Recruit Redditors for Your Marketing Needs

The next-great marketer is more likely to come
from Reddit than Harvard.

Whoever created the first The Most Interesting Man in the World meme deserves a cushy job from Dos Equis. Sure, the commercials, created by Euro RSCG Worldwide  went viral themselves. Similar to Chuck Norris, The Most Interesting Man in the World is known for achieving unachievable greatness. With enviable swagger, and perfect poise, The Most Interesting Man in the World is exactly as his name implies.

 

But in recent years, the commercials have trended second to the popular meme. You can’t visit a 9Gag, Cheezburger, or Tickld , without seeing a The Most Interesting Man in the World meme. The setup and punchline are so easy to understand, replicate and share. The meme is likely selling as many Dos Equis beers as any commercial advertising.

Viral marketing is the next evolution of marketing. And similar to other forms of evolution, it occurs gradually, without anyone truly noticing. You may know it better as content marketing. Or social media marketing. But the goal is the same; create memorable content that is shared across the web. In effect, creating brand advocates who actively and openly endorse your message. All the great companies are participating.

From GoDaddy

 

to Old Spice

 

and Taco Bell

 

even Sprint.

 

Their approach is simple. “See our content. Like our content. Share our content.” It’s (relatively) cheap marketing. Turning viewers/users into brand advocates. When a consumer shares a brand’s content with a friend, the brand is receiving a word-of-mouth endorsement, along with forging an additional advertising channel.

Every marketing firm and advertising agency is looking to become the next viral thing. To create the next internet sensation. Unfortunately for them, it usually comes organically.

Like from some sinister looking cat,

 

or an innocent kid on drugs.

 

But sometimes brands have success. Gangnam Style wasn’t an accident. The record label perfectly calculated their marketing strategy. By first building a Korean audience, then gradually promoting Psy on American media networks, they were able to turn Gangnam Style into the most viral video of all-time

 

Devil’s Due, a horror movie, which by all accounts, bombed in the theaters, succeeded in their viral marketing. Unfortunately the movie couldn’t hold up to the “scares,” of their prank video. But the buzz for the opening weekend was huge.

 

In the very near future, it will be the creators of viral content that will become the most successful marketers. These creators understand what the internet is looking for. How to develop it. Promote it. Optimize and share it.

You won’t hear me claiming to be on the level of any of the content creators above, but I do understand the importance of honing the craft. Experimenting. Practicing. Testing. Failing. Learning.

Today I created some content, a gif, to promote an event. SHARE if You LIKE.

It May Be Stupid, But It’s Also Dumb

Don’t suffer from the Sprint Framily syndrome. Common symptoms include “wtf,” “ok?” and “uh-huh…”

When asked about his advertising strategy, celebrated marketer, and brilliant slogan-ist, Patrick Star, stated, “well maybe it is stupid, but it’s also dumb.” If you recall, Mr. Star is the creator of the vastly viral marketing campaign, “Chum is Fum.”

We should all heed Mr. Star’s advice, and keep it simple, and stupid.  As long as it still “kinda” makes sense.

Sprint’s new marketing campaign, known as “Meet the Frobinson Family,” has decided to take a slightly different approach. Can anyone explain exactly what this commercial is about?

 

 

The advertising industry is racing to develop commercials ideally suited for recycling as digital content . My history may be off, but Old Spice was the first one. Or at least the first-best-one. I see this commercial as a turning point in advertising:

 

 

This commercial, with its silly premise and attention-grabbing quick-edits, went viral. Quickly. I’d wager as many, or more, people saw this commercial online, than on television.

And since then, every company has tried to replicate its ridiculousness. In today’s digital culture, it’s become more important to create viral content, than quality content. Unfortunately the two are rarely the same.

It’s only a matter of time before companies begin making commercials, in an attempt to pander to the web, specifically about cats…

 

 

Sprint is now hopping on the viral bandwagon. Falling significantly behind Verizon and AT&T in customers, they’re throwing an advertising “Hail Mary.”  The problem isn’t that the commercial is dumb and stupid (it is). It’s that the commercial isn’t clear whom they are targeting.

Is Sprint explaining, via the Frobinson family, that any type of person can be on your plan? Probably. But to whom are they attempting to target? Heads-of-households generally make these types of purchases. Are the dynamic characters resonating with these decision-makers? Can they relate to any of them?

Or is Sprint’s goal to simply create a uniquely confusing commercial? When Old Spice made their “Man on a Horse,” commercial, they were targeting two groups. Young males (with humor), and Mom (with a good-looking male actor). These two groups make up the majority of deodorant purchases. Sprint, however, doesn’t seem to be targeting any person in particular. Not the head-of-household. Not Mom. Nor Dad. Not even teenagers.

If anyone, they seem to be targeting social outcasts and outsiders. And how many friends and family will they have to add to their Framily plan?