Marketing Featured Southeast Asia

Here’s some of the wittiest and quirkiest April Fools’ campaign from PH brands

by Teddy Cambosa

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April 3, 2023

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It’s that time of the year again: April Fools’ Day just recently happened, where practical jokes and gimmicks are seemingly normalised. And of course, brands are not late in riding this day of humour and jokes–all in the name of bringing laughs to their customers and presenting themselves as a more ‘approachable’ brand.

In the Philippines, brands are no stranger to these quirky April Fools’ gags, and so we listed some of the wittiest campaigns they did for this particular day.

Jollibee

The popular Filipino fast-food chain has its own April Fools’ gag in some of its markets. In the United Kingdom, it announced that it is rebranding to ‘Jolliwasp’, a gag referring to the change of the animal mascot from a bee to a wasp. In Canada, it announced that it is launching a limited-edition Jolly Spaghetti sandwich.

Angkas

If the popular motorcycle-hailing app is known for just motorcycles, is there a new vehicle they can tap next? As a gag, Angkas has announced the launch of ‘Bang-kas’, a play on the word bangka (vernacular for boat) and includes boat-related services such as boat-hailing, package delivery via boat, and we kid you not–watersports.

McDonald’s

Ever got that unsure moment when you were asked ‘what would you like to eat?’ Worry not, because these latest April Fools’ packaging gags from McDonald’s Philippines encapsulate that feeling. Some of the phrases include kahit ano (just anything), ikaw bahala (up to you), and iniisip ko pa (I’m still thinking).

Pizza Hut

Playing on the recent Internet craze on grilled balut (cooked fertilised duck egg), the Philippine arm of Pizza Hut has announced that it is launching a stuffed crust pizza with grilled balut.

Chooks to Go

This popular Filipino roast chicken brand just seemingly ignored its tagline Masarap kahit walang sauce (Delicious even without sauce), as it now announced that its roast chicken will now include a separate sauce packet for each purchase.