Dairy Gets a Booooost From Social Media

It’s hard to make milk a hot, new, branded commodity, but that is exactly what Real California Milk attempts to do with its Happy Cows campaign.  The now ubiquitous “Got milk?” campaign may have been successful in increasing overall milk sales, but smaller milk brands are not known for launching national advertising campaigns.  As a result, a lot of people consume dairy products like milk and cheese with more concern for convenience and price than brand name. 

Real California Milk's national television and online campaign aims to foster brand loyalty among dairy lovers by positioning Real California Milk as a better dairy brand because their milk comes from happy cows.  Their television ads feature a number of cows from all over the world that want to be California cows.  Viewers get to vote on which cow will receive the honor of mooooving to California on the Happy Cows Audition Site.  They hope that the voting will generate online buzz via social media and create awareness of California Milk as a hip, new, quality dairy brand.

Nothing says “hip” and “new” like social media (in combination with a hip and new overall communication strategy, of course).  It worked nationally with Barack Obama.  It worked locally with the Charleston Animal Society’s Spike vs. Biscuit mascot race.  Now it might work with Real California Milk.  It seems that getting customers involved with a brand leads to a more loyal customer base than just throwing advertisements at them.  Customers seem to be involved with the California Happy Cows campaign because many are posting plugs for their favorite cows on the company's Facebook page, commenting on pictures and videos of the cows, and, of course, voting for their favorite cow on the Real California Milk Web site.

Social Ads for Social Media

Facebook does not have many ads on its site, but the ads that they do have are different from most banner ads because they are strategically targeted to an individual's profile, and they are socially interactive.  This type of interactive ad makes sense with the demographic of people on Facebook who already consider the Internet very social.

The ads sometimes give viewers the option of "Like-ing" the ad, becoming a fan of the product or company on their Facebook page, or sending an online RSVP to the Facebook event being advertised.  This might not be that different from the usual click-through ad except for one rather unusual feature.  If you choose to get rid of the ad by clicking the small gray "x" in the upper right corner, you are asked to comment on why you do not like the ad.

Comment box that appears when you try to remove an ad on Facebook.

This comment box serves as a useful tool to create a database of customer preferences and conduct market research.  As Facebook tells it, "Over time, this information helps us deliver more relevant ads to our users."

Facebook already uses a lot of its users' information to segment its advertising like, location, age, sex, keywords, education, workplace, relationship status, relationship interests, and languages.  You can find out more about how Facebook segments its users on the Facebook advertising page.

I know from personal experience that the ads on my Facebook page are very responsive to changes I make to my profile.  Once for April Fools Day I changed my relationship status to "engaged" and I was immediately barraged with ads about wedding rings, dresses, photographers, venues, caterers, and more.  Also, when I was studying abroad in Barcelona last spring, my Facebook advertisements were mostly in Spanish or Catalan.

Facebook's interactive advertising style with the opportunity to remove ads, comment boxes, "Like" buttons, "Become fan" buttons that link to the advertiser's Facebook page, etc., is a new type of online advertising that works well with the site's already interactive nature.  It also reflects a general increase in Web sites integrating "social" options that make interaction between companies and consumers easier.

Social Media and Flip Video: The Perfect Marriage

Traditional media was once the only way people could spread information to mass audiences but new technology and social media have changed all that.  Cheap digital cameras and social networking sites like YouTube and Facebook have enabled common Internet users to become their own media outlet and share information with their social networks.

Just as traditional media shares information with the public, social media shares information with social networks.  The new Flip Video™ digital camcorder is perfectly suited for social media because it empowers people to take and share video more easily.  To maximize on this connection to social media, Flip Video™ has created a "community" using many forms of social media.

Their Facebook page allows Flip Video™ users to share their favorite videos and ask technical support questions from other fans.  Their MySpace page has exclusive videos from the Vans Warped Tour '09, forums, and comments.  Their YouTube channel has videos of "example Flip-able moments" like a flash rave on the beach, two babies playing together, a giraffe, etc.  Their Twitter account posts special offers, discounts, and contests.  They also send out a newsletter to more than 465,725 fans that you can sign up for from their Web site.

Some British girls use the Flip Video™ to record their weekend shenanigans.

Without social media, the Flip Video™ would probably not have as much success.  Social media platforms like YouTube and Facebook enable people to share their videos easily, so a simple, highly portable camcorder like the Flip Video™ just makes the video sharing process easier.

In addition, social media has created a culture of people who like to share information about themselves with their social networks and the public, so they will be more interested in being able to shoot video wherever, whenever.  More private cultures and individuals would probably not be as enthusiastic.

Verizon Jumps on Vampire (and Social Media) Bandwagon

In an effort to tap into the vampire frenzy that began with the Twilight saga, Verizon Wireless partnered with MTV to launch a cross-platform murder mystery miniseries about students at Valemont University who turn out to be (spoiler alert!) vampires.  A girl's brother is murdered at Valemont, and all she has is his old Verizon Wireless phone conveniently packed with tons of video footage, text messages, and emails to help her solve the mystery.

