It’s that time again, we’re bringing you a refresh of the good and bad PR campaigns from last month. You can find the roundup of March’s here. Let’s great straight into it and have a look at the campaigns that had us taking our hats off and the ones that didn’t quite hit the mark!
Retail giants going the extra mile for consumers
It’s always great when brands show they genuinely care for their consumers! This month we have to give a big shout out to H&M for a brilliant campaign they launched in April which was its free suit rental service for those attending interviews. The service was aimed at those who were in need of a suit, but couldn’t afford to buy one, and offered them 24 hour free hire.
The fashion retailer said they wanted job seekers to feel confident and ready to impress while trying to score a new job. H&M gets some major brownie points for helping out those in need during a troubling time.
H&M is offering 24hr free suit hire for job interviews, it's free of charge 🙌🏽💯 pic.twitter.com/cuqhzk8zHe
— 🇿🇦 (@ThabangTweezus) April 21, 2021
Another big well done has to go to Lidl Ireland who announced free period products to try and help combat period poverty. Those seeking access to menstrual products can sign up for their free monthly coupon using the supermarket’s app, Lidl Plus. The voucher can then be exchanged for a free box of sanitary pads or tampons.
Lidl are set to become the first major retailer in the world to offer free period products!
From next month, those in need will be able to claim a free box of sanitary pads/tampons per month.
Lidl will also donate products each quarter to The Simon Community 👏👏 pic.twitter.com/OH99OhHg40
— SPIN 1038 (@spin1038) April 19, 2021
The products will be made available in 160 Lidl stores across Ireland, with Lidl set to be the “first major retailer in the world” to offer these products for free on a nationwide scale. This is a HUGE step in the right direction to tackle period poverty – a great campaign by the retail giant.
Highlighting life without a home through the pandemic
During lockdown Dan Barker and his wife, Lucy Wood, gave several London-based homeless people a disposable camera. The couple paid them to take pictures of their surroundings. In doing so, they wanted to use this opportunity to highlight ‘what life has been like, without a home, at a time we were all told to stay at home’.
This incredibly poignant and sensitive campaign reflects just how difficult the pandemic has been for those without a sense of security and a place to call home.
The pictures tell quite a story and now form part of an exhibition at St Martin-in-the-Fields church. It was a really unique, personal and emotional campaign to convey an important message.
Caterpillar gate
Hats off to Aldi’s social media team! They are always on it when it comes to social media content and really have crafted a fantastic social media presence. But, we imagine they truly rubbed their hands with glee as they absolutely dominated Twitter in April during the ever so famous, Colin Vs Cuthbert trial. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ll know exactly what we’re talking about!
Last month saw Marks and Spencer’s take legal action against Aldi over its copycat caterpillar cake.
Marks & Snitches more like. #FreeCuthbert
— Aldi Stores UK (@AldiUK) April 16, 2021
Aldi swiftly removed Cuthbert the Caterpillar from their shelves before M&S took any legal proceedings. Then came the hilarious twitter ‘brandter’, which attracted thousands of likes and retweets. Aldi’s PR team was widely praised by social media users for its humorous approach – they really nailed it! A truly great example of taking a potential crisis in your stride and turning it around. Well done Aldi, we’re big fans.
Packaging update. #FreeCuthbert pic.twitter.com/XDSnhpvjmj
— Aldi Stores UK (@AldiUK) April 16, 2021
Marks and Spencer
How could we not put Marks and Spencer in bad PR after that? Just to reiterate, M&S decided to take legal action against Aldi, after the German brand ripped off its caterpillar cake. Aren’t Aldi notorious for that?
Anyway, M&S we’re sorry, but you have to get a bad PR vote in April for having no banter. #FreeCuthbert
The European Super League
We simply can’t do a bad PR campaign round up in April and not mention The European Super League, right?
The big announcement came complete with leaks the night before, no-pre-briefing for those in the game without consulting the highest levels of management at the teams that they owned.
We don’t think anyone could come up with a term that suitably sums up how wrong the decision-making process must be for this to have ever been considered as a potential idea, let alone a good one. To put this into a little bit of perspective, it was such a bad idea that it even managed to make the UK Government look good in its own response. Yikes…
At Prohibition, we work with a range of brands across all sectors, B2B and B2C, to create innovative PR campaigns that deliver real ROI and help meet business goals. Get in touch with us today to find out how we could support you with your Public Relations. Drop us an email: hello@prohibitionpr.co.uk or give us a bell on 0113 430 4160.
