Game-Changing Marketing Campaigns of 2023
From the Barbie movie that took the world by a pink storm to Dove
#TurnYourBack and fashion brands that applied surrealist marketing in their campaigns, 2023 has imprinted the marketing world with new ideas presented with the rise and expansion of AI marketing tools.
2023 was the year where everything turned pink with Barbie becoming one of the most hyped movies of all time with Warner Bros. spending almost 150$ million on marketing for their movie and creating a social buzz around it before its release in July. This marketing was built on a single element: The pink color, with no logo or product! Hundreds of brands and artists joined the pink storm with collaborations taking place such as Burger King launching the Barbie Burger, Airbnb's Malibu Dreamhouse, Béis chic Barbie luggage, Crocs Barbie collection, and many more! The marketing also included collaborating with artists on producing movie songs from Dua Lipa, Nicki Minaj, Billie Eilish, and many more. Furthermore, what drew attention was the movie billboard that promoted it with just a color and the movie release date, and the AI tool that allows anyone to upload their photo and generate a movie poster with a customizable tagline.
Another campaign that created a social buzz was the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty which brought together diversified regular women to "Turn their back" on a new Bold Glamour filter as a mission to create a no-digital distortion movement that helps keep the beauty standards realistic. After 7 days of launching the campaign, the hashtag
#TurnYourBack was viewed more than 365M times.
Some other brands caught our attention with outlandish imagery and technologically advanced videos, from handbags parading the streets of Paris to toothpaste being squeezed up from the sky, the surrealist marketing swept the sector fusing contemporary advertising with abstract components. Fashion powerhouses such as Jacquemus patched enormous replicas of its recognizable bags through the streets of Paris like buses. Even though it seemed so realistic to users, it was computer-generated imagery. Another brand that pulled out a visual stunt was the French clothing brand Isabel Marant which did an "attack of the giant toothpaste" in front of their stores to reflect their brand principles, which is "fluidity meets radicality". This marketing ploy generated many TikTok views globally. Other brands such as Adidas, Fae Beauty, Onitsuka Tiger, and many more applied surrealist marketing this year.
Last, but not least we can't deny the "Shot On iPhone" campaign that reflects the smartphone feature clearly which is the professional camera. This campaign was about selling dreams to those who have an iPhone and want to treasure moments, it's also about encouraging people to go out and try to film and launch their own video while also reducing the filmmaking equipment cost and sparking creativity among its users.
Many marketing campaigns have marked this year while evoking emotions and stimulating all senses, generating leads to brands and creating an imprint in the digital realm.
Now tell me, which campaign was your favorite for 2023?
