The origins of April Fools’ Day are mysterious, and historians haven’t been able to pinpoint exactly how the annual celebration of hoaxes began. But these days, it’s a bona-fide marketing tradition.
With numerous brands getting in on the joke each April 1, the name of the game is to grab consumer attention with weird, funny, and sometimes gross stunts. ADWEEK rounds up this year’s most unusual April Fools’ Day pranks from brands.
Olipop and Hidden Valley Ranch
Prebiotic soda brand Olipop has partnered with Hidden Valley Ranch for a limited-edition “Ranch Lovers Pack,” including soda flavors like the classic salad dressing and Garlic Ranch. While the products themselves are fake, the two brands sent creators real Olipop cans wrapped in the Hidden Valley Ranch branding to create buzz online.
Duolingo and Carnival Cruise Line
Duolingo is a prank master—remember when it faked the death of its mascot Duo last month? Now, the language-learning app has teamed up with cruise line Carnival to offer the trip of a lifetime: a five-year global voyage at sea, complete with full language immersion, cultural exploration, and an “unreasonable amount of shrimp.” If cruisers don’t keep up with their language lessons—during each of the 1,826 days on the ship—“the owl will deny you the knowledge of eternal peace,” according to the video’s narration.
If five years sounds like a long time to be at sea, don’t worry—you could just opt for the free month of Super Duolingo, special offers on a shorter Carnival cruise, or a piece of the Duolingo World Cruise merch.
Yahoo
In a world of endless meeting invites, video calls, and “circling back” over email, many people are looking for a way to escape the digital noise. With the Yahoo Agricultural Interface, you can touch grass—literally—without ever logging off. The tech giant’s grassy keyboard really works and is available to purchase on Yahoo’s TikTok shop for a limited time. The stunt reminds those who are chronically online to take a break and ground themselves.
Nutella
Imagine a vacation where you can immerse yourself in a Nutella-shaped house, complete with hazelnut and cocoa scented sheets, croissant pillows, Nutella pool floaties, a waffle maker, and a machine that dispenses the chocolate hazelnut spread. The brand teased the Nutella BnB, a home rental in Lake Placid, NY. But sadly for sweet tooths, the rental is not actually taking bookings.
Whisker
Pet tech company Whisker, maker of the automatic litter box Litter-Robot, is offering a CAT PÙ / NO. 2 candle to anyone who places an order on April 1. While the candle promises a primal, litter box-inspired scent, it actually just smells like roses—a tongue-in-cheek nod to how Litter-Robot eliminates odors.
Manscaped and Dude Wipes
Dude Wipes and Manscaped promise to take men’s grooming to a “hole” new level (sorry). The two brands released a faux grooming tool, called the Dudeman 2.0, that claims to “revolutionize butt tech” with interchangeable heads for optimal trimming, buffing, and cleansing. The brands are calling it a “hole in one” (again, we can only apologize).
Mr. T’s Pierogies
For your next self-care night, lather your skin in mashed potato face cream and kick back with a pair of mini pierogi eye patches. Food brand Mr. T’s Pierogies has released a fake pampering kit. Honestly, though? Pierogi skin cream sounds kind of soothing.
GlassesUSA.com
Hands up if you’ve ever struggled to clean your glasses and resorted to the corner of a T-shirt, which is exactly what you’re not supposed to do. But what if your whole outfit doubled as a cleaning cloth—and was fashionable, too? Enter the Microfiber Collection from GlassesUSA.com. Is this the next wave of athleisure?
Dunkin’
After years of brands playing April Fools’ pranks, Dunkin’ recognizes that consumers may have some trust issues. Though Dunkin’ has gotten in on the joke before, this time around it’s skipping the tricks and offering a real deal. The brand will give away 1 million free hot or iced coffees or cold brews to Dunkin’ Rewards members who enter the code “ThisIsNotAJoke” on the app.
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