When brands embrace the spirit of Oktoberfest

And another one bites the dust… It was that time of year again, or as Germans call it: the fifth season – Oktoberfest. This month, Creative Culture has put together a selection of campaigns that decided to capitalise on the biggest beer festival in the world.

“O’Zopft is”

For the third year running, Pantene opened a “Braiding Room” at Oktoberfest, where people could get their hair plaited in the spirit of Oktoberfest tradition. Even better, the company hosted a competition for the best photo of their service on Instagram. To generate further buzz around it, German actress and host Palina Rojinski acted as their key opinion leader (KOL) on that occasion. This campaign allowed Pantene to engage their target groups through different channels, both online and offline. The campaign was promoted with using a wordplay on “O’Zapft is”, the famous expression used to cheer the first stein of beer served at Oktoberfest. Pantene slightly altered this expression so that it evoked the German word “O’Zopft”, or “braid”. What a great way to make sure stylish Oktoberfest lovers don’t have a hair out of place.

Milky and Schoki spend a romantic day at Oktoberfest

In this advert, the well-known figures Milky and Schoki from Ferrero’s Kinder chocolate spend a romantic day at Oktoberfest. Accompanied by music from Andreas Gabalier, a singer famous for his performances at Oktoberfest, the video creates an authentic and magnificent atmosphere. As with each commercial featuring these two figures, their romance symbolises the perfect balance of milk and chocolate to promote Kinder products. In addition to the video, the pair hosted a prize draw which was played on a special Oktoberfest landing page. The TV campaign was also very successful on social media, drawing in over 1.1 million views on YouTube. You can see the video here.

#trachtencrew

Lufthansa celebrated the fifth season by dressing their crew in traditional German clothes, like the Dirndl and Lederhosen from a Trachtenshop (traditional German clothing store) in Munich in 2016. The Bavarian Instagram model and blogger Carolin Vornhof aka Pink Fox accompanied the campaign posting pictures in Dirndls at the airport and with Lufthansa in every photo, obviously. The posts were liked 7,500 times. Her outfit and the other crew members’ outfits were shared with the hashtag #trachtencrew.

Oktoberfest trainers

Another German brand, Adidas, decided to take advantage of the world-famous festival. Their October 2017 strategy was focused on product development. Not only do these specialised Oktoberfest themed trainers match one’s Dirndl, or have the word “Prost” embossed in gold on the side, but they have also been specifically designed to repel beer or other unpleasant liquids. Perhaps a great item to reminisce of a memorable experience.

By embracing the spirit of Oktoberfest, German and international brands alike have shown that centring their campaigns around this well-loved local tradition is a fruitful way of engaging with their target audience.