In 2022, creating a clever ad is only half the battle.
The real war is won when you find a way to rise above the thousands of other ads your customers see every single day. That path is paved with pure, unfettered creativity and lucky for you, we’ve got innovative and unique marketing ideas aplenty.
Get creative with a clever guerilla marketing campaign or use video to quintuple Facebook engagement in an instant. Take your pick of the bunch or use them all. Just remember to give us a nod in your Most Creative Marketer Award acceptance speech.
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Innovative social media marketing ideas
Social media marketing is an easy way to get the best bang for your marketing budget buck. But with more content floating around the interwebs than we know what to do with, you have to get creative to stop the scroll. Try one of these ideas on for your marketing strategy:
1. Create a referral program
Referral programs turn your customers into marketers. Encourage word-of-mouth marketing by adding incentives for talkative fans. Be it a discount, a free trial, or a free bonus gift with purchase — if the incentive is good enough, you’ll get people talking.
2. Connect with influencers
Influencer marketing is big business. But there’s no need to aim for the Kylie Jenners of the world. You’ll find thousands of micro-influencers with valuable followings (and without the million-dollar price tag.)
Connect to the influencers who have an established relationship with your target audience, then offer to send them your products or aim for a more formal marketing partnership. If you don’t have time to slog through the social media ranks, plenty of influencer agencies can help.
Whatever you do, choose influencers that match the values and vibe of your brand.
3. Hold a contest or giveaway
Free! Things! People love them. Generate engagement with some must-have prizes. Give away your own product or offer something your target audience will thirst after.
But remember, a giveaway only works if you ask for something in return. As a requirement for entry, ask people to follow your brand (if they haven’t already), mention your handle, or tag a friend. Then sit back and watch your audience grow.
4. Partner with another brand or account
There is strength in numbers. Band together with a brand or account that complements your own but isn’t your direct competition. Launch a collaboration project, join forces for a good cause, or just feature each other on your socials with a sponsored post. If you scratch their back, they’ll scratch yours.
5. Use video
Branch out from your standard static Instagram images and give video a try. Video is not only more engaging and better at getting your message across, but you get more time and space to be creative.
If the thought of creating video content feels intimidating, try one of Biteable’s brandable, ready-to-edit video templates and see for yourself how simple it can be.
6. Feature customer testimonials
At the end of the day, the opinion that matters most comes from people who already buy your product or use your service. Distill your customer feedback to find loyal advocates for your product, and give their voice a platform with a customer testimonial video or graphic. Bonus points if you can manifest first-person footage of the customers themselves.
7. Jump on trends and holidays
When the internet hands you lemons, make lemonade. Keep an eye on current memes and trends, and jump on the ones that work for your brand. Do the same for holidays and events. As a starting point, the Biteable Marketing Calendar offers timely content for every day of the year.
Facebook marketing ideas
Facebook is home to some of the most powerful advertising and targeting tools in the marketing game, not to mention its billions of users. Make the most of Facebook with one of these ideas.
8. Go live on Facebook
The liveness of Lives is sometimes daunting, but you can’t deny the stats: Facebook Live consistently receives more engagement than almost any other content on Facebook. Get creative with the format and build a better relationship with your followers at the same time. Tell your audience about a new product, give them a behind-the-scenes scoop, or just answer their questions. Humanize your brand with a real, friendly face.
9. Get an assist from Messenger chatbots
The 21st century might not have flying cars, but we do have Messenger chatbots. And these helpful little bots do more than just answer common questions; they are also a powerful tool for creative marketing.
Consider the Messenger bot your new marketing assistant. Turn your chatbot into a personal shopper with customized product suggestions, or use it to give your Facebook followers helpful information related to your service.
10. Share meaningful content with an infographic video
This one isn’t so much a creative idea as it is a chance to get creative. Facebook’s current algorithm loves meaningful content that users are inclined to interact with. Playful memes have their place, but make sure some of your posts have more meat on their bones.
Infographic videos are a great way to deliver on this while still keeping that fun, social media vibe.
Instagram marketing ideas
Establish your marketing dominance with these creative ideas ideal for Instagram.
11. Organize an influencer takeover
Influencers run Instagram. With their built-in loyal audiences, a well-placed influencer takeover is hard to beat. That person’s followers will jump over to your page to see what their favorite influencer is up to, and many will end up sticking around. If an influencer is a good match for your business, a takeover can nab you a whole lot of positive brand awareness.
12. Get interactive with Stories
Instagram Stories knows how to deliver on engagement — especially when polls and questions are involved. Get creative and interactive with a Story your followers can participate in.
