Ride on the Iron Throne with Uber

In honour of the new season of Game of Thrones that started on HBO last month, Uber users in New York were given the chance to select a new ‘Throne’ option in their app, giving them a chance to ride the Iron Throne to their destination.

Basically just an articulated lorry with a chair made of swords on it. Still, if you don’t mind turning up to work four hours late in the most ostentatious way possible then #RideofThrones was made for you.

 

How not to newsjack

While we’re still on the subject of Game of Thrones, here courtesy of AV Club are some of the worst examples of brands hijacking the first brand new episode of Game of Thrones season five.

 

Edinburgh West Police builds anti-burglar awareness with LEGO

Edinburgh West Police has launched a Twitter campaign to educate younger Twitter users on how to avoid being burgled, using everyone’s favourite visual tool: LEGO.

Each image also has a Robert Burns style poem as an accompaniment.  

 

It no longer does what it says on the tin

Ronseal has launched a tongue-in-cheek campaign where it apologises to all of the pedantic Twitter users who over the years have pointed out that Ronseal doesn’t come in a tin anymore, therefore making its traditional “it does what it says on the tin” slogan redundant.

In a similar video to Bodyform’s excellent apology to Richard, the above ad shows Ronseal’s marketing director Martin Jones apologising with deadpan sincerity. “The new strapline might not be as memorable as the old one but it is certainly more honest.”

Reebok’s ‘Hunt for the Pump’ Instagram campaign

Reebok launched an exclusive Instagram game which allowed followers to virtually run through San Francisco for a chance to win a pair of Reebok sneakers.

‘Hunt for the Pump’ takes users on a virtual tour through major landmarks on specially made Instagram accounts, where in one of the pictures on the page is a hidden pump. Once users find the pump, they like the post, and move on to the next landmark.

Here’s a head start.

LEGO #FillThe Gap

LEGO’s #FillTheGap campaign saw followers constructing their own models and placing them in real-life locations. 

The competition was announced on its Facebook Architecture page, and the two month long competition saw a huge number of creative entries and many prizes awarded, with follower’s images shared across various LEGO social channels throughout the weeks.

The National Lottery launches ‘Play With Us’ social gaming campaign

The National Lottery has entered the world of social media gaming by enabling users to win cash prizes, live on Facebook and Twitter.

Users who comment on its Facebook page or tweet @TNLUK with the hashtag #HookMeADuck along with the colour of the duck they want to hook, can win prizes from between £10 to £100.

As you can see below, the game exists as a Facebook app accessed from the navigation and runs at specific times throughout the day.

Facebook’s shift towards traditional advertising

Nielson has estimated that Facebook’s UK advertising spend on television and billboard ads in the first quarter of 2015 to be £6m. This is up considerably from 2014 when it spent just £16,000 in the whole year.

Facebook’s traditional campaign so far this year includes three adverts shown on television and an ad campaign targeting the London Underground.

Image courtesy of Financial Times.

Facebook’s inaugural Football Awards

Facebook has teamed up with BT Sport and Mirror Football to launch its first ever Facebook Football Awards.

Fans can vote by going to Mirror Football’s Facebook page, clicking like, then selecting whichever category they want to vote in.

Participants can also choose their dream starting team for a ‘best XI’ award.

At last(!?) Star Wars Emojis are available on Twitter

During the course of the annual Star Wars Celebration event in California, many amazing things were revealed for Star Wars fans, including a new trailer for Episode VII and almost just as exciting, the first three characters in a collection of new Emojis.

Users can create the emojis by tweeting the character name as a hashtag. So far #C3PO #BB8 #stormtrooper are available. No word on Salacious Crumb yet.

Click the embedded tweet below to see it in action…