Mini episodes of Valemont play each week after MTV's The Hills and The City and are then posted on MTV's Valemont Web site.  You can help solve the mystery by signing up with Verizon to receive text clues to your phone or by "enrolling" on the Valemont University Official Web site where you can send and receive messages with the show's characters on a virtual Verizon Wireless phone.

You can also interact with characters and other fans on the Facebook page, character Twitter pages, flikr page, blog, interactive forum, and more.  For the few hundred or thousand people that are interested, these Web sites and social media platforms offer lots of opportunities to get to know the characters and get involved with the story.

According to the 2008 Multiscreen Cross-platform Media & Advertising Engagement Study conducted by MTV Networks Research in collaboration with Harris Interactive and MauroNewMedia, viewers of The Hills who interact with the show both on TV and online are more responsive to the products advertised across those platforms.  They found that "advertising retention and associated value increases as a user is more engaged and experiences more platforms.  Advertising across platforms results in exponentially more interest in buying or considering the product advertised." (slide 20)

According to this research, fans of The Hills and The City who engage with the shows across platforms (TV and online) will be more receptive to the Valemont advertising across platforms.  So the cross-platform fans of The Hills and The City may be engaged, interested targets for the Valemont Verizon campaign, but I still do not think the Valemont miniseries is an effective strategy to sell phones.

This miniseries is pretty cool (and I can't wait to find out what happens!) but I do not think it was very strategic of Verizon Wireless.  As Al Ries said in his article, The TGIF Revolution is Nothing Without a Marketing Strategy, on AdAge, throwing social media at a communications problem does not always fix it.

Do people buy phones because they are prominently featured in online murder mysteries?  Will this Valemont miniseries actually lead to a shift in consumer behavior?  I find the Web sites and episodes entertaining, but I am not going to buy the Valemont Verizon Wireless phone or change my cell service provider, and I do not think many people will.

¡Social Media Fiesta!

Generation Y (13- to 29-year-olds) are a pretty influential group.  This may seem surprising considering not all of Gen Y can even legally drive, but more than half of all household vehicle purchases are influenced by Gen Y, according to a 2006 Resource Interactive report.

Ford appears to be aware of this statistic.  The 2010 American launch of the new Ford Fiesta targets Gen Yers with a hip-yet-goofy online campaign called the "Fiesta Movement."   The Fiesta Movement integrates a ton of different forms of social media and really lets customers get involved with the car.  Ford selected 100 young, cool "agents" to drive a Fiesta (for free!) for 6 months, complete a series of "missions" (one each month) with their Fiesta, and chronicle their experiences on blogs, Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, YouTube, and any other social network or sharing site you could think of.

How many people do YOU think can fit in a Fiesta? Find out on the Fiesta Flickr page

Why am I suddenly noticing this now?  The "agents" were set to work back in April, and the Fiesta Movement is almost finished!  Answer: CollegeHumor.  One of Ford's "agents" got Jake and Amir, two relatively famous online personalities from CollegeHumor, to take her Fiesta for a road trip this week. They are Tweeting (@jakeandamir) about where they are in the country and the first fans who find them get a free dinner.  They have also been posting videos of their Fiesta adventures and their fans have been very responsive so far.

Without any traditional media ads placements, this Fiesta Movement campaign and partnership with CollegeHumor demonstrates an emerging trend of marketing to 13- to 29-year-olds using just online buzz.  (Just look at how unexpectedly popular Snakes on a Plane was thanks to online buzz!) It also demonstrates companies' growing interest in Generation Y as a profitable and influential market segment.

Starbucks VIA™ Creates Community Online

The Starbucks® experience is not cheap, and because of the recent economic downturn, the brand has been facing some trouble.  Starbucks® gained initial success by marketing itself as a comfortable, reliable "third place," a place away from work and home where customers can enjoy a coffee, friendly service, and a sense of community.  Now, Starbucks® is launching the new Starbucks VIA™ ready brew, and I have to wonder how these portable coffee packets fit with the brand's "third place" promise.

The coffee-maker's social media strategy may shed some light on how they are creating community and a "third place" even with Starbucks VIA™.  These instant coffee packets allow Starbucks® drinkers to enjoy their coffee anywhere and anytime.  The tag line for Starbucks VIA™ is "never be without great coffee," but that seems to contradict the brand's core values of community and the "Starbucks® experience."  Unlike any other Starbucks® product in the past, the customer community of Starbucks VIA™ is not in Starbucks® stores, it is mostly online.

Starbucks® created a Web site where customers can post their experiences with Starbucks VIA™ using text, pictures, or video, and they can rate other customers' posts.  They can also share their favorite recipes that use Starbucks VIA™.  One customer posted step-by-step instructions on how to enjoy Starbucks VIA™ in the shower.

