Our Top Ten Marketing Campaigns of 2023
The new year is here, and the spirit of celebration is in the air! The same can be said here at Movable Ink, where we’re spotlighting our favorite campaigns of 2023.
One of the best ways to prepare for 2024 is gathering inspiration from the most creative and innovative campaigns that blew the minds of customers and marketers alike. Whether it’s campaigns that expertly weighed in on pop culture conversations or personalization prowess that was above the rest, the brains behind these top ten marketing masterpieces deserve some praise.
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Walmart's Mean Girls Nostalgia
Black Friday means a bombardment of branded messaging, but Walmart’s Black Friday Deals | Jingle Bell Rockin’ campaign was so fetch that everyone noticed it anyways. Key Mean Girls cast members reprised their roles, repeating everyone's favorite lines with an added twist. (“Get in sweetie, we’re going deal shopping!”)
Despite being released almost twenty years ago, Mean Girls is a movie that viewers return to again and again, making Walmart’s nostalgia play all the more effective. Product call-outs were expertly woven with movie references for a truly “grool” commercial that was as iconic as the original film. This fabulous campaign will be tough to beat next Black Friday season!
Oatly's Climate Change Billboards
Oatly put their money where their mouth is with their attention-grabbing billboard ads to support their ESG initiatives (Environmental, Social, and Governance). With tell-it-like-it-is language, the plant-based beverage brand showcased how they’re reducing their climate footprint while bluntly challenging dairy industries to do the same.
This campaign claims a top spot in our round-up, because not only do they transparently show their true commitment to the climate cause, they sum it up with short, snappy copy that gets straight to the point.
As an honorable mention, check out Oatly’s recent newsletter campaign. This tongue-in-cheek ad alludes to the annoyance of pop-ups, capturing every passerby’s attention (especially email marketers).
Maybelline Cosmetics’ Viral Mascara Launch
Maybe it’s CGI, maybe it’s Maybelline. In a truly out-of-the-box approach, the beauty brand took over the internet with videos of their Lash Sensational: Sky High mascara lengthening lashes all over the city, from trains, to buildings, to billboards.
Simply put, these digital ads were truly creative, innovative, and primed for social media. Customers may not remember most of the ads they see, but rest assured they won’t forget huge lashes being brushed on a subway train the next time they’re restocking on mascara.
Barbie’s Customer-Centric Selfies
It’s no secret that the slew of marketing campaigns buoying the Barbie movie was incredible. But the Selfie Generator in particular stood out because of the way it encouraged customers to become movie ambassadors.
Leading up to the release of the film, no one’s social media feed was without a Barbie selfie and soon-to-be viewers transformed into marketers themselves. Movie-goers became the face of the new film, making this a truly customer-centric campaign by the Barbie team.
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Read NowAudible’s Mobile Year-In-Review
A year-in-review is a perennially successful campaign across the board, but Audible’s mobile message took the experience a step further. The audiobook brand sent a push notification to every customer and highlighted four key stats: titles played, total listening minutes, longest streak, and most played author.
While every brand jumps on the year-in-review bandwagon, Audible “pushed” campaign borders by delivering theirs via mobile notifications, earning them a spot on this year’s campaign rundown.
Lululemon’s Omni-Channel Approach to Wellbeing
Lululemon is known for their industry-leading marketing campaigns: from letting customers swap cheap dupes for real-deal leggings to offering in-person yoga classes, the activewear brand has always led the charge with innovative, omni-channel marketing.
2023 was no different for Lululemon with their recent “Find Your Wellbeing” campaign. Not only did they spotlight icons and celebrities across East Asia, they hosted a four-day event that facilitated guests’ quest for mindfulness and connection.
Lululemon hosted a wellbeing panel, studio sessions, and provided takeaway resources to facilitate wellness long after the event. True to their word, Lululemon focused on education for their customers through this experience, and ultimately strengthened their brand voice.
Want to start off on your own 2023 wellness journey? Read Lululemon’s official Wellbeing Report here!
Dunkin’s Seasonal Drinks
It’s a pumpkin-obsessed world, and we’re just living in it. No one knows that better than Dunkin’, and the brand has mastered the season with their personalized pumpkin-themed marketing campaigns.
Depending on the customers’ location and weather, Dunkin’ updated their seasonal offers and messaging to be as enticing as possible. Cold and rainy? You’re offered a warm latte. Blazing hot? You can chill out with an iced beverage.
The brand is known to do this every season, not just autumn—so keep your eyes peeled for personalized offers for the 2023 holidays. (Hello, cookie butter cold brew!)
Synchrony HOME’s Gameboard Play
While gamification is a tried-and-true engagement tactic for any marketing campaign, Synchrony HOME’s progressive poll brought true joy to any board game aficionado.
In the first email of the campaign, each cardholder received a gameboard that offered three different prompts: action, exploration, or inspiration. From there, Synchrony HOME sent a retargeted email based on each response. Inspiration seekers received blog posts, action-takers got offers from their API, and cardholder explorers found a store locator. The final email was like rolling doubles, because every cardholder got the modules they didn’t receive in the prior personalized email.
From the fun design of the game board to the on-brand graphics, this campaign was the most fun way to use a credit card without actually spending any money.
World Market’s Unicorn Incentivizer
World Market’s Golden Unicorn has customers racing up and down the aisles this holiday season as they hunt around for vouchers hidden within the store.
Every day, the board is updated with a new clue and new gift cards. Not only does this get customers excited to shop at World Market, it encourages them to explore areas of the store that they wouldn’t normally browse, expanding the variety of products catching their attention.
For customers that don’t manage to find a gift card, scanning the QR code still gives them the option to enter World Market’s sweepstakes and sign up for marketing communications. This fun, creative scavenger hunt perfectly blends in-person and digital shopping experiences, and hopefully this engagement-driver will be a holiday tradition for World Market.
IKEA’s Reality-Check Charity Partnership
Peak season is when brands drive major revenue, but it’s also the prime time for companies to use their platforms to encourage positive change.
IKEA took this opportunity seriously in this year’s Real Life Roomsets campaign, where the brand created displays that reflected the reality of emergency housing in the UK. In contrast to their beautifully crafted showrooms, this display acted as a wake-up call to shoppers and encouraged them to support IKEA’s partnership with the charity Shelter.
Together with our national charity partner @Shelter, today we have launched Real Life Roomsets, a new campaign revealing the realities of the housing emergency in the UK. To find out more and get involved, visit https://t.co/GWeXRWKd7E pic.twitter.com/xqWONZvepa
— IKEA UK (@IKEAUK) March 7, 2023
To find out more about Shelter and IKEA’s initiative and how you can get involved, you can click here.
2024 Marketing, Here We Come!
These ten brands truly took center stage with their marketing in 2023, and we can’t wait to see what unique campaigns they have in store for next year!
Want some more campaign inspo, compliments of Movable Ink? Check out the related resources below.