When marketers take chances on big ideas, the payoff can be huge. For proof, look no further than Duolingo’s recent campaign in which the brand did something that would be unthinkable for most — it killed off its mascot, Duo.
Over the past several years, Duo has become a beloved internet presence, known for his “unhinged” antics and sometimes menacing presence playing off of the language learning app’s daily notifications reminding users to do their lessons. So when the brand used its social channels to announce that Duo “died” it was bound to get attention.
We used our social listening and analytics solution to understand exactly how big of an impact this campaign has had online.
How much conversation did the dead Duolingo owl campaign generate?
Over two weeks, from February 4 to February 17, 2025, there were about 169,000 mentions of Duolingo’s mascot. On February 11, 2025, the day the brand announced Duo’s death on social media, those mentions spiked by about 25,560%. Meanwhile, the hashtag #ripduo was used more than 45,000 times.
The clever campaign was bound to be a hot topic, but an international pop star helped extend its virality.
The day after the Duo death announcement, singer Dua Lipa expressed her condolences on X. Why Dua Lipa? Well, the Duolingo owl has been obsessed with her since 2021, a fact that has since become a key part of its “personality”. Her quote repost on X alone generated about 667,000 engagement actions, while her comment on the Duolingo Instagram announcement got over 141,000 likes.
To put all of these numbers into context, let’s take a look at another major marketing moment from around the same time — the Super Bowl.
Our analysis found that Doritos’ big game commercial generated more mentions than any other food and beverage brands’ that night. However, Duolingo’s campaign, which launched three days later, generated an even larger and longer-lasting spike in social media conversation. That resulted in major gains for the visibility of the brand overall.
In the five days before the Dead Duo campaign launch, there was an average of about 11,000 mentions of Duolingo each day. In the five days after, that average went up to over 59,900.
Why was the Duolingo Owl Is Dead campaign launch so successful?
One of the many reasons the Duo Is Dead campaign has had such a huge impact lies in the fact that it was such a big surprise. Duo and the unique identity he brings to the Duolingo brand have long been praised by industry experts and audiences alike. Plus, not only was the owl murder unexpected, it was well-timed, coming right when audiences thought the month’s biggest campaigns had passed. The brand has also gone all in on the campaign, from creating a story around Duo’s death to selling coffin-shaped boxes for Duo plushies.
Learn more about how timing and audience intelligence make for successful social marketing activations in our Ultimate Guide to Trendjacking.
Lastly, one big key to this launch’s success is that it was smartly on-brand. Having gained a reputation over the years for marketing that, Duolingo has a social media identity that fits perfectly with an irreverent move like murdering its mascot. So while the campaign was undoubtedly a risk, it was a calculated one that demonstrated a deep understanding of the brand’s fans.
Takeaways for marketers
Understand the conversations happening around your brand. Keeping tabs on the wider cultural conversations happening around your brand can highlight opportunities to better connect with audiences. This is true not only when it comes to targeting and messaging but also for campaign and activation timing.
Know your brand identity inside and out. Duolingo’s strong brand identity is the foundation for its authentic connection with audiences, which is why so many people are on board to see where the Dead Duo campaign goes. Knowing the ins and outs of “who” your brand is is crucial for crafting cohesive campaigns as well as assessing which creative risks do and don’t make sense.
Understand your connection with your audience. One thing about Duo the owl fans is that they have come to love the drama he stirs up. This new murder mystery chapter in his story delivers on that expected emotional connection in a new, unexpected way. Duolingo’s success in killing its mascot goes to show just how important it is to understand, meet, and sometimes subvert your audience’s expectations.
Meltwater’s social listening and analytics solution makes it easy to dive into what makes your market and audience tick so you can create campaigns with big impact. See how with a free demo.
