Remember the last time you scrolled through TikTok and saw a brand collaboration so bizarre it made you laugh out loud? Maybe it was pickle-flavored soda, or a luxury fashion house selling Crocs encrusted with… something. Welcome to the era of the Playful Extravaganza, where brands are ditching the predictable and embracing the absurd to capture our fleeting attention.
But is this just fleeting fun, or is something deeper at play?
In today’s attention economy, brands are battling for relevance. CBA’s Pulse 2025 report reveals a powerful truth: consumers crave brands that inject joy, humor, and a touch of the unexpected into their experiences.
This isn’t about frivolous antics; it’s about strategically harnessing the power of play to cultivate deeper relationships.
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Unconventional creativity: Daring to defy industry norms and think outside the box.
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Emotional resonance: Tapping into positive emotions like joy and humor, while also evoking a sense of nostalgia.
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Authentic expression: Unveiling your brand’s unique personality and distinctive voice.
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Experiential engagement: Crafting memorable and shareable moments that resonate with your audience.
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Disruption of the everyday: Offering a refreshing escape from the ordinary and predictable.
A “playful extravaganza” directly connects to this context: it’s not about instant gratification but about surprising with lightness. The concept of delight—unexpectedly enchanting—emerges as a response. Even brands committed to serious causes like environmental care and inclusivity are now challenged to communicate more authentically, accessibly, and humorously.
This movement isn’t confined to design; it reflects a broader cultural shift shaped by digital entertainment dynamics and the constant expectation of novelty. Generation Z—multicultural, fluid, and curious—naturally navigates between aesthetics, flavors, and categories. Open to the world, they seek the new with enthusiasm but have less patience for overly serious messages or predictable formats.
Credit: Duolingo
But here’s the tension: this desire for playfulness is intertwined with the allure of instant gratification, fueled by the dopamine rush of social media likes and the constant stream of new experiences.
Are we, as brands, contributing to a culture of superficiality by constantly chasing novelty?
Gen Z, the digital natives who have grown up in this dopamine-driven world, are particularly susceptible to this influence. They are constantly bombarded with new trends, flavors, and experiences, leading to a heightened expectation for surprise and difference. This explains the boom in unlikely flavor combinations, bizarre brand collaborations, and the meme-ification of everything. The rapid-fire humor and absurd content that dominate platforms like TikTok are shaping a new generation’s expectations for entertainment and engagement.
- Emotional connection & differentiation: Playfulness offers a unique way to cut through the clutter of marketing messages, creating a distinct brand identity that resonates with those weary of the predictable. Accenture reports that 66% of consumers gravitate towards brands that stand for something, emphasizing the need for a clear and compelling brand purpose.
- Engagement & humanization: Capturing attention in a world of endless distractions is a constant challenge. Playful experiences are inherently captivating, sparking interaction and creating shareable moments. Content infused with playful elements typically enjoys twice the engagement rates on social media (HubSpot), proving its power to drive meaningful interactions. Skepticism is on the rise, and playfulness can help brands appear more human, approachable, and relatable. Harvard Business Review reveals that consumers are 2.4x more likely to recommend a brand that delivers a positive emotional experience.
- Socio-economic context & dopamine culture: The pandemic led to a reassessment of priorities, with consumers now actively seeking brands that offer joy, escapism, and connection, especially in times of economic instability. Playfulness provides an emotional release and helps cope with stress. The constant barrage of information can be overwhelming. Playfulness offers a welcome respite, allowing consumers to focus on positive emotions. As social media becomes polarized, consumers crave authentic connection. Brands that offer community and belonging build stronger relationships.
This tension requires careful consideration.
Brands must strive to create playful experiences that are not only engaging but also authentic, meaningful, and aligned with their core values. It’s about finding the balance between capturing attention and building lasting connections, understanding the needs of Gen Z while avoiding the pitfalls of feeding into a cycle of superficiality.
The “Playful Extravaganza” isn’t just about surface-level fun; it’s about strategically weaving playfulness into every facet of the brand experience to achieve tangible business results.
Here’s how it translates to ROI, with examples in action:
- Increased sales: Playful packaging and marketing can stimulate impulse purchases and drive overall sales volume. For instance, OMO Vibes’ collaboration with Spotify, with CBA’s vibrant packaging design, brings joy to a mundane chore, effectively boosting brand visibility on crowded shelves and driving sales.
