Most of the time, they are filmed with a smartphone. No special lights, makeup or set design. Everything has to look as spontaneous, amateurish and fresh as possible. It was as if the employees themselves, supposedly for fun, decided to record their own commercial for the employer during their break to smoke a cigarette and eat a sandwich.
Castorama, Mercado Top, Elements Hotel SPA. As is often the case with TikTok trends, it’s hard to say who came first. Even so, every brand that decides to go for this “embarrassing marketing” tries to stand out.
@topmarket_lubelskie
♬ original sound – TopMarket Lubelskie
– Reply to Tik Tik It’s incredibly positive considering the reach and number of comments. – says Barbara Przybycień, co-author of the recently popular creation of the hotel Elements, which has more than 1.8 million views on TikTok, to the Wirtualnemedia.pl portal. – It is clear that customers are tired of the classic marketing approach and simplicity hits the mark. The inspiration for the creation is, of course, the American TikTok trend of advertising for men in a simple, humorous and even “pathological” style. – the marketing professional tells us.
@elements_hotel_spa A brief guide to the hotel 👀 @tomasz_adamek_ #fyp #dlaciebie #dc #viral ♬ A Summer Place – Hollywood Strings Orchestra
Brands want to show distance and ease
Paula Sołtysiak, director of strategy and communications at Cut The Mustard, also points to foreign prototypes in Polish “embarrassing marketing”. – This form of “relaxing” communication on TikTok has long been known around the world. It was used, for example, by Ryan Air, which “animated” its plane in a bold and sometimes scathing way, responding to negative or offensive comments from recipients. Polish brands are slowly opening up to this convention, the expert says.
Marketing experts in the comments on our site believe it was no coincidence that a wave of “recruitment” ads appeared on TikTok – the social media channel that most focuses on authenticity.
– Considering that people’s sensitivity to what is and what is not advertising is constantly growing and the fact that TikTok means authenticity, so it’s no wonder that brands are looking to take advantage of the enormous potential of this channel and adapt the conventions that are trending there to their activities. – says Paula Sołtysiak.
To look: Facebook in Poland 10 million users before Instagram. TikTok has been attracting you for a long time
– Brands that decide to produce online “marketing” ads, such as those popular on TikTok, hope to gain authenticity and proximity with their audience. This type of content, often amateurish and imperfect, can seem more natural and credible to viewers, which ends up creating sympathy for the brand. Recipients, especially the younger generation, often appreciate brands that are not afraid to show a “human face” and that do not take themselves too seriously. – adds Dagmara Rżyska, Head of Media Analysis/Planning at Euvic Digital (Euvic Performance).
Race for the recipient’s attention. At any cost
Brands that use the advertising convention described here basically have little to lose and even a few seconds of consumer attention to gain. And that’s a lot.
– Currently, we deal more with calculated simulations than with real constraints. Thus, a brand that styles its communication as a fighter does not risk much and can gain a lot, because in a feed full of extremely competitive content (created by friends, friends of friends, influencers, artists, etc.), these few seconds of consumer attention are practically all we get – comments Grzegorz Luft, Head of Creative at Cape Morris, to Wirtualnemedia.pl.
Of course, marketers can be happy with the short-term enthusiasm and applause in the comments on their posts. In a long-term strategy, the consumer’s “krinje” feeling should be handled with care.
>>> Praca.Wirtualnemedia.pl – thousands of media and marketing ads
– While the emotion of embarrassment or awkwardness can attract attention and generate engagement, in the long run, these clothes can prove to be risky. There is a risk that the brand will be identified with something unprofessional or even ridiculous, which in turn can negatively affect its image in the long term. For some audiences, “crowd” content may be entertaining, but for others it can be off-putting. The key here is to balance authenticity and professionalism and to accurately understand your target group – says Dagmara Rżyska from Euvic Digital (Euvic Performance).
Wojciech Kardyś, an independent internet marketing expert, is definitely critical of “crucial” advertising. In an interview with our website, he emphasizes that brands that have opinion-forming and exclusivity in their DNA would not allow themselves to play this game in marketing communications.
– As for me, as a marketing professional, I would never recommend such activities on social media. I would not want any of my clients (or my brand) to be associated with embarrassment, krindge and “beka”. We do not create strategies, take care of our image and “puff” on our social networks to squander everything in exchange for free (beneficial) reach. This goes against my values that guide my work, the expert firmly states.
Kardyś further warns: – Free likes and a huge reach may be attractive, but this is (again, in my opinion) a short-term action that may boost Excel tables, but Getting rid of the “embarrassment stain” can be much more difficult.
