Let’s face it, this will be the strangest Halloween in history. Compared to the scares we’ve already experienced in 2020, goblins, ghouls and gremlins will barely make us flinch.
This year has certainly brought us more tricks than treats, but businesses shouldn’t hesitate to take advantage of this holiday since the UK spent over £474 million on Halloween in 2019.
Want your own piece of that pumpkin pie? We have compiled some of our favourite marketing campaigns of 2020 (so far) with some ghastly Halloween marketing ideas you can utilise for your own business.
Inspired by Rubies #raiseyourspirits campaign
The spooky season is upon us! Pandemic aside, this is the perfect time to experiment with creative ideas in fresh and sometimes frightening ways.
When it comes to holidays like Halloween and Christmas a great way to connect with your customers is by embracing seasonality through your content. This could mean something simple like a Halloween hashtag or a pumpkin emoji in your social media output, or posting scary recipe ideas or make-up tutorials if your business sells a service.
Take inspiration from costume specialist, Rubies, who has teamed up with retailer Bristol Novelty to “raise spirits” this Halloween. On their dedicated website, they post various ideas for how customers can celebrate safely, from spooky hand sanitiser to pumpkin trails and scavenger hunts.
Inspired by Disney’s Halloween face masks
Many of your followers will be feeling a little wistful for Halloween's past (and in-person events), so use this opportunity to connect over that shared emotion.
Halloween is a great holiday for looking back to your childhood, so why not play around with user generated and interactive content on social media. Ask customers to share their favourite halloween memories, quiz them on spooky trivia or poll your followers on the best scary movie of all time.
Take inspiration from Disney who recently released a collection of Halloween-themed face masks featuring icons like Minnie and Mickey Mouse. These will not only resonate with children and adults as they trick or treat safely but will also remind them of some classic characters from their childhood.
Inspired by Super League Gaming's Minehut Halloween Spooktacular
While your neighbours will certainly wear masks this Halloween, chances are it will be less Freddie Kruger and more Nurse Ratched. But fear not! If your customers are staying in you can still join them by hosting an online event.
Events are a great way to connect with your customers and audiences. So rather than cancelling that Halloween party or product launch event, consider making it virtual. Bring colleagues and business professionals together on Zoom and celebrate the holiday in a new, innovative way.
Take inspiration from e-sports experience platform, Super League Gaming who recently launched their virtual experience, ‘Minehut Halloween Spooktacular’. It features a custom designed escape room, a haunted house and community virtual events.
Local businesses like yours have also announced virtual celebrations. Whitby Pavilion, for example, has taken their annual Tomorrow Ghosts Halloween festival virtual, after they were forced to postpone the in-person event due to the pandemic.
The pandemic might have changed the way Halloween is celebrated. But brands have an opportunity to take inspiration from this year’s challenging environment.
Consider new and frightening ways your own business can excite the ghouls, goblins, teen witches and all the other revelevers in search of a safe but creative Halloween.
Not sure where to start? Contact our team of marketing experts for help and advice.
