Digital PR campaign examples
Campaigns built to earn press coverage and links, grouped into 5 formats you can copy, with a one-line version for your brand and a budget guide on each.
Doable with a small team, gifting or a simple partner swap.
Needs a paid creator, some production or a co-branded product run.
Celebrity fees, TV airtime or a large custom build.
Budget is our estimate of what it would take to run the same idea yourself, not what the brand spent.
The data hook
5 examples
Stat: [X]% of [AUDIENCE] [DO / FEEL / FORGET] [THING] Source: your own data or a [2,000-person] survey Action: a product, list or tool that answers it Pitch: stat in the subject line, image attached
Budget: Small to mid. A survey costs a few thousand; your own data is free.
The Haven platform
An insurer gave every one of Australia's 11 million homes a free risk report, told in the home's own voice, using its own data.
Result Won the Titanium Grand Prix at Cannes Lions 2026.
Why it spread
It helps everyone, not just customers, which changes how people see an insurer. Source
The jacket that becomes a bag
Aldi made a jacket that turns into a reusable shopping bag in 10 seconds, based on its research that 46% of Brits regularly forget their bags.
Why it spread
It solves a relatable annoyance, so the product itself is the headline. Source
The Cost of Bleeding
Clue published research putting the lifetime cost of menstruation at more than £20,000, reframing periods as a financial issue.
Why it spread
One big, surprising number gives journalists a headline. Source
Sweden's sunniest spot
With Sweden's weather institute, IKEA found the country's sunniest square metre on Gotland and marked it with two stone IKEA chairs.
Why it spread
A data-backed fact gives the press a story and people a place to visit. Source
Tickets vs flights
Air Transat ran live comparisons between the price of a World Cup ticket and a return flight to the country you'd support.
Why it spread
It uses a complaint fans are already making and turns it into a reason to travel. Source
The absurd product drop
10 examples
Product: [YOUR PRODUCT] as a [PERFUME / JACKET / KEG / LUXURY ITEM] Why: ties to [A HABIT / A JOKE / A DEBATE] about your brand Run: [NUMBER] units, free or at cost Assets: 3 hero photos + a 10-second video
Budget: Mostly mid. A small production run plus photography.
Freezer pillowcases
Limited-edition pillowcases designed to go in the freezer, packaged in ice cream tubs.
Why it spread
It plays on the cool-side-of-the-pillow habit and takes the brand's ownership of cold somewhere new. Source
KegChup
A 114-ounce ketchup keg designed for game-day parties around the Big Game.
Why it spread
It plays on how obsessed some fans are with ketchup, at the one event built for sharing food. Source
The Pickle Puffer
A see-through puffer jacket filled with pickle juice and gherkins, with a built-in straw, for KFC's Pickle Mania menu.
Why it spread
Absurd merch gets the menu talked about far beyond people who'd see an ad. Source
McNugget Caviar
A free, online-only Valentine's kit pairing Chicken McNuggets with real caviar, made with Paramount Caviar.
Why it spread
High-low luxury is funny on its own, and a limited free drop makes people rush to get one. Source
The flushable magazine
A limited-edition magazine printed entirely on Cushelle toilet tissue, meant to be read and then used.
Why it spread
A cheeky object that proves softness without saying it. Source
Chupa Chups Impossible
To launch an easier-to-open wrapper, Chupa Chups made a limited run of lollipops in the hardest wrapper it could design.
Why it spread
It answers years of online complaints with a joke, so the fix itself gets attention. Source
The meatball lollipop
An April Fools' joke about a meatball-flavoured lollipop got such a good reaction that IKEA made it for real with Chupa Chups.
Why it spread
The joke tested demand for free. Turning it real gave the press a second story. Source
Eau de Croissant
A croissant-scented perfume in a croissant-shaped bottle, based on Lidl's 49-cent bakery croissant.
Why it spread
Luxury packaging for a cheap favourite is an easy joke that people want to own. Source
The Ketchup Smoothie
Heinz and Smoothie King launched a tomato ketchup smoothie, asking if tomatoes are a fruit, is ketchup a smoothie?
Why it spread
A food debate turned into a real product people dare each other to try. Source
The Casket Cooler
A limited-edition, life-size cooler shaped like a coffin, launched ahead of spooky season.
Why it spread
Both brands' fans expect the absurd, and a coffin cooler is impossible not to share. Source
The newsjack
5 examples
Story: [WHAT EVERYONE IS TALKING ABOUT TODAY] Reaction: a [POLICY / OFFER / PRODUCT / POST] that fits your brand Speed: live within [24–72 HOURS] Tone: in on the joke, never at someone's expense
Budget: Small. Speed matters more than spend.
