Getting 'spooktacular': Brands take a witty spin on Halloween

The annual Halloween craze has once again seen many consumers in the region dress up in quirky costumes and give themselves a good scare at haunted houses. While Halloween might not be as popular as other traiditional festive seasons in the region such as Deepavali, Hari Raya Puasa or Chinese New Year, there is no doubt it is picking up speed. And of course, there are brands who wanted to get in on the action and put a cheeky spin to the traditionally spooky festival.

Durex

Staying true to its witty brand personality online, Durex saw Halloween as a great opportunity to remind consumers to stay away from unprotected sex. In a Facebook post with an image of a zombie going trick or treating with a pack of condoms, Durex said "What's more spooky than Halloween? Unprotected sex. It's so spooky that even a zombie is asking you to use Durex."

Gery

Malaysian biscuit brand Gery drew inspiration from?Sadako Yamamura, the famous ghost from the Japanese movie?The Ring, and used her as the main element for its short Halloween video as she was an iconic figure in the horror genre.

Kingdom Digital's digital art director Aaron Lee told?Marketing that while there is an expected element of scare in the video, it wanted to inject humour to reflect the brand's witty personality. As such, it also featured the famous landlady from?Kung Fu Hustle. In the video, she is portrayed as a lazy aunty who does not want to get up from the couch to satisfy her hunger. As such, Sadako came out from the TV to feed the landlady Gery crackers.

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Although Halloween is not widely celebrated in Malaysia, Lee said it is very well received among its target audience who are students, working adults, and parents with children. "It fits in with our objective to?create content that resonates with Gery?s target audience. Besides, snacks and treats go hand in hand with Halloween. It was only natural for us to jump on this opportunity to help Gery stand out from their competition," he explained.

BMW

We have all heard creepy stories about individuals having supernatural experiences when driving at night.?If you are afraid of the dark and driving alone at night, fret not. BMW has got you covered. BMW's latest Halloween video shows the BMW 7 Series Sedan cruising down the path of a dark forested area - the typical place for something supernatural to occur. True enough, the car encounters a female dressed in white with long black hair. She opens the car door and tries to scare the driver, only to realise there was nobody in the car as it was an autonomous driving test vehicle. Spooked, the ghost flees.

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Tigerhall

Knowledge sharing platform Tigerhall created an Instagram post centred around Halloween to help professionals keep the "career spooks" away through the podcasts that they offer. The podcasts revolved around the three topics of bosses from hell, heated problems with demon colleagues, and grim career prospects. Earlier this year, Tigerhall bagged US$1.8 million seed funding and aimed to use it to target the higher education sector. The platform was rolled out on 21 February by Nellie Wartoft, former sales and marketing recruiter at Michael Page International Singapore.

Trick or Treat! We're ushering in Halloween Tigerhall-style. Swipe right for podcasts that can help you chase those career spooks away! #halloween2019 #careertips #happyhalloween #trickortreat #halloween #trickortreat #tigerhall #podcasts #getpromoted #colleagues #lovemyboss

A post shared by Tigerhall (@tigerhallasia) on Oct 30, 2019 at 11:54pm PDT

CARRO

Automotive marketplace CARRO urged consumers to seize the opportunity during Halloween and sell their cars fearlessly, without having to encounter hidden fees, guesswork or any hassle. In March this year, CARRO rolled out its subscription-based car service to provide?consumers the flexibility of selecting a plan and driving off with a car of their choice without the hassle of traditional car ownership. It also raised US$30 million in August to further its expansion across Southeast Asia.

Saw any interesting Halloween activations? Do share them with us at janicetan@marketing-interactive.com.

(Photo courtesy: 123RF)