#BostonStrong

The way information is being communicated has completely changed with the introduction of social media. Boston proved that this week. Personally, I did not find out about Boston through the TV news or news website. It was through Twitter. When I wanted updates, I did not go to CNN.com, FoxNews.com, ABC.com etc. I went through Twitter. We were constantly updated on what was going on in Boston on the day of the shooting and the night and day that the two suspects were chased through Boston. Twitter proved to be the perfect way to keep the public updated on what was going on in and around Boston.

However, it also proved to detrimental at some points. Boston PD had to tweet out several times for people not to tweet pictures or post them to Facebook. These pictures which were being retweeted or reposted by major news channels were giving away many of the tactics that the police were using. Also, you had people live tweeting police scanners giving away what the police were saying. The suspects could have easily seen these pictures or tweets and have acted in a way to avoid or cause harm to the police.

But in the end, they got them. And Boston can sleep easy tonight. The best part is every news outlet and every person in the world learned the outcome from this:

It's amazing how news travels and how easy it was to keep up with what was occurring in Boston. I still believe that what I was reading on Twitter was far more beneficial then anything that I saw on the TV or news websites. 

But most of all, I am so glad that they caught this man and he will see justice. God Bless Boston. And God Bless the USA.  

#CollegeSlam

Though it's April, March Madness is still in full swing. And, as my social media professor put it, there is nothing more social then March Madness. For one, you have the brackets. Before the tournament even starts, everyone is on various blogs talking about who will be the upsets, who will win the whole thing, and who will choke. Then, everyone fills out their brackets and watch them soar to victory or (like mine) crumble terribly (thanks Kansas...). However, it's not just the brackets that are social. Whenever you see an LED with anything actually advertising the tournament, it says #MarchMadness. They want to make sure the buzz in running on twitter. I know I was personally tweeted about my bracket and the games on the first day. And even if you weren't watching the games, you knew if there was an upset because it was all over twitter and Facebook.

However, the the hashtag for March Madness wasn't even my favorite part. I was flipping through channels tonight and came across the Slam Dunk and 3-point competition that accompanies the Final Four. The whole entire show is social interactive. ESPN has teamed up with twitter for this show. Though they have judges their scoring the dunks, they allow the viewers at home to vote for their favorite dunks. Using the #CollegeSlam and the hashtag of the players name, you can submit for score out of 10 for the dunks. It really is social genius. And trust me it's working. On twitter right now, #CollegeSlam is the number two trending topic and beneath that are all the players names. This is great for ESPN because that could cause people to tune in that may not have already been watching. And this is definitely going to make the sponsors happy too. Every where you look in that stadium there is some kind of sponsors logo. More tweets means higher trends which means more viewers and for sponsors, more exposure. Everyone's happy.

April Fools!

Normally, I hate April Fools. Mostly, because I'm the gullible sucker who falls for every single prank and trust me I did fall for a few pranks. However, in terms of social media, April Fools is a great way to interact with all of your followers. April Fools day generates a lot of buzz for brands. One because people think the joke is hilarious. Two because people actually believe it's real and are sharing it. The best April Fools jokes are the ones that are most believable and have the most potential. One of my favorites from last year was Chick-fil-A's. They said they were replacing the Chick-fil-A cows with pigs. At first, I definitely believed it and I was mad. Took me a bit to realize it was April Fools. For that reason, I was really excited to see what kind of April Fools joke they would pull this year. This is what I saw...

I mean...I guess it's funny, but definitely not my favorite. However, one of my favorites was Netflix. They decided to use April Fools day to bring some "interesting" new categories to their home page. For example:

Now, I think this is funny! I honestly would not expect Netflix to play an April Fools joke and would probably just think this new category is strange. However, it works for them not only because it probably generated buzz, but also because it brings new shows that they want to feature to the front page. April Fools day is great way to not only engage your fans, but to have fun with them as well. It's the only day where you have a legitimate excuse to pull a practical joke and as a company why would you not utilize that? 

Facebook Goes Red for Equality

The Supreme Court started discussing the issue of gay marriage last week. Of course, this is an issue that caught national attention. Something else besides the actual discussions caught my eye though. I honestly was unaware that the gay marriage debate was occurring until I saw pink and red equality symbols popping up all over my Facebook timeline. Human Rights Campaign released a pink and red version of their normally blue and yellow equality sign. They asked their followers to post it as their profile picture in support of gay marriage. They wanted it to show that their whole campaign was just about getting love (the universal colors of love: red and pink) and equality.

This is another moment where Facebook proves it is more than just a place to post pictures of spring break or let people know what you had for dinner tonight. I think sometimes we forget that social media can be a rallying venue. It's a place where we can come together to support a cause we are passionate about. The pink equality sign proves that. Social media is meant to be used to be heard. The younger generation that is on social media wanted to let the world know that they support equality for all. They "painted Facebook red" as some put it. Hopefully, the Supreme Court will see the support rallied on Facebook and make the decision for equality for all.

Also, on a less serious note, lots of great memes came out to coincide with it. It's another sign how quickly an idea can take off and grow. Tons of memes came out, but the one below is definitely my favorite. A student I graduated high school with created it. Even Time magazine found it funny.

