Three more glorious examples of B2B creativity

It’s that time once more, when I’ll be diving into the grimly sterile wasteland of B2B marketing. A land where buzzwords breed like rabbits on a caffeine binge, and where untried and untested ideas are often as welcome as a fart in a spacesuit.

But among this wasteland, there occasionally emerge some shimmering beacons of creative brilliance. Yes, dear reader, I will once again be prying open the dusty annals of marketing history to unearth three shining examples for your reading pleasure.

So, let’s strap in and enjoy three (more) of my favourite creative campaigns from the wonderful world of B2B marketing and comms:

1. Shutterstock launches ‘Fyrestock’ parody

In 2019, Shutterstock pulled off a viral coup with its Fyrestock video campaign. For the uninitiated, Fyre Festival was supposed to be the pinnacle of Instagrammable experiences — a festival so glitzy you’d need sunglasses just to watch the promo video. The reality? A complete shambles where attendees shelled out thousands to crash in what looked like a makeshift refugee camp.

Shutterstock, ever the opportunist, rode this wave of infamy by spoofing Fyre Festival’s now-notorious promo film. The kicker? They cobbled the entire parody together using stock footage from their own library, shelling out a mere $2,000 in the process. With Fyre Festival rapidly becoming a meme juggernaut, Shutterstock’s parody struck a chord, amassing over two million views in its debut week.

A great example of budget newsjacking, the campaign clinched Best Limited Budget Campaign at The Drum’s B2B Awards. Building on this success, Shutterstock expanded the campaign, lampooning other viral sensations like the Game of Thrones trailer, cheekily rebranded as ‘Surplus of Seats’. It’s a testament to how a sharp eye for trends and a shoestring budget can still pack a hefty punch — even in B2B.

2. Splunk goes gaming

Splunk’s ‘Journey to Observability’, is an interactive online game where you pretend to run a t-shirt company, which promptly descends into chaos with a shipping error.

Your job? Sift through the mess of departments to fix the problem and keep your customer satisfaction from plummeting. Enter Splunk’s observability tools, which suddenly make the whole ordeal manageable.

Now, this isn’t just a bit of fun to distract you from the relentless churn of LinkedIn’s identical B2B content. It’s a cunning bit of marketing wizardry. The game’s stickiness grabs your attention, making you stop scrolling and actually click through. More impressively, it makes you stay. You end up learning what Splunk’s platform does in a far more engaging way than any mind-numbing case study.

This isn’t just about keeping you entertained, though. Journey to Observability is a masterclass in B2B creativity. Amidst the usual bland offerings, this game stands out, making you understand and appreciate Splunk’s tools without the hard sell. It’s smart, it’s sticky, and it’s turning engagement into leads. By cleverly embedding calls to action and lead forms, Splunk ensures it’s not just a game but a lead-generating machine — all while reinforcing its brand as the hero that’s got your back in the digital chaos.

You can play the game here.

3. IBM explains quantum computing like I’m five

In this great little campaign, IBM collaborated with Wired magazine to create engaging video content that was tailor-made for social media. The premise? IBM’s quantum research guru, Dr. Talia Gershon, is tasked with the Herculean job of explaining quantum computing to a child, a teenager, an undergrad, and a seasoned professional.

The genius of this campaign lies in its subtlety. IBM isn’t hawking anything directly. Instead, they’re flexing their intellectual muscle, positioning themselves as the undisputed wizards of quantum computing. It’s less about pushing products and more about cementing IBM’s status as the brainiac in the room.

The campaign’s format is a social media darling, dovetailing seamlessly with Wired’s signature interview style. The video is shareable, memorable, and caters to multiple audiences — everything you’d want from a top-tier content campaign. In essence, IBM shows us that, sometimes, the best way to sell is not to sell at all.