What are marketers doing on St. Patrick's Day?
“I started drinking at 8 o’clock this morning.” “Oh, I will be out of town this week, so I’m going to miss St. Patrick’s Day, which means I will miss a chance to get drunk.” Is St. Patrick’s Day really all about drinking? Maybe that’s what most people do. However, besides drinking, marketers are having a lot more fun with it.
St. Patrick’s Day Marketing
Since luck is the main theme of this particular holiday, a lot of brands try to engage themselves with this holiday by showing luck in several different ways. On social media, most brands post St. Patrick’s Day-related pictures with their brand products and things representing luck. There’s no better way to give luck by offering special deals on St. Patrick’s Day. For example, Sonic Drive-In offers half-price shakes today – they even made a TV commercial out of it. Amazon has a lot of deals with St. Patrick’s Day-related items.
St. Patrick’s Day TV Advertising
Some brands put a lot more effort in this holiday. For example, Guinness, the Irish beer brand, has a tradition of making a St. Patrick’s Day commercial. This year, their campaign is Respect The Beer. It shows the audience how beer is delicately brewed from its Irish origin, the St. James Gate. According to ispot.tv.com, on St. Patrick’s Day, it’s been aired on Fox Sports 1.
In the past few years, other brands also make exclusive St. Patrick’s Day commercials and air them around the holiday, such as Party City and Beats by Dr. Dre.
St. Patrick’s Day Social Media
No surprise that Snapchat has a filter for St. Patrick’s Day. In fact, they’ve got two today, one of which is sponsored by Jameson Irish Whisky – after all, it isn’t just about the green beer (I know, shocking). Snapchat also has face filters for this special occasion. After detecting your face, a rainbow will show up on your head and you will be turned into a leprechaun with green eyes, spitting gold (whoa!).
Facebook’s celebration for St. Patrick’s Day is much less dramatic. As they always do, a nice picture about today’s theme shows up at the very top of your news feed and you can share it on your timeline. Come on, Facebook. Where’s your face filter app you recently announced? This would be a perfect day for launching it. That’s all for now! Oh, and sláinte! (Which means “health” or the closest thing to “cheers!” in Irish Gaelic with regards to a toast)
Have fun and be safe*