Summertime's warm temperatures inevitably draw people outdoors—a fact that marketers are keenly aware of. Whether making use of captive audiences at festivals or creating spectacles of their own, brands took to the streets this summer to make the most of teeming crowds. From a network campaign that shuttled nearly nude couples around New York to a retailer that successfully got the public to tweet about a sale via interactive vending machines, here's a look at the most effective street promotions seen this summer.
To create buzz for its Dating Naked series, VH1 shuttled nearly nude couples around New York's Grand Central Terminal in branded pedicabs on July 16.
Photo: Scott Gries/Invision for VH1/AP Images
Beauty brand Yes To educated the public in New York, New Jersey, and San Francisco about its beauty products, as well as its "Yes To Movement," which encourages individuals to embrace positivity, through a Beauty Bike Tour that kicked off in July. Bicyclists hit parks, retailers, and other local hot spots, where they gave consumers skincare quizzes and made personalized product recommendations for Yes To goods based on visitors’ skin types.
Photo: Whitney Browne
As part of its "100 Days to Squeeze" campaign promoting lemonade cocktails and a packaged set featuring vodka, a Mason jar, and lemon juicer, Stoli vodka sent branded trucks called “limo-nades” across the country starting in June to give consumers the opportunity to sample drinks or win prizes.
Photo: Aaron Raysor
Old Navy worked with A2G to fuel buzz for its annual $1 Flip-Flop Sale by enticing consumers to tweet about the offer in exchange for a pair of free flip-flops dispensed from interactive vending machines stationed at 36 locations in Los Angeles and New York. With 9,000 shoes gifted, the company generated 12 million social media impressions during the campaign’s three-day run from June 24 to 26.
Photo: Courtesy of A2G
As part of its Do-Us-A-Flavor campaign to determine its new potato chip flavor, Lay's drummed up social media attention for the contest by giving consumers in Chicago the opportunity to receive a pedicab delivery of one of the four finalist flavors when they tweeted the company's handle.
Photo: Courtesy of Ketchum for Frito-Lay’s
With the help of West Coast Customs, Samsung transformed a truck into a roving DJ station that showed off its Giga Sound System. The branded vehicle hit the Orange County Fair as well as public events in Long Beach and San Clemente throughout July as part of the Samsung Giga Sound Summer Tour, which gave consumers the chance to karaoke or participate in dance competitions.
Photo: Courtesy of GIGA Sound Summer Tour
To celebrate the launch of DKNY's MYNY fragrance, the brand tapped Rita Ora and Chrissy Teigen to give fans heart-shaped pretzels—made by Cronut creator Dominique Ansel and a nod to the scent's similarly shaped bottle—from a branded cart stationed at Madison Square Park in New York on August 19.
Photo: Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for DKNY
Cracker Jack kicked off its Surprise Inside Project, a nationwide campaign to help individuals pull off small surprises for family or friends, by taking over Herald Square in New York on June 26 with a 15-foot Cracker Jack box, photo opportunities with Sailor Jack, and free samples of the snack.
Photo: Diane Bondareff/Invision for Cracker Jack/AP Images
As part of its rebranding of the Centric Network as the “First Network for Black Women,” Viacom tapped Events by Fabulous to create a custom-wrapped gifting truck to roam Martha’s Vineyard during the network’s sixth anniversary celebration on the island. The vehicle’s street team and DJ BHen hosted pop-up parties when the truck made one of its three daily stops at highly trafficked spots.
Photo: Anthony Esposito
The Art Institute of Chicago turned to experiential marketing agency All Terrain to create a guerrilla activation to attract attention to the museum's René Magritte exhibit. The company recreated the cloud eye from the artist's famed "The False Mirror" and took it to several summer art festivals, where attendees could snap shots with the piece.
Photo: Courtesy of All Terrain
