There has been an ongoing debate on the dependence of traditional media and social media when planning a campaign, and I thought of sharing an interesting campaign that I came across early last year, which merged the two beautifully.
The US-originating QSR brand, Wingstop, launched a campaign in March 2020 where it shifted its national out-of-home campaign budget to a merchandise campaign through which it wanted to convert its fans into walking billboards for out-of-home and social media promotions. Wingstop sent free hoodies to its fans and gave $10 to anyone who posted photographs wearing them on Instagram with the #ThisIsAnAdForWingstop hashtag. And, if a post when viral on Instagram the fan would get special gifts like tickets to events, etc.
A quick search on Instagram shows that the campaign did gain some traction (see: https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/thisisanadforwingstop/), but the pandemic induced lockdown may have limited the effectiveness. But, there have been instances where fans have worn the merchandise to events covered on national television and got a few seconds of screentime because of the quirky message, leading to more awareness for Wingstop.
Nevertheless, the #ThisIsAnAdForWingstop hashtag has lived on long after the campaign has gotten over and people still keep posting about Wingstop using the same.