Microsites are mini-sites that serve a limited yet important purpose, they address a specific part, purpose, or agenda for a brand that already has a full-fledged website to discuss in detail.
Microsites can be created to run ad campaigns for a new launch, which are usually short-lived ones, but the enduring ones that become iconic are usually the ones that present a fun activity that indirectly promotes one of the main products of a brand; or they can be ultra-engaging looks into a big part of a brand most people don’t know about.
14 Trendy Microsites Examples in 2022
Here are the top 14 trendiest microsite examples that fall into one of these categories. But what makes them so trendy? Let’s find out:
1. Elf Yourself By Office Max
The first microsite example on our list is Elf Yourself by Office Max.
Office Max is an office supplier with a super innovative marketing team who created a purely fun-themed microsite in 2006 that became the most successful microsite ever. It is an interactive one-page platform where you upload your photos and it creates a hilarious video of turning you into a Christmas elf, which you then get to share where ever with whoever. It made them famous indirectly but enormously. Elf Yourself is one of the prime examples of microsites.
2. Listening Together By Spotify
Another mega-successful microsite example is Listening Together. Spotify’s marketing team thought up a brilliantly fun idea to take the music-finding aspect of their service to another level. They created a one-page microsite with a 3d globe map of the earth spinning. You see different pairs of pins on them, meaning that two people from different parts of the world pressed play on the same music track at the same time, you hit on it, and bam, you have unearthed, (pun intended), a potentially favorite song.
3. My Creative Type By Adobe
A microsite example that has proved personality type determination microsites just work is My Creative Type. Adobe can’t be more famous with anyone who has ever needed to view something in a digital setting, but that didn’t stop them from creating a super fun microsite to intrigue a new wave of creation-minded folks into becoming actual clients. Here’s what they did:
They put a questionnaire on a page, where you are asked 15 questions to determine which of the 8 kinds of creative personality types you belong to. You answer each question revealing your thinking, behavior, ideology, and … which is followed by a goofy video of that aspect of you. Then it gives you your creative type, along with tips and tricks for what to do and where to go. It’s a piece of visual and intellectual entertainment meant to subtly turn you into an Adobe user.
4. What Is Your Food Personality By Weight Watchers
Weight Watchers build another type-finder microsite example to be inspired by. They are about successful dieting, right? And many who haven’t had much luck with it were oblivious of those of their eating habits that kept the pounds on.
So, the marketing people thought of a side project to boost business through a shortcut: a microsite with the ever-popular personality questionnaire theme. The user goes through a visually rich list of questions, telling them what kind of food personality they have and how it contributes to their weight gain or loss.
5. Xbox Museum By Microsoft
Microsoft delighted its Xbox fans with a beautifully and intelligently designed microsite containing a history of the Xbox consoles. Users get to be a character going through an interactive virtual timeline of Xbox’s significant milestones, like console launches and game releases, presented in the form of newspaper articles. It is quite the tour, gifted to fans and fans-to-be on the 20th anniversary of Xbox’s launch. it is surely among the microsite examples that would stick in your memory.
6. Life At Home By Ikea
Ikea has built its brand persona around turning your house into a home; ok, nothing new there. But then the pandemic hit in 2019, and the idea of home shifted a bit from the ultimate peaceful place, as people felt in prison in their houses. So Ikea thought of a microsite where they could harness that concept into a mini-marketing campaign.
They put the result of original research into how comfortable and peaceful furniture, meant to inspire peace, can contribute to mental health, despite all the pandemic-induced circumstances. Put in the form of a report, made richer and more intriguing by videos and questions, this post-Covid-themed microsite was just what the Covid-stricken home body needed to inspire them to buy furniture. a perfect example of microsites is to try a secondary, auxiliary marketing campaign on the side.
7. RS Components – 33 Ways 3d Printing Is Changing The World
3D printers hit the market, and they revolutionized quite a bit in the world, especially in the science, medical, and transport sectors, but many didn’t hear much about them. This created a wave of frustration in the patent holders and manufacturers.
