Super Brands Take On Social Media
Posted August 21st, 2009 / By Lisa Kribs in Brand Builders, Branding, Brands, Buzz, Creative, External, Mobile, Movers + Shakers, News, Resources, Social Media, Strategy, Technology, Trends, Web
Seems like the big guys are finally moving into the social mediasphere.
Pringles, Proctor’s last major food brand, has blasted onto the multi + social media playing field with a new challenge for consumers. Now that brand owner P&G put a stop to billable hours, it seems that Grey Global is working a bit harder.
Consumers are asked to text message or send photos or videos showing how they eat Pringles crisps (that’s chips for you yanks) for the 100 Ways to Enjoy site. There’s also a web app that allows you to design your own Pringles can. The only thing I can’t figure out is why they included clickable Better Business Bureau graphic in the lower right. So weird.
The new “Everything Pops” campaign will include tv spots, banner ads, print ads, in-store signage, PR and heavy social media to promote…wait for it…..a bigger can. The whole thing is a little last year but check out this banner ad. Seems like a case of too many target audiences or too many ideas.
Global fashion retailer, Gap is leveraging social media to unveil its new fall denim line, Premium 1969. Trading TV spots for digital media, they are also spending campaign dollars on print, cinema and outdoor advertising. Tell the world what you were “born to do” by creating your own interactive Gap ad and have it featured on borntofit.com (actually a facebook application). Their style mixer iphone app lets you “share what you wear” and receive style tips.
OfficeMax hosted a blogcast earlier this month featuring back to school tips and ranked as the 3rd Trend Topic on Twitter the day of. The Max has created a viral campaign called Penny Pranks where people buy things with pennies…lots of pennies. They’re supporting the campaign with deep discounts during ‘Back To School For Pennies’. So far the videos have gotten over 2 million hits and the Penny Pranks YouTube channel has 7,500 subscribers.
Video: Paying With Pennies by OfficeMax
In a recent press release Ryan Vero, EVP and Chief Merchandising said, “We sell school supplies and classroom tools, but if we can also serve as a resource for parents, teachers and students and offer compelling content, this is what sets OfficeMax apart”.
Nissan is hoping to make waves for it’s 100% electric car, The Leaf, using a Twitter-powered Q&A on their website as they aim to answer questions and dissolve confusion in evolving electric car market. The leaf, its 100-mile range and its tag, “100% Torque”, are expected to hit the US by late next year.
I’m interested to see if the big guys will keep audiences engaged or slip back into the cushy world of mass marketing.
Lisa Kribs is a digital brand strategist + music enthusiast by day + DJ by night. Lisa’s been playing “Stairway to Heaven” since 5th grade. She is also Co-Editor of Fuel Your Branding. Connect with Lisa on Twitter.
Grab the Feed
I am definitely going to design my own Pringles can! Thank you for the insight into how the Super Brands are leveraging social media. It will be very interesting to see how these ventures pan out.
Anyone up to making predictions on the longevity or success of the campaigns from this post?
I think a lot of it will come down to how their social media campaigns are managed. Too often I have seen companies and individuals jump on the social media band wagon only to flood the social media sphere with spam, which in my opinion is representative of why lucrative companies are seeing decline…you stop providing a service.
If a blog or twitter post or email campaign is not providing information that is useful and engaging for most of the people receiving it, it was a waste of time and unproductive. Brand presence is important, but should never compromise brand integrity. The best thing these companies can do is to stop trying to use the latest “tactics” unless they are going to align them to a strong and proven strategy that gives something to their user base.
I like what Nissan is doing for example, and it probably is fairing better than a survey form on their site or sent via email would. Using a resource like twitter to engage users in an informal way, and find out more about the people using your product or service is key here. We now have a way to use technology to get more than statistics, sometimes people look at numbers and try to draw conclusions as to how well a product, service, or company is performing, and once upon a time that may have been good enough.
Now there is finally an effective way to actually “ask” people how they feel about what you and your company are doing and get an actual real world answer about the perception of your brand.