I’ve used the app for a very long time and the Tremendous Bowl advert was a type of issues the place, should you don’t get it or should you didn’t get it within the 5 seconds that it was on display, you had been like, ‘What was that?’

And then you definitely needed to Google it.

To what extent was that a part of the technique, and did you see a giant uptick in folks looking for the model?

We requested ourselves, ‘What’s one thing {that a} Disney character would have that Duo doesn’t have?’

“That’s a cringeworthy theatrical stay present on ice.”

—Katherine Chan, world head of social media, Duolingo

Positively within the transient we knew that if we solely have 5 seconds, it most likely could be actually exhausting to convey advanced ideas or insights. So within the transient, we had been like, ‘Okay, what can we do in 5 seconds that can seize consideration and create a WTF second?’ We deliberately designed the spot to be that approach, and we positively noticed an uptick by way of customers in search of us, commenting about us—and that translated into the app as nicely.

To what extent do you try for continuity in telling Duo’s story? For instance, Duo had infants with Scrub Daddy. Is that one thing that you simply’re going to observe up on? Ought to we assume that the Duo that’s featured in every of those bits is identical Duo or a distinct variation of him?

To be trustworthy, it’s a little bit bit fluid. At this level, now we have about eight or so TikTok accounts. Numerous them are market-specific. So like, Duolingo Japan, or Duolingo Germany, for instance. Now we have barely completely different Duo’s per market, and we name it the Duo Multiverse. At the very least per particular person account, we attempt to preserve some continuity within the narratives and storylines, however we depart room for flexibility. Realistically, most individuals are experiencing social media on a post-by-post, very atomized foundation. So, we attempt to not be too treasured about it.

How did you provide you with the Duolingo on Ice concept?

April Idiot’s is a second that we’ve captured as a model for a number of years now, going again to earlier than I even began. The primary marketing campaign was like 5 years in the past. We’ve tried to construct it larger and greater since then. The Duolingo on Ice concept got here from the perception that now we have this inner, I assume you name it a ‘North star metric’—that we would like Duo to be extra well-known than Mickey Mouse. We requested ourselves, ‘What’s one thing {that a} Disney character would have that Duo doesn’t have?’ That’s a cringeworthy theatrical stay present on ice. It simply appeared to suit the narrative of Duo thirsting to be a star. Typically talking, we consider our Duolingo accounts as Duo’s social accounts. He kind of posts as an influencer would, proper? It’s extra about him and his persona than our product.