It’s officially warm! We threw off our long sleeves and day by day we see the growing number of people who choose to spend their time outside in the company of good food and friends, having walks in the nature or doing all the different types of outdoor activities that the warm weather allows for.

While temperatures keep going over 25 degrees, one of the best feelings outside are those pleasantly surprising moments of cool freshness coming from the surrounding bars and restaurants, refreshing cold drinks or the ice cream temptations that greet the yearning looks in the hot weather.

Temperature is not the only thing that is rising. Along with it, people’s desire for adventure, travel and pleasure also goes high. No wonder the preparation for the summer season happens throughout the rest of the year, and the more serious tasks are being put off. Well, renovations excluded.

The passion that goes through the veins of people is the perfect condition for product integrations that support and encourage the adventurous vibe. Summer is the time when people do not want to miss out on the moments of fun; a time when people want to make the most of every minute, while the late sunsets allow us to be more active in the bigger part of the day.

In harmony with the predisposed consumer, summer is the perfect time for brands to demonstrate their creative energy that will keep the audience engaged all season long, thus creating an affirmative association through their active role in those pleasant emotions. Because, as we know, emotions drive success in advertising.

Summer offers an unlimited resource of DTC (direct-to-cosumer) campaign ideas that ensure visibility and memorable integrations. Food and drinks, cosmetics and toiletries, sporting equipment for outdoor activities such as cycling, running, rafting, hiking; tents, gardening and remodeling tools – there isn’t a category that cannot find its fit into the summer context, and now is the time to seize the moment.

The good thing is that the moment is about three months long. Three months that are suitable for the launch of new products and services, as well as for empowering the popularity and market share of existing ones.

This year the month of May welcomed one of the most popular Italian beers for the first time on the Bulgarian market. The launch was organized as a three-day Italian-style holiday at the heart of Sofia, during a sunny May weekend. As one of the faces for the campaign, the brand chose the cheerful Leo Bianki who demonstrated his mastery in the preparation of Italian recipes.

Again through a brand in the Drinks category, last year a summer campaign helped popularize the route with the Rhodope narrow gauge railway line between Septemvri and Dobrinishte as an unforgettable summer experience, and won awards for corporate social responsibility as an example of positive change that refreshed the tourist trip. You can remind yourselves of the campaign here.

Our long-standing partner – ice cream brand Froneri Bulgaria, traditionally engages in associations with the opinion leaders from the universe of bSTARS, to empower their summer communication. In 2020, the highly energetic Nikolaos Tsitiridis joined the launch of the new BOSS ice cream through an interactive and fun campaign across social media, on the air, as well as in outdoor locations. It was namely there that we shot two videos that positioned the brand in a creative and authentic way. In a series of fun questions and tons of emotion, people had the opportunity to participate and win a BOSS ice cream.

In 2021, again with Froneri Bulgaria, for the launch of their new ice cream flavor FAMILIA Strashen Peach, we carried out an exclusive interactive communication of the brand, developed through a sequence of premium forms and positioning. We reached the culmination of the interactive communication and the effective positioning of the brand on the day of the video's launch and the day after.

The beloved Mlechko entered the real environment and atmosphere of the weather forecast.With its emotional virtual guest appearance, magically transforming from a part of the sun into its true image, the 3D animation of the character literally "came to life" in the studio, capturing the audience's attention on Mlechko, dancing in a fun rhythm, close to the anchor.

Internationally, some examples for summer brand activities include active audience engagement with a “Top 5” list of favorite summer activities, told through a user selection of video content. With the approach of the new school year, the period gives an ample inspiration for “back to school” outdoor campaigns for children and their parents.

Summer is freedom – the freedom to make the most of your time and to choose from a sea of opportunities. Brands have the opportunity to send their message through the screen, the TV or radio air, as well as entirely offline by using creative ways of communication, diving into the consumer emotion of the summer days and nights. And consumers not only buy a product – they make it part of their summer experience. That is exactly why brands that want to engage the audience in thoughtful campaigns will catch the wave of the perfect mean between strategic short-term activation and long-term brand building.

There are countless examples of successful campaigns with a taste of summer. Why not be one of them?

By Konstantina Bandutova