Create a custom interactive Story with Biteable’s customizable Stories template. You’ll reap the benefits of far greater engagement.
13. Interact with your followers live
Just like Facebook live, Instagram Live is a powerful platform for answering questions and building relationships. Instagram sends your followers a notification when you’re live, so they’re more inclined to stop by.
The great thing about Lives is not only do they not have to be formal, they shouldn’t be. Keep things casual and fun, and don’t worry about a high-end production — just aim your phone and start talking.
A behind-the-scenes glimpse like this goes a long way toward building a relatable, approachable vibe for your brand.
YouTube marketing
Don’t underestimate the marketing powers of YouTube. After Google, YouTube is the second most popular website in the world. Reach the people where they are with these creative YouTube marketing ideas.
14. Launch a funny explainer video
Sometimes, even an ad goes viral…if it’s clever enough, like this laugh-out-loud example from Dollar Shave Club that has over 27-million views.
Create a funny or clever explainer video all about who your brand is and what you do. Launch it on YouTube, and perhaps the algorithm will help you get the viral party started.
15. Teach people something useful
YouTube is the place to learn how to change a tire or peel a banana the right way. In the land of tutorials, share your expertise. Viewers will appreciate the content, and you’ll stand out as an authority in your field. When these same viewers go shopping, your brand will already have their trust.
16. Create a channel trailer all about you
Your videos have done their job and piqued someone’s interest enough to click on your channel. When they get there, have a quick and snazzy channel trailer waiting as a welcome. It’ll sum up who you are, what you’re offering, and why they should stick around. Think of it as a hook that lets you introduce your brand and persuade new viewers to subscribe in one fell swoop.
Twitter marketing ideas
Just because you’re limited to 280 characters doesn’t mean your creativity needs to be limited as well. Try one of these Twitter Marketing ideas on for size.
17. Host an industry round table
Character limits and Twitter threads make industry round tables thrive on Twitter. The bite-sized bits of content and open discussion forum results in a round table that invites anyone to participate.
Make new industry connections and get your brand’s name out there alongside other forward thinkers and innovators.
Advertise your industry round table with an engaging Twitter video like this one:
18. Create a Twitter Moment
Make your brand the center of the story with your own Twitter Moment. Include testimonial tweets from your followers or link to articles about your product for an extra bit of added persuasive power.
If you’re hosting an event, consider creating a Twitter Moment to showcase what’s happening live and all in one place.
19. Buy a branded hashtag emoji
This idea isn’t for everyone, and it’s not cheap, but it is effective. If you’re launching something big and want to get people talking, a branded emoji that pops up at the end of your chosen hashtag is a surefire way to do it.
20. Try out Twitter Fleets
Twitter Fleets are the Instagram Stories of Twitter. Fleets are still a relatively new addition to the platform, so the competition for attention isn’t as steep. Be an early adopter and pave the way for creative ideas to fleet your tweets.
TikTok marketing ideas
TikTok is one of the fastest-growing social apps of the moment. According to the latest video marketing statistics, more than 1 billion TikTok videos are watched every day. Grab a piece of that cake with an idea — or four — made for TikTok.
21. Start a challenge
TikTok loves a good challenge. If you’ve got the budget, you can create an official challenge with TikTok Advertising. But anyone can start a TikTok challenge with a good idea and a can-do attitude. Create your TikTok, pick a hashtag, and put out a call to action for your followers to pick up the trend.
22. Jump aboard TikTok ads while it’s new
The ability to advertise on TikTok is a fairly new one, which means the platform isn’t yet flooded with ads. Fewer ads = less ad fatigue = less of a chance TikTok users tap “skip ad” with mere muscle memory.
Lead the way and prove you’re a brand on the ball with a TikTok ad campaign.
23. Turn your social media manager into a TikTok sensation
There’s no rule book for how to succeed on TikTok. If your content is worthy, there’s a good chance the TikTok algorithm will put it in front of the right people (read: people who will engage with it.) Throw your hat in the ring and turn your social media manager or nominated office Gen Z/Millennial into a TikTok sensation. Like Haily, Biteable’s social media wonderkid.
24. Share your best life hacks
The people of TikTok love nothing more than a good life hack. Does your product do something that makes life just a little easier? Do you have industry insider scoops people are dying to know? Share them in a TikTok.
Content marketing ideas for creative minds
Making incredible content is one thing; getting in front of the right eyes is another. Use these creative ideas to refresh your content marketing efforts.