Another customer suggested that putting Starbucks VIA™ in your shampoo would help boost your hair's color (if you're a brunette, that is), but most people just raved about how delicious it is.

This online community seems rather successful considering the hundreds of posts and ratings, but the amount of involvement could be because Starbucks® offers everyone who posts a chance to win prizes.  I also noticed that some people from Starbucks® posted recipes, but not experiences.

The other day, one of my friends went to Starbucks® and the barista asked her if she would like to buy a pack of Starbucks VIA™ to donate to the troops overseas.  My friend said yes, and included a hand-written note to the soldiers.  She even thinks she got her drink for free!  This service might be another way Starbucks VIA™ is creating community among drinkers near and far, even when they are not in an actual Starbucks® cafe.

UPDATE

I went to T.G.I. Friday's® last night with my roommates and my roommate's three-year-old niece to redeem our free burger coupons.  My roommates report that they thoroughly enjoyed their Jack Daniels® chicken sandwiches, especially the crunchy onions on top.  

Because I am a vegetarian, I was just going to order something else, only to find that T.G.I. Friday's® has almost no menu items without meat or fish in them.  After I mentioned this to the waiter, however, he was very courteous and offered several dishes that he could make special.  I ended up with an angel hair pasta with fresh margarita sauce and steamed broccoli. Delicious! 

I will also note that my roommate's niece ordered a kid's meal which ended up being free!  Apparently, kids eat free Sunday through Thursday.  That was a pleasant surprise, and I suspect it is a rather new policy due to the economy.

My roommate's niece also gave her kid's meal two thumbs (or fingers...) up!

Free (Burgers) For All!

It is October 1st and, as promised, T.G.I. Friday’s® has emailed me a free burger coupon.  This would be more exciting if I weren’t a vegetarian, but I’m still pretty thrilled.

This free burger journey began when I was watching TV with my roommates and a commercial for T.G.I. Friday’s® came on.  Three young men sat at a table and told us about T.G.I. Friday's® new Jack Daniels® Burger.  Then, the middle guy, Woody, told us that we could all receive a free burger if 500,000 people became “fans” of his page on Facebook.  We were all on our laptops at the time, so I suggested that we all become fans of Woody right then and there.  A few weeks later, we all have free burgers coupons, and Woody has over 977,000 fans.  Oh, and did I mention that T.G.I. Friday’s® now has hundreds of thousands of fans’ Facebook information and email addresses?

This is a prime example of a social media marketing campaign.  T.G.I. Friday’s® integrated TV commercials, a Facebook fan page, YouTube videos of Woody, and “Meet Woody” events at T.G.I. Friday's® Restaurants all over the country, all to deliver the same message.  This campaign was well tailored to everything I’ve heard about Generation Y and experienced as a member of it.  We love multitasking (according to a 2008 Nielsen study, teenagers are the most likely group to use both TV and the Internet together), we love feeling involved with our brands (through the fan page, we felt like we got to know Woody and T.G.I. Friday’s® better), and we love free stuff!

It is too soon to tell whether or not this was a successful campaign monetarily speaking, but there are some factors we can evaluate.  This was a successful campaign because Woody was aiming for 500,000 fans by September 30th and reached that goal several days ahead of time so he upped the ante to one million.  It also appeared to be successful based on the amount of fan involvement on Woody’s fan page.  Facebook users were leaving comments and posting photos, and a lot of them were very positive.  Like these:

“just wanted to say thanks again for the free burgers we found our coupons in our spam boxes and went to fridays for dinner tonite, which was great! because i was having a not so good day and this always helps :) so again thanks”

“ROCK ON WOODY!!!!!!!!!”

“I Got My Coupon!!! Thank You For The FREE BURGER!”

Unfortunately, as with any piece of technology, there are some flaws, and many fans were posting angrily about coupon printing mishaps or missing emails.  So far, Woody has been handling those situations with the grace and good customer service.  T.G.I. Friday’s® has extended the deadline to submit email addresses, increased the number of free burger coupons to one million instead of 500,000, and instructed everyone with printing problems  to request to have their coupons mailed.  

You know what they say, "A satisfied customer tells 3 friends, but a dissatisfied customer tells 300."  These technological glitches and upset customers may end up negating any positive effects of this campaign if T.G.I. Friday’s® is not careful.

Another problem T.G.I. Friday’s® is facing is that many restaurants have closed since the economic downturn, and many fans are left with nowhere to redeem their coupons.  Also, like many online forums, people have posted crazy things like viruses, chain letters, profanity, adult content, plugs to other sites, and other things on Woody’s Facebook fan page.

We shall see in the weeks to come whether this campaign increases brand loyalty, revenue, or customer base.  If nothing else, T.G.I. Friday’s® has gained a lot of information about their Generation Y customers.