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Fortune Cookies For The Fortune 500? Waymo Thinks So — But Should You?
- Waymo, Alphabet's Google-backed autonomous vehicle company, has utilised fortune cookies in a recent marketing campaign, joining other tech and consumer brands in a context-shock marketing craze. While consumer brands can thrive due to the current needs and longing for fulfilment stemming from our basic instincts - according to neuroscience-backed novelty bias - startups and companies such as Waymo have a bigger responsibility and longer-term business model. Choosing a transitory experience rather than a slow-release interaction based on trust may seem a convenient and attractive marketing stunt, but does it prove the company's credibility and validity over time?
- The fact that tech has put so much thought and money into unconventional advertising and sales methods suggests something deeper: the public's perception of tech as an innovation-driven and ethical industry is dwindling and tech companies are scrambling to prove otherwise. It's clear that trust isn't built over night but through continuous and dependable actions. The tech industry should thus shake off the behavioural gimmicks and return to honest practices that honour the commitment we have made towards tech companies. After all, true transparency will be the most daring and remarkable aspect of technology today.
- Robinhood, a stock-trading start-up that enjoyed rapid growth during the COVID-19 pandemic, took to plastering ATMs with “commission-free trading” stickers: unlike Waymo's fortune cookies, these stickers indicated a thoughtful placement that made sense for the viewer. Robinhood infiltrated the public's mindset by placing the ad in a context where people are often concerned with their financial health and phased the ad as a helpful and topical business strategy. The advertisement was, therefore, less gimmicky and more of a service, putting it a step closer to a slow-release strategy based on trust.
- Antimental, a data analytics company, sent pizzas to previous clients who had gone radio-silent, tapping into the soft spots of humans who were wired to reciprocate kindness. This strategy successfully brought more clients to the fold. Retargeting using personal touches such as pizza delivery helped the company reinforce a connection with former clients rather than nag them with impersonal emails. Not only was the advertisement less invasive, it added an invitation to a shared moment. This experiment was an exception among the examples cited in this article as it refrained from first and foremost looking like a gimmick.
- Spotify's Wrapped is a yearly feature that highlights users' history of musical tastes utilised in creative and public ways. The marketing campaign is more of a friendly reminder that Spotify is a data utility rather than a tool for entertainment purposes alone. The public display of information is a tool for users to check-in and feel a sense of social inclusion while also feeding Spotify data that it can profit from. The Slow-build narrative, social proof and the templating aspect of pop culture notifications cement the advertisement's continual reoccurrence with a set-up reward structure, which progressively unlocks engagement levels and makes the advertisement become a tradition or ritual.
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