They thought of getting busy with an infomercial type of campaign best executed in the form of a microsite. They put together 33 ways 3d printers transformed our reality and changed the world the way we knew it, presented in info-graphic pieces. It’s an interesting watch and a definite converter of viewers into 3d printer-believers and a perfect example of microsites that accomplish their purpose.
8. Inside Chanel by Chanel
Chanel does not need any promotion, as it is probably one of the most famous fashion brands. But they still felt like many younger generations may undervalue them, drowned in the sea of new fashion brands. So, they thought a little fun trip down the history lane would be a nice reminder that they are veterans of the fashion industry.
They launched Inside Chanel, a microsite using multimedia like videos, images, and texts that looks at all that is Chanel’s heritage: the people, places, events, and the nice things that made Chanel, Chanel. This microsite example is how many brands can go about re-establishing their relevance.
9. Farmer’s Market By Chipotle
Chipotle has won many hearts already, but then there is this recently-emerged crowd of foodies who are conscious of consuming organic-only produce and supporting non-corporate, small businesses. So, Chipotle put that concern to its advantage by creating a microsite that puts its patrons in direct touch with the small organic farms. This way, they can buy organic ingredients while supporting small family farms and reap the goodwill for chipotle as a fringe benefit. What better use of a microsite could there be? ad what better example of a microsite can be cited?
10. Questions In The Sky By Air France
Air France’s marketing department thought of planting the seed of its appeal in the minds of the next generations by launching a microsite for children where they can ask questions about air travel and have them answered playfully.
There is this dearly-mustachioed pilot who lives in the clouds, right? The child goes on a plane, is taken to that cloud, and asks the pilot a question, which is answered by him whimsically in a short video. This is a chief microsite example illustrating how a microsite can act as the ultimate side marketing campaign looking far into the future.
11. NASA Spacecraft By NASA
NASA and its spaceships already have quite the fan base. To add to their number or enthusiasm, NASA chronicled all its spaceship releases, portrayed in 3d, rotating visualizations, on a microsite, where it fascinates space aficionados and curious casual passers-by alike. This is a good example of microsites that intend to create publicity by raising awareness.
12. Urwhatupost.Com
This is among the most inspired microsites. People talk about food a lot, right? it’s like a never-dying conversation piece, one of its main subtopics being healthy food vs. junk food. Urwhatupost.com, a site that sells healthy food, created a microsite that shows how many convos about this topic are going on, on social media, at a given moment. Seemingly boring and trite, it fascinates people into actually checking it out and developing an interest in buying healthy food from the mother site, and it’s a microsite example of using the common behavioral trends to its full advantage.
13. Willitblend.Com By Blendtec
Blendec manufactures a wide range of industrial benders, that much is well-known. And they have promoted their products in all the mainstream ways. But then came the age of applications and social media, which bred a generation of people expecting an interactive way of being informed and entertained at the same time.
So the Blendec people got creative. They uploaded many videos on a microsite of a Blendec expert in a white coat using a Blendec blender to experiment with the oddest of everyday objects to see whether they will blend or not. He doesn’t say no to remote controls, shoes, irons, and a list of other freaky objects. The entertainment value is through the roof, the microsite is a big success, and it’s a true example of microsites that entertain you into becoming a customer.
14. Hubspot Website Grader
Hubspot has launched a website-grading microsite, where it presents you with one simple page where you type in your URL and email address, and it gives you a score, showing how well your website will do based on four key factors: speed, security, SEO, and mobile-friendliness. A good example of microsites that are simple one-page webpages but garner a ton of eager audiences.
Wrapping Up Microsite Examples
Microsites can be quite an asset for a brand if done right. Do some research on what kinds of format and content the audiences of your brand may respond well to, and get creative. You can only build one page and put a few things into it, but it can build you a reputation, a fan base, and the kind of popularity no other marketing strategy ever has.
Entertaining game-like activities, questionnaires that lead to personality type reveals, infographic display of fascinating yet unknown facts about related topics, videos of weird experimentations,… these all can build a microsite that gets people talking and brings traffic itself, AND the parent site, through word of mouth more than any other marketing gimmick. so go through the top 14 Microsite Examples listed above and get inspired.
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