Sometimes those of us at 2oddballs Creative see things in our daily lives and think about the marketing behind it. I’m not sure how proud I am to admit that but it’s important for context.
Anyway, there’s this “toy” out there that I stumbled across called The Nugget.
It’s basically a four-piece couch cushion you can reconfigure into forts, castles, pirate ships…whatever your imagination can come up with.
Its going price: $229. Pretty pricey for a glorified futon cushion. Not only that, but you have to pay that high price in hopes of receiving it months later (more on that in a minute).
Yet, thousands of people are willing to do just that.
How on earth did we get to this point?
Through intelligent, digital marketing.
Nugget’s social media marketing is on point
So, The Nugget really gained a lot of popularity in 2019. CNBC called it one of their 2019 hottest toys for the holidays.
Since then, they’ve had some issues keeping up with demand with COVID and other production-related issues.
If you want to get one, you have to enter a waiting list with no guarantee you get one.
However, they have flipped this bad situation into a buzz-building one with a simple hashtag.
“We know there’s even more demand than that out there, so in the interest of fairness, calmness, humility, and practicality, and with your feedback in mind, we’ve been hard at work the past few months organizing something a little different this holiday season,” Nugget said in a social post on Oct. 19. “All Nuggets shipping out before Christmas this year will be sold via a lottery system — we’re calling it the #NugLotto2020.”
Three days later that post has 3,000 reactions, over 4,800 comments, and 390 shares.
The lottery had so many entries their website was crashing and people were experiencing long load times.
The lotto runs every Wednesday and each Friday they do random drawings in which they select 5,000-10,000 customers to buy their product.
They expect to make and ship more than 60,000 Nuggets over the next two months. More than they did in all of 2019.
Oh, and Nugget keeps their fans up-to-date on all of their efforts to correct their production issues (a little crisis management). They have acquired a new 100,000-square-feet factory to help.
All of this has led to a large, loyal fan base. So loyal they’re willing to write poems about their play couch.
That’s a top-notch social media strategy achieving its full potential.
Their values are part of their brand identity
Speaking of their new factory, Nugget made it very apparent staying local to their home state, North Carolina, was important to them. Their admirable relationship with their community is part of their core values and brand strategy.
They were willing to wait and sacrifice production time to find a local factory to keep their production jobs in North Carolina.
Oh, and you can’t get one anywhere else other than their website.
“We value being able to pack and ship each Nugget here at Nugget HQ in Hillsborough, North Carolina,” they say on their website (their new HQ is actually in Butner). “Because we make and ship all Nuggets, the only place to buy a Nugget, Nugget Cover Set, or Nugget Pillow Pack is right here on our site.”
They also felt it important to post on their social media on Oct. 12 in observance of Indigenous People’s Day.
“Indigenous culture isn’t just a fundamental part of our nation’s past, it’s a part of our present and future,” Nugget said in a Facebook post. “In that spirit, we put together some helpful tips for honoring and recognizing Indigenous culture and history, for kids and grownups alike. We’re continuing to grow and learn as well, and are forever grateful for this platform where we can share with y’all.”
Why is this important?
81% of millennials say they expect companies to make a public commitment to good corporate citizenship.
If you don’t already know, millennials are an important market to reach. They are the largest demographic in the country, there is more of them in the workforce than other generations, and they have an expected $1.4 trillion in buying power.
Community relations is something even small businesses have to make part of their brand strategy.
Nugget knows its market
All of Nugget’s strategies are clearly aimed at serving Millennials. And it’s no surprise that’s their M.O. for marketing because, outside of the earlier statistics we’ve detailed that make it important to reach them, over 40% of Millennials are parents.
Nugget clearly went the extra mile for their target market.
They found their desires, crafted a brand that serves those desires, and crafted messaging that would reach them and be heard.
It’s nice when a plan comes together like that, huh?
Let us know if we can help you reach your perfect customer through digital marketing.
Website development, social media management, and advertising are just a few of the tricks we’ve got up our sleeve.
