Mischief as a strategic marketing tool: lessons from Paddy Power

Consumers like things that are interesting and intriguing and brands that offer this can generate high levels of consumer engagement. Paddy Power capitalises on using the real-time strategy where the events are captured as they unfold. This approach helps them to capture the attention of the consumer uniquely; helping to increase brand visibility as well as make it relevant to the part of the consumers’ daily lives. As will be learnt from Paddy Power, this can be very strategic in enhancing value for the organisation.

According to a top executive at Paddy Power, the mischief takes advantage of fearless provocation by getting people to do weird and most unexpected things. One of these strategies has involved paying high profile persons to reveal their underwear which prominently displays the Paddy Power logo. An example can be drawn from the Euro 2012 soccer tournament when Nicklas Bendtner, a Danish striker, dropped his shorts while celebrating a goal. The underwear was, as planned, prominently featuring the Paddy Power logo. It was sensational and drove debate on the topic on social forums; giving the brand the publicity that was needed. The striker was slapped with a €100,000 fine and a one-match ban: an acceptable price under the arrangement.

Another mischief was captured in the 2014 Brit awards. In the event, gate-crashers into the event and displayed their underwear. These are sensational pranks that not only appear weird but are also likely to generate a lot of debate and attention. It is an unorthodox approach that has been found to pay out. Once each of these pranks is unveiled, a lot of debate and reaction is generated. It is not only mischievous but more likely get content going viral. This is the most important aspect of effectiveness in social media marketing and viral marketing.

Viral marketing is done when an organisation or brand banks on social media using generously sharing content over the internet. The significance of this is that when content is being shared by someone a user knows very well, it is more likely to attract their attention and generate more interest. Content goes viral only when social media users find it intriguing, interesting, or thought-provoking. Under these circumstances, nothing would be as intriguing as a star showing off their underwear in the most unlikely of places.

So, how do these pranks generate business success for Paddy Power? Research indicates that customer value is 2.5times higher among followers of a brand than among the non-followers. This means that when an organisation is able to inspire meaningful engagement with customers, it is more likely to achieve success. PP’s success has led to it having 550,000 on Twitter and 1.5million others on Facebook. It is what sets Paddy Power above competitors; further indicating that the strategy applied may be achieving the intended results.

The strategy by PP can also be said to be highly cost effective. Focusing on real time events that generate a lot of public attention means that the brand uses fewer resources to attract their attention. The company is therefore to ride on the wave of events already sponsored by other stakeholders. This is a form of a piggyback tactic on which the investment made by the event organisers is converted to be advantageous to the organisation. The strategy is therefore effective in terms of cost effectiveness and enhanced consumer engagement with the brand.