Cards Against Humanity20132010sGaming

Cards Against Humanity: Sold Nothing for $5

"On Black Friday they sold absolutely nothing for $5. 30,000 people bought it."

Anti-Marketing Stunt Humor Guerrilla

Crazy Score

99/100

Based on budget, tactics, era, and boldness

BudgetLow (Under $10K)

Brand sizeSMB

While every retailer raced to the bottom on Black Friday, Cards Against Humanity ran an absurdist anti-marketing campaign: they literally sold nothing, raised $71,145, and spent it on whatever they wanted.

The Full Story

For Black Friday 2013, CAH created a product called 'Nothing.' It was nothing. A $5 purchase that delivered nothing in return. The page explained this with complete honesty: 'For $5, nothing will be delivered directly to your door.' They then published a spreadsheet of exactly how they spent the $71,145 — most of it on employee bonuses. It became a satirical masterpiece about consumerism.

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Why It's Crazy

Actively refusing to participate in the most commercially important retail day of the year — and making that refusal a marketing event — is either genius or madness. They ran variations of this anti-marketing campaign for years.

The Strategy Behind It

CAH's brand is built on irreverence and intelligence. Their audience is self-aware. By satirizing Black Friday, they gave that audience something to share that made them feel clever. The product was the statement, and the statement was the brand.

The Results

$71,145 from Nothing. Massive earned media. Multiple years running variations (buying land, digging a $100,000 hole, selling 'BullSh*t'). Each campaign built deeper cult brand loyalty.

Steal This Idea

What convention in your industry can you publicly refuse to participate in — and make that refusal a statement? Anti-marketing only works if your brand values are clear enough that the irony lands. When it does, it builds the deepest loyalty.