- Increased sales: Playful packaging and marketing can stimulate impulse purchases and drive overall sales volume. For instance, OMO Vibes’ collaboration with Spotify, with CBA’s vibrant packaging design, brings joy to a mundane chore, effectively boosting brand visibility on crowded shelves and driving sales.
- Enhanced customer loyalty: Customers who forge an emotional connection with a brand are more likely to remain loyal and make repeat purchases. Who Gives a Crap has revolutionized the toilet paper market with its fun, eco-friendly approach, including cheeky, humorous text about sustainability in each package, building brand loyalty and promoting ethical consumption in a lighthearted way.
- Amplified brand advocacy: Playful experiences encourage customers to share their positive encounters, fostering brand advocacy and organic word-of-mouth marketing. PepsiCo Design’s Cheetos Mansion perfectly captured the brand’s playful essence, generating significant social media buzz and fostering deeper brand engagement.
Credit: Pepsico
- Elevated employee morale: A playful brand culture can attract and retain top talent, boosting employee morale and overall productivity. Ben & Jerry, for instance, consistently ranks high in employee satisfaction surveys.
Beyond these core examples, we see playful strategies driving success across diverse industries. Consider Butt butter in New Zealand, where humor sparks conversation and captures attention, driving brand awareness and encouraging consumers to give it a try. Nutter Butter’s TikTok account amplifies their playful side and drives brand relevance, while Liquid Death uses aggressive marketing to create a strong brand identity and attract a loyal following. Duolingo, with its quirky owl mascot and playful gamification, demonstrates how to keep users engaged and motivated, driving app usage and promoting language learning in a fun and accessible way. La Vie challenges industry norms with its bold and humorous marketing of plant-based food alternatives, showcasing how playfulness can drive brand differentiation and capture the attention of environmentally conscious consumers. Even collaborations, like the McDonald’s x Cactus Plant Flea Market Happy Meal for adults, or the Nike x Ben & Jerry’s “Chunky Dunky” sneaker, demonstrate the power of surprise and nostalgia to drive sales and generate buzz. And who can forget Crocs x Balenciaga, with their outlandish and unexpected designs, demonstrating the power of surprise and humor to generate social media buzz and position brands as innovative and daring.
The challenge for brands is clear: how to embrace fun without falling into the trap of superficiality? How to engage with different facets of the same audience—who, at times, seek purpose and depth, and at others, lightness and escapism?
The answer may lie in moving beyond binary thinking and designing portfolios and experiences that accompany this natural alternation of moods. Between mindfulness and rave, there’s a vast territory to explore. And it’s in this vibrant and unpredictable space that playfulness proves more necessary than ever.
Authenticity is the cornerstone of success. Thus, is your brand ready to play?
Consider these critical questions:
- Brand personality: Is your brand already perceived as approachable, friendly, or inherently innovative? Playfulness should complement your brand’s core values, not contradict them.
- Target audience: Does your target audience appreciate humor and unconventional approaches? Ensure that your playful initiatives resonate with your target audience and avoid alienating them.
- Competitive landscape: Are your competitors already embracing playfulness? If so, how can you differentiate yourself?
- Internal culture: Does your company culture foster creativity, experimentation, and a willingness to embrace the unexpected?
- Risk tolerance: Are you prepared to take calculated risks to capture attention and stand out from the crowd?
- Consistency: Cultivate a consistent level of playfulness across all your brand touchpoints, from your website to your customer service interactions.
At CBA, we understand the transformative power of play. We empower brands to unlock their playful potential through:
- Strategic playful brand development: We collaborate with you to define your brand’s unique playful personality and identify opportunities to inject joy into your customer experiences.
- Captivating visual identity creation: Our design team crafts vibrant, memorable visual identities that capture the essence of your brand’s playfulness.
- Innovative packaging design: We transform everyday products into delightful experiences with innovative and engaging packaging designs.
- Compelling activation campaign development: We develop creative campaigns that capture attention, spark conversation, and drive measurable results.
This article is the second in a series inspired by the insights introduced in our Pulse 2025 report.
