The Surreal playbook
- Marc Jackson
- Mar 25
- 4 min read
A couple of weeks ago we had the BIGGEST attendee list we’ve ever had for a talk.
Why? Because Surreal were going to spill all on how they rose to fame and success.
And spill they did.
If you missed it, or just need the notes on file, we’ve condensed the key lessons in this newsletter, just for you.
1. Algorithm, meet Anarchy
Surreal’s hot take when it comes to socials is that they’re not here to convince you to buy cereal. They’re here to make you laugh, argue, or double-take.
For Surreal, that’s been in the form of:
Shoddy WordArt and Comic Sans rebrands.
Shameless and provocative name dropping – from claiming Serena Williams eats their cereal, to shading Frosties.
Convincing their founders to do a topless photoshoot for a new product launch.
The sillier it gets, the more it gets shared.
Lesson? People come to socials to procrastinate, not to buy. Entertain them and build recognition first, sell to them later.
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2. One metric to rule them all
More eyeballs = more sales.
Surreal’s team focuses on launching loads of creative experiments fast. They know 90% won’t work, but the 10% that hit? Chef’s kiss.
Maximising returns means...
Hyper-diverse ads: Meme-style statics, video testimonials, polished campaigns. Meta’s algorithm thrives on variety.
Test, don’t guess: No one knows what works until it’s live, so they test everything. Even a customer’s random Instagram pic outperformed high-budget shoots.
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3. Brandformance: the halo effect
The impact of brand isn’t always straightforward to measure. Sometimes you need a broader lens to see its full power.
Example?
Surreal launched a meta-ad featuring Gary Scott, parodying those Bang and the dirt is gone! cleaning commercials.
The ad itself didn’t crush ROAS benchmarks, but it created a halo effect, driving traffic and boosting performance across other campaigns.
Sometimes the “fun” stuff does more heavy lifting than it seems.
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4. What if you’re not a cereal brand?
Surreal’s tactics work for any brand willing to experiment – even B2B. Software company Semrush is a great example of this, getting laughs on LinkedIn simply by being more human.
Even if your tone is professional, Surreal say that audacity in little doses can go a long way. Start small:
Try one shitpost a week.
Use memes or screenshots that look organic.
Test absurd ideas – no one scrolls past blandness.
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5. When to focus on brand
Surreal was building its brand before the first box hit shelves. But this wasn’t about blowing cash on glossy billboards.
Fake it ’til you make it: Ever seen their billboards? Sometimes they’re real. Sometimes they’re Photoshopped – but no one needs to know that.
Pick your battles: Not every touchpoint needs to scream personality. Surreal focuses its quirks on socials and customer-facing comms. The back-end operations? Less jazz hands, more spreadsheets.
Spend big on moments that matter, but make the rest look expensive with creativity, not cash.
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6. Scrappy teams, big impact
Surreal runs lean:
One creative maestro.
One brand manager juggling 10 jobs at once.
One part-time designer.
The growth side? Equally tight:
One growth expert managing Meta spend.
One influencer manager working seeding magic.
And that’s it. They’ve managed six-figure Meta campaigns with this skeleton crew, proving you don’t need a battalion – just clever systems and bold ideas.
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7. Mastering Meta with minimum spend
Surreal makes every penny count by letting Meta’s machine-learning take the wheel.
Stop guessing: Launch all creative into one campaign and let Meta allocate the budget. If an ad flops, Meta will throttle its spend fast.
Cheap creative sources: They use customer photos, influencer content, and low-cost videos. High production value isn’t a must – it’s the volume of ads that matters to them.
And for those with even smaller budgets? Focus on one campaign per product and trust the algorithm to handle the rest.
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8. Emails that don’t bore people to death
Surreal’s email game mixes business with pleasure.
50/50 split: Half the emails are pure brand fun – the kind that are slightly nonsense and make you smile. The other half? Revenue drivers, clear CTAs, and discount promos.
Post-purchase delight: Their post-purchase flow leans heavy on personality, light on upselling. Getting customers to love your brand is a longer play than “buy more cereal now!”
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9. "What if my boss hates fun?"
Not all founders are on board with humour-first marketing. If that’s your struggle, Surreal’s advice is:
Test small: Instagram Stories are perfect – short-lived and low-stakes. Or pitch an April Fool’s campaign. It’s a one-day licence to be ridiculous.
Build a case: Break ideas into components and show where similar concepts have succeeded. Prove that your fun idea isn’t just creative – it’s effective.
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10. Amazon or website?
Amazon is the side hustle, not the main gig. Surreal keep their best offerings exclusive to their site because:
They want your email, not Jeff Bezos’s.
Custom bundles on their site drive higher average order values.
Amazon’s great for volume, but brand loyalty? That happens on your own turf.
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The final takeaways:
Don’t wait for the “perfect” campaign to take a risk.
Big budget or small, with a bit of creativity you’ve got all the resources you need to get started.
Be a little silly, a lot smart, and all-in on execution.
Because in marketing, like in cereal, it’s the surprises that keep people coming back for more.