April Fools’ Day has come and gone once again, bringing with it a wave of pranks and playful antics. As always, brands didn’t miss the opportunity to join in on the fun, using humor to engage their audience and showcase a more lighthearted side.
In the Philippines, companies have fully embraced this tradition, rolling out clever and amusing April Fools’ campaigns. Here are some of the most creative and entertaining ones we spotted this year.
Cebu Pacific
The popular low-cost airline seems to really tap into our shared love for singing, as they ‘announced’ that beginning April 1st, passengers must be able to birit or sing at a prolonged moment using a higher-pitched voice. Moreover, it also ‘asked’ passengers to practice their choice of song before boarding the plane to ‘ensure a timely, smooth, and seamless boarding experience’.
McDonald’s
This one is too relatable: McDonald’s April Fool’s gag plays on the irresistible urge to get some French fries from your friend or loved one, but teases the viewer that it’s April Fools, and that the fries should be for only who actually bought them.
LBC
Remember the time when Neil deGrasse Tyson said in an interview that spherical boxes are more efficient than conventional square boxes? Worry no more, as popular courier service LBC is proud to ‘release’ to the public its kilobox bilog, the ‘first’ round box available for shipping anything round nationwide.
Clover Chips (Leslie’s)
When you think of an exotic chip flavor, what do you imagine? Wasabi? Peach? Definitely not balut–right? Turns out, Clover Chips wants to ‘elevate’ the chip experience with their ‘Sea Salt Balut’ flavor, perfect for those who want to try our exotic delicacy without the risk of encountering a fully fertilised duck when you’re just about to eat it.
Angkas
If you really are very environmentally-conscious with your choice of transportation for travelling, popular motorcycle ride-hailing service Angkas has announced its eco-friendly venture ‘Angkas EcoMode’, giving a zero-emissions-guaranteed travel experience. Plus, with their riders switching to bicycles, passengers are provided with proper gear equipment for safety–you can also pedal for a proper workout!
Pizza Hut
For this gag, pizzas are the true stars of the show–but Pizza Hut now says their Hawaiian Pizza is now pineapple-free? And while you are still processing this, perhaps you can beat the heat with their three ‘newly-launed’ pizza punches. The flavors ‘available’ are Hawaiian Supreme Punch, Super Supreme Punch, and Bacon Cheeseburger Punch.
Domino’s Philippines
If the last entry shared that they are removing pineapples fully in their Hawaiian, this one fully embraces it, perhaps a bit too much. While the brand asks the question if it’;s genius or a joke, the real question is: if someone gets the pizza with the biggest diameter, will they have a pineapple of the same diameter on standby?
Trust Condoms
This one…you don’t really play it in public. This condom brand has ‘announced’ a new condom variant that releases a high-pitched note every time it is…used. (Don’t ask us for more context).
Jollibee (United Kingdom)
The British arm of Jollibee really had to go the extra mile–quite literally. Introducing the Long Spaghetti, Jollibee ‘claims’ they had to discontinued every other product just to promote their new product, stretching across huge swaths of land in the UK.
CoCo Fresh Tea & Juice
Want to enjoy a cup of milk tea but you’re still watching your weight? This milk tea brand has released ‘CoCo Air’, the true zero-calorie milk tea experience! Just make sure to savour every last drop of it!
Philippine Star
Last but not least, Philippine Star really plays into our frustration of images not loading properly on social media across our phones–but this one just really makes chuckle at how we fell for it the first time we saw it.
