How to launch a business card, or any product for that matter.
The advertising wizards at Samsung are at it again. Watch for this viral coming to a Facebook wall near you. You may remember those crazy sheep last year but this campaign is less ‘fakery’ and more home movie magic – perfect for a company launching the H200 Camcorder. It helps that the content, whether real or ‘enhanced’, is kind of cool. I mean who wouldn’t love to be able to pass out their business cards like that? Dangerous? Yes. But fun? Hell yeah! I imagine it will be well over a million views before the week is over.
Interestingly, the nancyyoungkay account at youtube is getting more visits than the samsungimagery account. This is interesting because it points to a concentrated attempt by the brand to keep the viral nature of the campaign seem less corporate. Also helping to diminish the corporate/mass market polish, Samsung have set up a decidedly non corporate-looking blog to communicate with the advertisement’s audience. It seems to be working – comments are growing and the blog boasts nearly 2000 fans.
For the virally concerned check out the analytics available on youtube, and watch the views grow, where they came from and what countries are watching. Lots to learn about the success of a viral video here. – Rory Tucker
Hi Rory,
Of course, that video created some buzz online, but did it make you run into the next future shop to buy one of those new cameras? People may ‘like it’, but don’t connect to the brand. It’s a freebie sponsored by a brand, not a powerful connection to that brand. They missed the opportunity to share/feature the core of the brand/product (What makes the cam special, central message, etc.).
Its the biggest challenge of social media design: creating something that is both engaging to customers and true to the core of the brand, finding that one thing that people inside and outside the company can connect to and recognize themselves in. Often that means not only thinking about what the customer would enjoy (likely 2 share), but also defining what’s true to the brand. It’s all about being authentic.
More deeply, it’s a brand with a real story, a connection to a fundamental human truth, and an appreciation of its smart customers.
Regards,
MArc-Oliver
Hey Marc-Oliver
I agree with your comment regarding authenticity, not only because it is one of the biggest buzz words in social media, but because it is essential to developing a real and viable connection to your customers.
While I did not rush out to buy their product, I did check it out on the blog. Admittedly, I am quick to deconstruct and analyze any use of social media because of my occupation but I am also a gear-loving geek so I followed the links to samsungimaging.net. I know not all consumers will do this and that many may not even notice that the video highlights a product, but if the goal was to go viral I would say they are successful. The views are fast approaching a million.
I am sure without all their analytics we could probably formulate a percentage of clicks from each viewing thereby measuring actual visits to the blog. From there we could probably track the number of people who engage and ultimately the real objectives can be measured.
The thing I like is that people enjoy the freebie and are happy to share it. While I have not bought this camera this discussion alone has generated some awareness for Samsung and their blog looks like a concerted effort to inform and engage with their customers. A brief look shows consumer questions and comments and replies from site admins and ‘guest bloggers’. They have incorporated a number of sharing mechanisms which they can also track consumer engagement. We mention that the site is decidedly non-corporate but they are not hiding what it is with the URL and the disclaimers. Since they launched this site last year they have 12 000 Twitter followers and 2000 Facebook Fans.
Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts.
Hi Rory,
I always thought, the ‘buzziest’ word in social media is ROI?! Anyways, viral success is great. But real success is even greater. So they managed to create some awareness for a new product. Their second goal was probably to re-position the brand. But what’s next? Whats their sales strategy?
It was almost 4 years ago -most of the web has not been labeled with ’social media’ yet- we learned a lesson when 50 million people watched the guys from OK GO prancing around on some gym equipment. Everybody (online) on this planet saw the video – nobody bought a record. Well, you could say; people downloaded the song for free. But it wasn’t like that. Evian’s ‘Roller Babies’ video reached over 100 million views, and yet the company lost market share in the U.S. that year. Oops. Can viral video even convert?
Of course, Blend Tec increased their sales 400% with their YouTube videos and there are more stories like that out there. But they made something different. They all knew that conversions and sales are not the same thing. So, if the video drove lots of traffic to the blog, increased Samsungs online community, what will the next step may look like to drive sales? Any suggestions? What do they do with their 12K twitter followers and 2000+ facebook fans?
Obviously, Samsung is doing great in an extremly competitive environment, but who can tell, if its the result of their online marketing strategies? I can’t see any organic growth online though.
Regards,
Marc-Oliver
A couple of years ago, the Vancouver Aquarium had a video (otters holding hands – YouTube it) – 13 M visitors and counting. Alas, the PR guy I talked to called it a ‘major distraction’ from the Aquarium’s mission. re: Samsung – I honestly just cannot think of anything of theirs’ that I would buy and I certainly am well ‘aware’ of the brand. It is simply not a ‘go-to.’ Unlike Canon, Panasonic, and Mac, they are not category leaders in anything, far as I can tell. If I want a cut rate microwave, maybe I’d buy a Samsung if it was on sale at London Drugs. Though they had big logos on the Oly posters and YVR during the Games.