Prank Marketing Is Not All Fun and Games

I've always loved a good prank. I grew up watching TV shows centered around these elaborate plans. I follow accounts where friends or couples compete relentlessly to present the other with the best scheme. It's an addictive thing- watching something happening to someone else and thinking, "I would be SO angry or embarrassed if someone did that to me," and yet finding it hilarious at the same time.

It's no wonder brands would eventually think to infiltrate the market with this funny way of entertaining and grasping attention. Continually pushing pranks further and further to test boundaries, it was only a matter of time before a precedent was set. The 2009 marketing campaign of Toyota represents what going too far in prank marketing looks like, and it stands as a guide for other brands toying with the idea.

The Toyota strategy was a scheme to gather the personal information of unknowing individuals. People were encouraged to prank their friends by granting Toyota access to their email addresses along with other private information. The friends would later receive an email urging them to take a personality test. However, to get the final result, the participant had to agree to the terms of service, which discretely included giving permission to be contacted across all mediums. Over the next five days, they would receive emails, phone calls, and texts from a mysterious individual somewhere else in the world. The messages were harassing in nature and often inflicted fear on the people being pranked. At the end of the fifth day, they would receive a final email explaining the joke and that it's intention was to market the new Toyota Matrix. The mysterious person who had been scaring them was Toyota all along.

While some people did find this funny, many were angry. Amanda Duick, a self-proclaimed victim of the prank, felt she had reason and power to sue Toyota. Her lawsuit addressed the issues of emotional distress, negligence, and false advertising. Because of the prank, she believed she was being stalked and that her safety was threatened. It seems Toyota crossed the line with this strategy. They lost a $10 million lawsuit and cast a dark shadow on the concept of prank marketing, ensuring that brands to follow would certainly be more cautious.