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Top 5 Drone-Driven Campaigns
When you hear the term ‘drones’, you’ll probably either think of the small quadcopters Amazon want to use to deliver packages, or the large unmanned aircraft flying over warzones.
The smaller commercial versions of them are being used in a variety of different ways, from delivering food and taking selfies, to being used as an ambulance drone, widening the availability of Wi-Fi in remote places and even planting trees in rainforests. Furthermore, we're seeing increasing use of them for - the rather awkwardly termed - ‘Drone-vertising’.
Here are 5 ways that brands have used drones to get their campaigns ‘off the ground’.
In an effort to bring a little happiness to the lives of its migrant workers, the Singapore Kindness Movement joined forces with Coke to deliver photos of locals thanking them for their hard work and some ice-cold cans of coke. Since their construction sites were on the top of half-built skyscrapers, drones were used to get the care packages to more than 2,500 workers.
Coke’s renowned rivals also wanted in on some drone action, making creative use of them in their latest global brand campaign. The first of their ‘Genius’ videos, titled ‘Drone Football’, shows a local pitch in Barcelona transformed into a futuristic version of football. A drone referee delivers the ball and even hands out a yellow card, while projection mapping adds more excitement to the game.
Russia’s first taste of drone-vertising was particularly appetising. Wokker, an Asian restaurant chain sent several drones with posters promoting their offers past the windows of hungry office workers. It must have worked, since sales increased by 40%.
It’s not all about promoting or delivering food and drink. In much the same way that movies and TV shows picked up on augmented reality technology to promote themselves, drones were used by Paramount Pictures for a marketing stunt to promote Star Trek Into Darkness. To mark the end of the WWF’s annual Earth Hour, 30 drones with LEDs flew above London to form the Star Trek logo.
Brazilian clothing store, Camisaria Colombo, created a ‘Flying Collection’ for Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving when shops dramatically cut prices for one day only. They strapped mannequins wearing their clothes to drones and flew them next to the office windows of executives who were too busy to go shopping.
What’s Next?
The future of drone-use for marketing and event campaigns will depend a lot on what kind of legislation is created to limit their use. A Philadelphia-based company offers to fly banners around the city but regulations could change this.
One possible new use could be Spaxels. A mash-up of space and pixels, they’re swarms of drones with LED lights that actually “draw” three-dimensional figures in mid-air. Allowing them to spell out words or make shapes that look solid, rather than just a flat outline.
If Audi are to be believed, according to their TV ad for the A6, the future will consist of drones that have more in common with Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘The Birds’. So keep watching the skies!
By Ceri Gravelle, Managing Director at eventeem
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