25. Guest posts and guest blogging
Partner up with other experts or interesting perspectives and invite them to write a guest post for your blog. They’ll likely share it, and their followers might just become new fans of your content. Plus, if the guest blogger has their own website, you’ll share a good old-fashioned link swap and a dose of SEO juice.
On the flip side, reach out to other brands and blogs to see if they’re open to a guest blog spot for your brand, too.
26. Promote content with a listicle video
Turn your post’s content into a listicle video for easy social sharing, and then plop it at the top of your blog page. Search engines rank pages with video embedded near the top higher than those without, so you’ll feed two birds with one delightfully engaging scone.
For example, if your article is all about how to keep those spines in tip-top shape working from home, you might turn it into a video like this one:
27. Share your expertise
Create content that gives people a reason to read it. Share your knowledge and expertise, and trust that you’ll be rewarded with clicks and engagement. You’ll establish yourself as a trusted knowledge source. This carries a lot of weight when it comes time for buyers to make purchasing decisions.
28. Create a content calendar (and include your content)
Help other people in your position by putting together a shareable content marketing calendar. Include suggestions for content ideas, events and holidays, relevant hashtags, and even graphics, images, or videos other brands can use.
Promo marketing ideas that innovate
Leave boring ads in the past with these fresh takes on innovative promo marketing ideas.
29. Create creative ad creative
Get creative with your ad visuals. Instead of static images, try gifs or video — video scores almost 500% more clicks than static images! Appeal to viewers’ emotions by including people’s faces and creating ads that tell a story.
30. Launch big
Whether you’re launching your brand or just your newest product, launch it big. Turn it into an event that people can’t help hearing about. Make a launch video, start a countdown, hype up your own wonderful self.
31. Give exclusive discounts and offers to your followers
Who doesn’t love being part of something exclusive? Offer discounts and exclusives to social media platforms, existing customers, or even people shopping in-store.
32. Do a countdown
Build hype for an announcement or new product with a countdown. By drawing out the hype, you increase the chances of people noticing. Plus, a little intrigue never hurt anyone.
Contest marketing ideas
There’s nothing more persuasive than a prize. Encourage engagement and increase brand awareness with one of these contest marketing ideas.
33. Host a product giveaway
Your product is a prize in itself, but make it an actual prize with a giveaway. A giveaway might encourage new customers to finally engage with your brand. And if they win, how could they stop themselves from coming back for more?
34. Offer your expertise or services as the prize
Similar to giving away your product, make your expertise the prize. For example, if you are a life coach, offer a free session as the grand prize for your contest or giveaway. It doesn’t cost you anything except your time, and in return, you get a whole lot of brand awareness and engagement.
35. Collab with another brand for a bigger, better giveaway
Team up with another brand to make a giveaway worth people’s time. You’ll get the social promo from the other brand, as well as a doubly valuable prize sure to gain even more attention.
36. Feature user-generated content
For many people, a few minutes in the spotlight is better than any tangible prize. Create a hashtag for your customers to use, then feature the best user-generated images and video in your marketing. You’ll get increased engagement plus fresh marketing content. Sweet!
Kodak’s entire Instagram feed is made up of user-generated content. Followers use the hashtag #MadeWithKodak to share their shots in the hopes of being featured on the page.
37. Keep people coming back with a weekly or monthly giveaway
Show off your product or service with a creative weekly or monthly giveaway. The more often you run your giveaway, the more people will know about it. These giveaways work best with a limited number of prizes, so people have to be quick to nab one.
Last year Biteable experimented with giving away free promo videos for #FreebieFriday. To be eligible, businesses had to retweet our original tweet. In return, they receive a sparkly new personalized promo video for their business — made entirely with Biteable.
Unique ideas for event marketing
Turn your marketing efforts into a literal event, either in-person or online. Hype up your product and keep people entertained while you’re at it.
38. Market the event with a video invite
Get all your event info across and do it in style with a video invitation. Bonus: your invite doubles as a promo video. Just to make sure everyone knows this is an event that can’t be missed.
39. Hold an online workshop people can learn from
Break down the barriers of in-person events with an online workshop or class. Teach people how to do something related to what you market or sell. If you’re a beauty store, online makeup classes. If you’re a homeware store, a virtual cooking class.
40. Host a trivia night (online or in-person)
People have to put all their otherwise useless facts somewhere. Give them an outlet with an online or in-person trivia night. If you don’t have space for an in-person event, run your trivia virtually and go all out with your social media promo.
41. Offer live tutorials for your product
Show potential customers what your product can do while they’re standing right next to your cash registers. Let customers know online and in-store when you plan to showcase your best products, then let the product do the wowing.
