\n<\/p>\n
As the World Cup approached in 2022, Duolingo sent out a press release. It read, in part:<\/p>\n
\u201cUnless you\u2019re an official sponsor, you can\u2019t talk about the [REDACTED] or [REDACTED] \u2026 But with a bit of clever language, there\u2019s always a way to [REDACTED] the rules.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Back then, the games were being held in Qatar. Duolingo wasn\u2019t an official World Cup sponsor, so it needed to be careful about its language \u2014 but it did<\/em> pay to become the official sponsor of Qatar FC, an amateur soccer team from Brazil. That allowed Duolingo to declare itself the official sponsor of what it called \u201cthe other Qatar.\u201d The company\u2019s mascot, Duo the owl, became the team\u2019s official mascot too. Duolingo launched a tool for translating soccer chants and trash talk into other languages, and released that press release full of redactions. The whole thing cost far less than an official World Cup sponsorship, but earned lots of media coverage and generated goodwill worldwide.<\/p>\n The World Cup was held in 11 U.S. cities this summer, and brands all over the world took their shot at joining the conversation. Now that the games are over, it\u2019s worth thinking about how you\u2019ll capitalize on the next big sports event.<\/p>\n People often call it \u201cnewsjacking,\u201d and you have two primary options: You can create a moment or just create content. Either way, it requires preparation and patience.<\/p>\n First, make two lists. On the left, write down the specific things your customers will actually experience \u2014 not \u201cthey\u2019ll watch games,\u201d but the granular stuff. Googling the offside rule five minutes before kickoff? Pretending they\u2019ve always been a Christian Pulisic fan?\u00a0<\/p>\n On the right, write down what your brand is already known for. Are you the bar that actually knows soccer? The restaurant where the neighborhood goes to celebrate?<\/p>\n Your angle lives where something on the left intersects with something on the right in a way that produces recognition or surprise. Can your bar start handing out booklets with all the World Cup rules? Can you promote free drinks if the U.S. wins?<\/p>\n As you brainstorm, ask yourself: Does this reinforce what we want to be known for?<\/em> (Duolingo, for example, teaches people new languages \u2014 so its translation tool absolutely accomplished that.)<\/p>\n Moments can be expensive. Content is fast and cheap. And during the games, you saw lots<\/em> of brands reacting and engaging on social media. It looked spontaneous, but they prepared.<\/p>\n You can too. First, build your scenario templates. You don\u2019t know who\u2019ll win or lose any relevant games, but you know the emotional beats: the upset nobody saw coming, the heartbreaking penalty shootout. Write rough content frameworks for each. When the moment arrives, you\u2019re filling in names and details, not staring at a blank screen at midnight.<\/p>\n Next, get your approval chain down to one person. This way, you\u2019ll be able to get content up while it\u2019s still relevant. A classic example: During the 2014 World Cup, optical retailer Specsavers had a rapid response plan in place with its media agency Manning Gottlieb OMD. The goal was for OMD to quickly respond to big cultural moments, with Specsavers\u2019 approval not slowing it down. That paid off when a Uruguayan footballer bit Italy\u2019s Giorgio Chiellini \u2014 and Specsavers almost instantly tweeted an image of Chiellini next to a picture of a plate of cannelloni pasta. \u201cShould\u2019ve gone to Specsavers,\u201d it wrote. It got 13,000 retweets in the first hour.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s be clear: You don\u2019t need<\/em> to get involved in the World Cup, or any major event. But if you want to, ask three questions: Does this make sense coming specifically from us? Have we checked every factual claim? Would we be comfortable if this got screenshotted as an example of brands doing it wrong?<\/p>\n If the answers are yes, then the ball is yours.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n As the World Cup approached in 2022, Duolingo sent out a press release. It read, in part:<\/p>\n \u201cUnless you\u2019re an official sponsor, you can\u2019t talk about the [REDACTED] or [REDACTED] \u2026 But with a bit of clever language, there\u2019s always a way to [REDACTED] the rules.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Back then, the games were being held in Qatar. Duolingo wasn\u2019t an official World Cup sponsor, so it needed to be careful about its language \u2014 but it did<\/em> pay to become the official sponsor of Qatar FC, an amateur soccer team from Brazil. That allowed Duolingo to declare itself the official sponsor of what it called \u201cthe other Qatar.\u201d The company\u2019s mascot, Duo the owl, became the team\u2019s official mascot too. Duolingo launched a tool for translating soccer chants and trash talk into other languages, and released that press release full of redactions. The whole thing cost far less than an official World Cup sponsorship, but earned lots of media coverage and generated goodwill worldwide.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\nHow to create a moment<\/strong><\/h2>\n
How to create content<\/strong><\/h2>\n