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Okay - where does all this hype about pranks come from? YouTube is full of so-called "prank" videos in which normal people make fun of, scare and shock each other just to capture the (admittedly very funny) reaction of the other person on film. And the whole world watches - and loves it. They want more surprising and provocative actions and unexpected reactions. And that's why pranks work so well. Also in media work.

Pranks entertain, surprise, shock and polarize. Everything that good media stories do. The fact that we at FBC know exactly which stories work is probably due to the fact that we sometimes have a few crazy ideas. And - an important point - our ideas are usually out-of-the-box. We like them to be funny, cheeky and, above all, creative. Because according to the definition, a prank - or "practical joke" - is an "imaginative idea with the aim of annoying, provoking or frightening others". And that's what we want to do with our ideas.

A perfect media story is like a perfect date

Anyone who has ever had a bad date knows how unbearable it is. Break it off and run away. The only way out. The same thing happens with a bad media story: if the first few sentences aren't gripping, it's over. The media want something to talk about - like an interesting counterpart and a good date. They want stories that surprise, entertain, grab, polarize and shock. And that's what we want on the perfect date too (okay, please only shock to a small extent). The fact is: a boring, run-of-the-mill date has never turned into true love. That's why we say: be different, be creative, be funny and above all: stand out from the crowd and try some cheeky pranks for media relations.

Pranks need courage

With a good prank, you don't know beforehand how it will turn out. Will the media jump on it? Will we hit a nerve? Or will it backfire? The line between a viral story and a shitstorm can be very fine. At this point: A round of applause for our daring customers! Thank you for trusting us, being brave with us and loving our ideas as much as we do. Sometimes you just have to be a little bold to be rewarded. To dare to do something that no one else has dared to do. Otherwise you're just one of many, and who wants to be that? And because we at FBC are all little pranksters, we love to generate attention for our clients with polarizing, surprising and unexpected ideas and bring a breath of fresh air into the media world. Provoking is somehow also a bit of fun!

LEGO-playing CEOs, snow dealers and sexy politicians

We have often proven our courage in the past. We have also been a little cheeky. For example, when we worked together with our customer BRICKLIVE we sent Swiss Post CEO Susanne Ruoff an Easter package with a LEGO Postbus after the Postbus affair and asked her to play: "When life puts LEGO® bricks in your path, you shouldn't step on them, you should put them together". Or when we highlighted a slightly different aspect of the National Council elections and asked our customer's users TheCasualLounge asked which politician they would most like to snack on (yes, there are sexy politicians too). Or just recently, when we hired comedian Kiko as a snow dealer on behalf of our client Engadin St. Moritz Tourismus AG to sell "the best snow in Switzerland" to the people of Zurich. Of course, this was real snow from the Engadin and a PR campaign for the dynamic Snow Deal pricing model. Fortunately, we had a good hand this time too and generated a great response in the media. Pranks in media relations: it works.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MlYEEVwxok&t=3s

And one final tip

The next time you ask yourself whether your prank idea works in the media, ask yourself the following five questions: Has Mrs. Müller ever heard anything like this (news value)? Does Aunt Hedwig understand what I'm talking about (simplicity)? Does Mr. Meier talk about it at the regulars' table (topicality)? Does your sister feel addressed (closeness)? Does your neighbor make a funny face when he hears about the story (curiosity)? Then it should work! Because never forget - keep it simple and stupid! Then pranks and media work are a perfect match.

Need more tips? You can find them in our free PR guide. And for all inquisitive minds who want to become PR professionals themselves: Visit our next PR seminar with Ferris Bühler. There you will learn step by step how to get your story out to the public!