Fright, delight and the power of suspense in marketing

It’s a peculiar time of year, but one that takes over our cultural lives for a few weeks - spiders, skeletons and spooky costumes filling shop shelves and decorating doorways. But for marketers and brands, Halloween’s popularity carries lessons long beyond October.

Why do we love the spooky season so much, and what if there are lessons we can take away from the holiday that will improve our work year-round? 

Less trick, more treat

I’m not suggesting that brands should be investing in jumpscares and haunting song choices, but Halloween taps into a long-underrated feeling in consumers - one of suspense, delight, and connection that we should be inspired by.

Halloween taps into a long-underrated feeling in consumers - one of suspense, delight, and connection that we should be inspired by.

Just take trick-or-treating. It’s a beloved tradition that takes us straight back to childhood: that potent feeling of suspense waiting for our neighbours to open the door, our delight at what treats they are giving out this year. It’s no wonder that we remember these moments so richly. When we blow out our jack-o-lanterns and pack our fake cobwebs away come November, these feelings of intrigue, surprise and delight will still hold power.
 
When we’re intrigued, we act. I see it all the time working with direct mail, as consumers find it very hard to leave an envelope unopened. We have a childlike curiosity, a hope that a treat awaits us inside, that is hard to ignore. The very best creatives understand the power of that curiosity, tapping into it across media, across industries, in a range of delightful ways. 

Building buzz

In the age of virality, suspense has another superpower. It gets people talking and builds buzz for brands in the run-up to a core product launch or cultural moment. We recently saw a masterclass in just this when Taylor Swift unveiled a blurred version of her cover art for her latest album, The Life of a Showgirl. No stranger to hype and detective work, Swift let her fans speculate about the album cover for a full 24 hours, building momentum, catching headlines and ensuring that her beloved fans continually engaged with her content.

In the age of virality, suspense has another superpower. It gets people talking and builds buzz for brands in the run-up to a core product launch or cultural moment. 

Similarly, Magnum ice creams uses the same tactics to drive engagement by teasing celebrity brand ambassadors as the “face of Magnum”. From Charli XCX to Kendall Jenner, the brand drops just enough hints to invite speculation and brand awareness during its peak season, keeping the ice cream front of mind all summer.

‘Teaser campaigns’ are incredibly effective at nurturing potential customers ahead of a key brand moment, precisely because brands understand that intrigue and excitement convert to sales.

Crafting suspense

Suspense and intrigue are powerful storytelling tools that can go way beyond social media teasing.

Take Waitrose’s Sweet Suspicion campaign last Christmas. Revolving around a mysteriously disappeared red velvet bauble cake, the clever creative turned a Christmas Day dinner into a light-hearted whodunnit that unfolded over a two-part television campaign.

Suspense and intrigue are powerful storytelling tools that can go way beyond social media teasing.

By leaving viewers on a cliffhanger, with no option but to rewatch the ad intently every time it came on for clues, Waitrose created an air of suspense for two weeks that converted immediately into engagement.

The playful mystery tapped into that same sense of childlike curiosity that makes Halloween so exciting, and was by far one of the most memorable ads of the festive season.