Collaborations have quickly become a staple of most brands’ marketing mix, proving to be a powerful tool for reaching new audiences, generating buzz, and creating new ways for consumers to engage with brands. But as brand collaborations become more commonplace, simply partnering with another brand isn’t always enough to create buzz. It’s the strategy behind the collaboration that turns a collaboration into a moment that people want to be a part of.
For PopUp Bagels, collaborations are already part of the brand’s DNA, new collaborations rolling out for their shmears on a weekly basis. So, when Natalie’s Juices teamed up with them to create the Tangerine Dream Butter, the goal was to make the fun product pairing feel like more than just a typical weekly schmear drop.
To do this, Natalie’s took the collaboration beyond the menu item and created an immersive experience around the flavor drop. To kick off the campaign, media and influencers were invited to a preview at PopUp Bagels’ Brentwood location, featuring a live DJ, custom small bites, and complimentary bespoke, citrus-forward cocktails featuring Natalie’s Tangerine Juice.
While the event created an exciting in-person experience, strategic media and influencer outreach made sure that the moments experienced in person translated into conversation online. Food, lifestyle, and local creators across these cities took it online to post about the activation, generating organic content that reached beyond those who were able to attend in person. In total, 27 creators shared content around the collaboration, representing a combined potential audience of more than 1 million followers. Media outreach helped amplify the conversation even further, securing coverage across local and national outlets reaching close to half a million monthly unique visitors, creating another valuable resource for customers to learn about the limited-time promotion.
To continue the momentum, Natalie’s brought the experience directly to the customers in Brentwood, offering samples of the specialty Natalie’s Tangerine Dreamsicle drinks and fresh Natalie’s tangerine juice flights, along with a custom scratch-off card with every purchase to win premium, limited-edition merchandise, including custom tangerine luxury scarves, stickers, and VIP gift bags. Other stores in major hubs such as Dallas, Atlanta, New York, Oceanside, and La Jolla also hosted complimentary Natalie’s tangerine juice tastings.
Ultimately, Natalie’s showed that making a collaboration stand out in a landscape that is already saturated with co-branded campaigns takes more than just a great product pairing. Creating a memorable experience is key, but intentionally getting the right people in the room to help capture the moment is just as important. Through strategic media and influencer outreach, the campaign created excitement around the collaboration, giving the collaboration an identity that extended beyond the product itself. By creating a moment that people wanted to take part in, fueled by media and influencer engagement, Natalie’s turned the Tangerine Dream into more than just a schmear!
Have a brand collaboration in mind? Our team at Maracaibo Media can help build the media, influencer, and experiential strategy that will turn your campaign into a moment that gets people talking.
