Posted 2013
Updated on February 12, 2020.
Who needs the Super Bowl when you have April Fools? This year, tons of brands unveiled a slew of April Fools jokes via premium video marketing content.
We at Green Buzz Agency viewed video after video to present to you the best five – from a marketer’s perspective.
SwiftKey Tilt – A Whole Body Typing Experience
You probably hadn’t heard of SwiftKey before April Fools 2013, making the video below a great example of effective April Fools video marketing. The company not only entertains, it inserts the value proposition of SwiftKey’s actual, non-April Fools product into the video in a way that makes sense. No doubt many viewers of the below video laughed, watched the whole thing, then went and checked out SwiftKey’s website to learn more about the company.
The Girlfriend Jean – A Revolution in Denim from Bonobos
Funny, backing up Bonobos’ company culture and product line, while sneaking in that it offers telephone customer service, this video is a well-executed example of April Fools video marketing. There’s nothing about the video that’s going to make you call it the best of all the April Fools videos, but it is likely to make you think Bonobos is a pretty cool company. And that’s all they wanted. This company offer well-crafted, great-fitting clothing and a top-notch shopping experience that’s simple and painless. Check it out for yourself by clicking here.
Google’s Levity Algorithm
Especially if you’re a Walking Dead fan, you’re going to like this video, and not because there are any zombies in it. This video, one of many from Google on April Fools 2013, will resonate with anyone who works in an office. A brand awareness piece, the video’s goal is to remind us that in this world, Google’s algorithmic abilities rule all.
Introducing Google Nose
Sometimes the best April Fools jokes are the ones you can’t be sure aren’t real. You know there isn’t a way to “search for smells,” but it’s Google, so maybe you can? What else makes this video a great piece of video marketing is that it backs up Google’s culture and dominance in both tech hardware and search. Last but certainly not least, the tying of the product’s name with the tagline “Google knows” is simply a thing of beauty.
YouTube’s Ready to Select a Winner
It’s hard to beat Google Nose, but YouTube does with its April Fools 2013 video if only because it has two call-to-actions at the conclusion of their video. Sure, the call-to-actions are a great example of social media marketing, but the pure genius is that YouTube knows a lot of people in marketing and advertising are going to ask, “How can I do that at the end of my brand’s videos?” In other words, by the time you watch all of the video below, you’ve just watched a 3:32 ad for video overlays on YouTube, made possible by Google AdWords.