42. Put together a fundraising event for a good cause
Customers respond to brands with heart. Organize a fundraising event for a charity or cause that aligns with your brand’s values, then get your customers involved in the action. Who doesn’t love attending a fun event while doing some real good at the same time?
Guerilla marketing ideas
Guerilla marketing is all about taking the unconventional route to grab people’s attention. If there’s shock and awe involved, it’s probably guerilla marketing. It might just be the crème de la crème of creative marketing.
43. Street art
It’s the classic guerilla marketing campaign you know and love: street art. We’re not telling you to graffiti the side of a building, that’s probably not legal. Instead, get creative with the concept of marketing on the street. Create art that people notice, in places they’ll notice it, and make it creative enough to get them talking.
Like this classic from McDonald’s:
44. Project your brand with a literal projector
Also of questionable legality, a popular guerilla marketing idea is to project an ad onto buildings in busy areas. Where you’re aiming your projector is often part of the statement itself. Check your local laws before pointing projectors at any buildings you don’t own.
Scotland’s Irn-Bru celebrated 30 years of their product by “holding up” the Forth Rail Bridge.
45. Aim for a viral video
We say “aim” because if we knew the secret to creating a guaranteed viral video, we’d be billionaires. However, we can say with 100% accuracy that the first step to creating a viral video is giving it a good old-fashioned try.
Some brands subtly place their products in otherwise seemingly unbranded viral videos, whereas others make it no secret that their video is an ad, and it’s a freaking good one.
To date, blender company Blendtec has garnered almost 300 million views on their YouTube channel, Will It Blend? Where they test their product against seemingly unblendable things like an iPad or a crowbar.
46. Turn up where you’re least expected
There’s no better way to stand out than to put yourself where you don’t belong. Show up where people won’t expect to see you. Subvert your audience’s expectations and you might be surprised how many people notice that one of these things is not like the others.
How about swiping right on Deadpool’s Tinder?
Or stopping by the cinema for Marvel’s newest romantic comedy… Deadpool?
47. Make billboards so good people share them on social media
At first glance, a billboard seems like a pretty run-of-the-mill way to advertise. Until you get creative, that is.
This billboard for BBC’s Dracula was so clever it went viral on social media. Instead of only marketing to those who pass by the billboard, it made the rounds worldwide.
48. Use your most recognizable feature to make a statement
If you’re known for something, use it. In guerilla marketing, it’s often the fewer words, the better. If you can get across who you are and what you’re selling with just one symbol or image, you’ve got your marketing campaign made.
The IT movie marketing team tied single red balloons to sewer grates around different US cities to get people talking about their movie. It’s hard to pass up sharing something like that to your socials, so plenty of images started popping up online.
B2B marketing ideas
Business-to-business marketing can feel like a whole other ball game. Since the companies you target already know the tricks of the marketing trade, it all comes down to creativity.
49. Lead with thought leadership
Be a leader in the industry and a leader in your thoughts about the industry. Inspire others with your innovative ideas and informed, educated opinions. LinkedIn is a great place to connect with other brands and the people behind them. But regardless of the platform, find out where the people in your industry gather and meet them there.
50. Answer FAQs before they ask them
You’re not a mind-reader, but you know your target audience like the back of your hand. Prove you know what you’re talking about by staying one step ahead. Answer the questions you know your customers or clients might ask before they even have to ask them. Create an FAQ video and post it to your socials and website.
51. AMAs
You’re an open book. You’re an approachable brand. Give anyone with questions the space to ask them with a scheduled “Ask Me Anything.” AMAs are common on Reddit but work on any social platform. You can even reply via video to add a more personal touch.
52. Market to your existing customers and earn more of their business
Once you’ve set your sights on expanding your customer base, it is easy to forget about the importance of marketing to the customers you already have. Compete for their ongoing loyalty and possibly even more of their business by reminding existing customers why you’re the best in the biz.
53. Be a LinkedIn rockstar
LinkedIn is the place to be for B2B marketing. Make connections and network until your heart’s content, then wow followers with valuable content. Explain, sell, promo, or entertain with a personalized video. Create it in minutes with a ready-to-edit LinkedIn video template.
54. Reach out with personalized video
Humanize your brand with a personalized touch. Reach out to new connections or thank brands for their business with a personalized video.
It’s not a lot of extra effort, and the person on the other end of the video will remember the thoughtfulness for a long time to come.
55. Hold a networking event
Help other businesses and professionals connect by hosting a networking event. You’ll not only gain a few new connections yourself, but attendees will have a new reason to remember your company.
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