Baseline
When a creator's video accidentally calling it "Baseline" became a meme, Vaseline mock-rebranded as Baseline and named her CEO.
Result Built on a creator video that passed 2 million views.
Why it spread
It moved within days and gave credit to the creator instead of taking over the joke. Source
The Beckham clause
On the Beach announced a refund policy for holidays ruined by family feuds, riffing on the very public Beckham family fallout.
Why it spread
It jumps on a story everyone is already talking about with a real, usable offer. Source
The tissue truck
After England went out of the World Cup, Uber sent a branded tissue truck to console fans.
Why it spread
Being there with a joke at the exact moment fans feel it. Source
The La La Hand fix
For La La Land's 10th anniversary, the studio retouched the poster to fix the hand pose Ryan Gosling has publicly regretted for years.
Why it spread
Rewarding an in-joke the star started gives fans a reason to share. Source
The floating Nutella
A jar of Nutella floated through NASA's live Artemis II broadcast with its label clearly visible. It wasn't a planned campaign.
Why it spread
Unplanned brand moments spread fastest, and brands that react quickly get the credit. Source
The crisis turned story
4 examples
What happened: [THE PROBLEM], stated plainly Response: [APOLOGY / JOKE / CALL FOR HELP] within [HOURS] Follow-up: [WHAT YOU DO NEXT, IN PUBLIC] Rule: never joke about harm to people
Budget: Small. It's about the response, not the spend.
The KitKat Heist
When a truck carrying 12 tonnes of KitKats was stolen a week before Easter, KitKat publicised the theft and asked the public to help find it.
Result Won the PR Grand Prix at Cannes Lions.
Why it spread
It turned bad news into a story people wanted to follow, instead of hiding it. Source
"Worst aquarium ever"
A museum turned a one-star review calling it the "worst aquarium ever" (it isn't an aquarium) into merchandise.
Result Became one of its best-selling product lines.
Why it spread
Owning the joke made the museum look confident and funny instead of defensive. Source
The car-fire Quencher
A creator posted her burnt-out car with her Stanley cup intact and ice still inside. Stanley's president replied offering to replace her car.
Why it spread
Real product proof from a customer, amplified by a fast and generous brand response.
FCK
During a UK chicken shortage that shut hundreds of stores, KFC ran a full-page apology with its bucket letters rearranged to FCK.
Why it spread
An honest, funny apology turned a supply-chain failure into goodwill.
The name game
4 examples
Word: [YOUR NAME / A MISSPELLING / A MISSING WORD] Play: [SPOOF BRAND / RENAME / DICTIONARY CAMPAIGN] Where: [SEARCH / PACKAGING / PRESS] Hook: one line that explains the joke
Budget: Small to mid.
Did You Mean MailChimp?
Mailchimp leaned into people mispronouncing its name, launching spoof brands and products built on the misheard versions, like MailShrimp.
Result Won a Cyber Grand Prix at Cannes Lions 2017.
Why it spread
It took a small, common annoyance and turned it into a puzzle people wanted to decode and share. Source
Matrescence
A full-page New York Times ad campaigning to get "matrescence", the transition to motherhood, into the dictionary.
Why it spread
Giving a shared experience a name gives people a reason to talk about it. Source
WeMite
Marmite renamed itself WeMite on limited-edition jars for England fans travelling to the World Cup in the US.
Why it spread
A playful rename ties a love-it-or-hate-it brand to national pride. Source
The fake band
Zendesk invented an indie band called Zendesk Alternative, so people searching for alternatives to Zendesk found Zendesk's own joke.
Why it spread
It meets competitor-comparison searches with a laugh instead of a sales pitch, and the joke got written about. Source
How to plan a digital PR campaign
- Start with the headline you want to see, then work back to the campaign.
- Give journalists a reason: a number, a product or a reaction they can't get elsewhere.
- Make the assets: 3 photos, a short video and a one-paragraph summary.
- Pitch to a tight list of writers who cover your angle, not a mass mailout.
- Ask for a link where it makes sense (a data source, a product page), and track what lands.
Want coverage and links like these?prlinkbuilding.com runs digital PR campaigns built to earn links from real publications.
See how it worksDigital PR campaign examples: FAQ
What is digital PR?
Digital PR is getting your brand covered by online publications, usually with a story, data or stunt that earns links back to your site and helps SEO.
What makes a good digital PR campaign?
A clear hook (a number, a product or a reaction), strong visuals and a story that fits what journalists already cover.
What are some successful digital PR examples?
The KitKat Heist won the PR Grand Prix at Cannes Lions 2026. Other examples include KFC's FCK apology and Mailchimp's Did You Mean MailChimp?
How is digital PR different from a PR stunt?
A stunt is one tactic. Digital PR is the whole process of creating a story and getting it covered and linked online.
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