Brands fall face-first for extreme marketing

So unless you have been living under a rock for the past week, then you would have heard, read or seen something about the Red Bull Stratos jump. This publicity stunt was the one to end all publicity stunts – Red Bull somehow convinced dare devil Felix to free fall a jaw dropping – 96,000 feet or, in other words, from the edge of space. Now as someone who is terrified of heights, to me, this is crazy, insane, bonkers – take your pick.

It did however get me thinking about publicity and the lengths that companies will go to capture their audience’s attention. As time has gone on, marketing stunts have grown more outrageous, risky and in this case, out of this world.

There’s no denying that successful publicity stunts have news value and create buzz around a brand. Google has confirmed that the stuntman’s supersonic dive over New Mexico was watched by eight million concurrent viewers on YouTube, the largest in the website’s history. On Facebook, the first picture of Felix was shared nearly 30,000 times in 30 minutes and Twitter said the event generated more than 3.1 million tweets.

In terms of creating brand buzz, it’s safe to say Red Bull has done that. Hats off to Felix. He’s a true daredevil and now a world-record holder. However I think another risk taker forgotten in this stunt is Red Bull. Yes their activity has generated has lots of media attention and a social media sensation, but the fine line between success and failure here was very fine.

If Felix had gone into a rapid spin, he could have passed out, damaged his eyes, brain and cardiovascular system. If his space suit had ripped his skin would have boiled. On replay, this would be terrible to watch, but imagine the whole world viewing it live. The lasting damage to the Red Bull brand would be both lasting and catastrophic. I doubt anyone would pick up a can or feel inspired to take on the world for quite some time.

As great as publicity stunts can be, they have a dangerous flip-side that can create long term, irreparable damage to a brand, person or product. World records in stunts just don’t cut it anymore. Instead marketers are turning to this form of ‘extreme marketing’ to create stunts so outlandish that they are virtually impossible to beat.

Nevertheless sitting here, with both feet firmly positioned on the ground, I can’t help wondering how long it will be till one of these stunts beats a brand.  

By Pema Seely