creatives, targeting specific events and effectively using the budget all help with the promotion.
Can you really put a price on hype?
Yes, you can, and it all comes down to your budget and desired outcomes. If you have a small to medium-sized budget, there is still a place for influencer marketing and momentum campaigns.
And when it comes to big budgets like Big Brother, you really can push the boat out on the hype.
If you have the money, go big and turn your audience into fans. Whether that be for your service, selling a product or even a television show looking for views – it all works.
Anyway, how do you get out of this diary room? Hello? Big Brother?
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