I remember waking up Easter morning and my mom holding my siblings and I at the top of the stairs, blocking us from running down, as we were practically bursting with excitement. We were ready to run around our house and search for plastic Easter eggs in hopes to find chocolates or cash if we were lucky. However, in the public relations and marketing world, “Easter eggs” take on a new definition of hidden messages, images or references embedded within advertisements, products, or experiences as defined by AcrobatAnt.
The earliest Easter egg traces back to the video game console Atari and their game “Adventure”. Atari didn’t want to give developers personal credit for the game and instead have the game accredited to the whole company. One Atari developer Warren Robinet, decided to take matters into his own hands and added his own secret extension within the game. If players clicked on a certain grey dot the message “created by Warren Robinet” appeared, giving credit to himself, producing one of the first Easter eggs.
Disney has their own version of an Easter egg, the “hidden mickey”. Hidden Mickeys are the silhouette of Mickey Mouse’s face, strategically hidden around Disney’s parks in rides or attractions and can be found in different Disney movies and TV shows. The Walt Disney Company has never compiled a list of the hidden Mickeys they have placed, leading Disney fans to always be on the lookout for new and undiscovered ones, whether they are intentional by the company or not. Hidden Mickeys have created a challenge to keep fans engaged as they can search for them in new movies and TV shows or on their visits to Disney parks. Hidden Mickeys can make fans feel like they accomplished something or unlocked a special secret when they spot one. The hidden Mickey easter egg keeps fans engaged and is easy for Disney to implement in anything they produce to keep the phenomenon going.
Google is famous for their Easter eggs with different hidden games and tricks. If you Google “do a barrel roll,” your screen will start spinning. If you Google “pacman,” a custom Google pacman game appears. Googling “askew” will tilt the page. Most recently, if you search “Punch” the viral monkey who was abandoned by his family appears with hearts and Punch’s face. These little secret games and tricks are fun secrets Google users can accidentally discover. They make Google feel more human-like and humorous because of the unexpected search result. When someone hears about the Easter eggs, they probably want to go try it for themselves on their own Google page: hence the marketing magic behind the egg.
It’s impossible to bring up Easter eggs without thinking of Taylor Swift and her famous clues in her music videos, lyrics, social media posts and outfits. For example, at the end of the US leg of the Eras Tour, Taylor consistently wore blue dresses which match the album cover of her fifth studio album, 1989. She then announced 1989 (Taylor’s Version) at her final Los Angeles show in August of 2023. In the “Bejeweled” music video, Taylor presses an elevator button from a set of 13 with a purple button teasing “Speak Now (Taylor’s Version)” and a blue button for “1989 (Taylor’s Version)”. Small details like this make Swifties feel like they are ahead of other fans, finding out hidden information before others, making their experience and interaction with Taylor’s content more individualized. Swift’s Easter eggs and hints are strategic and calculated. She has said her favorite messages to communicate with fans are “cryptic” ones.
Easter eggs are a strategic way for brands to connect with their audience and create a sense of belonging and community. Easter eggs can spark conversations as users feel like they are a part of something that is secretive and exclusive. Consumers who happen to stumble upon the egg feel special and it’s more of an emotional experience than finding out through someone else. Easter eggs can build a personal connection between the brand and the user, building a stronger relationship. Just like candy-filled plastic eggs hidden in the yard, Easter eggs in marketing can reward those who look past the surface.
