It’s the 1st of April and we all know what that means for the whole world, it’s April Fools’ Day. Almost all people around the world do pranks and practical jokes on this day. The celebration of April 1st didn’t just revolve around people and friends, it actually reached the mass media and some business sectors.
In fact, now we see brands and companies prepare jokes for that day; some brands even come up with ideas for new products or offers to be shared on social media, and then they state that it’s a hoax.
The question here is, can practical jokes or hoaxes on this day harm the brand? Or can it make it more popular?
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Why Brands Celebrate April Fool’s Day?
Celebrating this day is very common, especially for brands, since it adds a little bit of humor to its content.
Each brand prepares for the idea days before the 1st of April; the whole thing revolves around coming up with something for the customer to believe and then reveal that it’s just April Fools’ Day! The good side of this joke is that it makes the customers engage and the idea can grab many people’s attention.
Some brands actually nail the joke as they can come up with something funny, light, and acceptable for their customers.
But, can the joke go in the total opposite direction?
Can April Fool’s Joke Go Wrong?
To plan a joke for April Fools’ Day, a brand must put many things in mind; the most important one is creativity.
If the joke is not creative, it can actually harm the brand. Everyone expects jokes and hoaxes from brands on this day; so, if a brand is not creative, customers will figure it out right away; some even might attack it.
Also, if the joke is repetitive, it can harm the brand, since it will be boring. Some brands copy other brands’ jokes, while others might use the same theme or concept.
April Fool’s Jokes Backfired
If some brands are not careful, they might end up in a really bad situation for their joke!
The famous Volkswagen is in this situation. The brand announced that it will change its name to be “Voltswagen” to promote its electrical car! The news went viral and some media outlets began reporting and spreading the news.
Later, the company revealed that this was a joke in the spirit of April Fools’ Day! According to CNN, this joke might have put VW at serious risk, as it could’ve run afoul of US securities law as it’s potentially misleading the investors.
https://www.facebook.com/VW/posts/10165429953640790
Another example but a local one is Tseppas! Since we’re a few days away from the holy month of Ramadan, all people expect from the patisserie shops to create something using Ramadan desserts. In fact, today the famous patisserie shop Etoile posted that they created something new, which is “Kunafa bel Renga”.
https://www.facebook.com/EtoilePatisserieEgypt/posts/1638142609704789
Some people in the comments stated that it’s April Fool’s jokes, some were disgusted by the idea while others mentioned that the brand said the same thing last year! The post so far has 3.4K angry reactions! Not so good, isn’t it?
More April Fool’s Jokes
Today’s jokes didn’t stop there, we have come across more!
Pepsi is one of the brands that participated today with its own joke. The brand posted that it’s launching its own ice cubes but at the end of the caption, it said that the product is not available in markets, which explains it all.
Also, Majid Al Futtaim, the Emirati holding company announced today that it will be launching the Mall of Mars. The mall of course is on the planet Mars and it will feature their existing leading businesses and will host new offerings.
The caption also ended with the hashtag #AprilFools
https://www.facebook.com/MajidAlFuttaim/photos/a.475992692600208/1584636555069144/?type=3
Should You or Should You Not?
Planning a practical joke requires a lot of creativity and you have to be careful that it wouldn’t backfire.
Aside from being creative, you have to know who you’re joking with and how the audience will react to the joke! Avoid politics or any religious matters, and if you will use a trending topic, then you have to be careful how you will use it so you won’t offend other parties.
Now it’s your turn, tell us your opinion about April Fools’ and which joke did you like.