#TooMuch

Television networks have started to fully integrate the use of Twitter into all their TV shows. Some have decided to properly use this to involve their audience. However, some take it to an extreme. Not going to lie, my guilty pleasure is Pretty Little Liars. I absolutely love watching this show However, what I do not love is the consistent ridiculous hashtags in the corner. Instead of just having #PrettyLittleLiars running they will put up a hashtag for every single thing that happens in the show like #SpencerSnaps or #TobysAlive. It seems like they are desperate to get their views involved on social media. If something interesting happens on the show, which trust me usually does, viewers will choose to tweet about it on their own using #PrettyLittleLiars. The hastags in the corner more so annoy the viewer then make them want to get involved. 

Fox has actually decided on a very interesting way to get users involved on social media. Last night, during The Following (another suspenseful show I highly recommend), I saw them run a promotion in the bottom left corner of the screen. It said if you tweet #TheFollowing, you will receive a special gift from the show while supplies last. This gives the viewers who are passionate about the show a chance to not only get involved but to win something special from them. Also, it creates buzz about the show on social media which could get more viewers.

This is the reason that shows want to create that buzz on social media. They know if people are talking about what is happening in the show and how much they love it, more people will take the recommendations and watch the show. Shows are all about viewership. Commercials and previews of the shows may get more viewers, but hearing that your friends like a show will make you more likely to watch it. So keep the hashtags coming on tv, just make sure they don't annoy your audience. 

I mean #ISmellDeadPeople....Really? I wasn't kidding about the stupid hashtags.

Hacked?

Burger King and Jeep were subjected to social media nightmares this month. They were both hijacked. Burger King was the first victim. The hackers changed the handle picture and name to McDonald's claiming they had bought out Burger King. Also, if I'm not mistaken, tweeted a few obscenities out as well. The Jeep hackers decided they would follow in the BK hackers' footsteps. They made it look like Jeep had be sold to Cadillac. Lesson from this: use better passwords. After a few hours they were able to claim their Twitters back, but the pictures/screenshots will always be out there.

For a bit, we thought MTV and BET had become the next victims of the Twitter hackers. However, it was just a witty PR move on the part of the companies. The two accounts were "hacked" by the other. Companies have been playing off what has been going on in the world like the Super Bowl Blackout for instance. So, why not play off the pain of other companies too! They chose to use the hack to mostly advertise BET's Hip Hop Awards in June. It's definitely different. Effective? Eh...not so sure about that one. I think they thought it would be funnier then it actually was. Creative? I will give them that. Social media is all about creating conversation and when company's twitter account gets hacked, it creates conversation. And when it turns out the company hacked itself, it sparks even more conversation! Plus, they can get away with it. They're MTV. It fits with their brand image. Getting a laugh at the expense of others? It's like Punk'd for social media!

 

Desperate. Desperate. I am really desperate.

I think the theme of my last few blogs is been how in today's age we see social media everywhere. It's really hard to escape it. You constantly go into to stores or look on advertising material and see "Make sure to "like" us on Facebook!" or "Follow us on Twitter @..." This doesn't bug me. It's businesses wanting to connect with their fans on social media. I am all for that. Plus, if one of my favorite stores or restaurants has a Facebook or Twitter page, hell yeah I'm going to like it! I want to see what special deals/events they have going on. However, some businesses have gotten to a point where they just scream desperate with their social media campaigns. Begging for likes, follows, shares, etc. And I found one prime example of this right in good old Athens, GA.

Now, I won't go into details, but I HATE my apartment complex. The only reason I still live there is because I am far too lazy to move all my stuff for only 6 more months of school. But my loathing for them is another story that I won't waste your time with. However, as a disclaimer, my hate for them did not influence what I thought about their recent contest. Their recent contest was just dumb social media marketing in itself.

I was driving out of the complex and noticed a sign for a contest they were holding: "Recommend us on Facebook and you'll be entered to win a $50 gift card to the Last Resort". All I read was "Desperate. Desperate. I am really desperate!" I just could not believe that they were literally begging for recommendations and trapping their fans who want a $50 gift card into giving them a recommendation that is not genuine. I heard one resident say, "Well I really don't like them, but I want a Last Resort gift card." One, I don't think the even thought about ethics with this. Half of those recommendations on their Facebook page are fake now. Two, you performed a big social media no-no by making your fans spam their friends with their fake recommendations. Now, they are a small business who has probably never been to a single seminar or class on social media. However, I feel like this is common sense. You literally just want to "boost" your image whether it's fake recommendations or real. They quit using their page as a connection and simply are using it as advertising.

However, I think there is a lesson to be learned from their mistakes. My apartment complex is not genuine with their fans/residents. They are not using their Facebook page to really connect with their residents. It's consistently full of things like "Renew your lease today and get this and this!" And this is why they are not getting recommendations (among other reasons). You make that real connection with your residents and fans and you will get those recommendations on your own. Without the contests and gimmicks. It is as simple as this: be polite, nice, responsive, and approachable. That will get people to like, share, follow, recommend, etc. And they will be real. Not just done because someone wants a gift card. It will be surprising in the next few days to see how many of those recommendations are deleted by the person who wrote them because they did not believe in what they said. It was just all for the money.

Land of the free...Because of the Brave

Not going to lie, the Super Bowl (aka the Blackout/Beyonce Bowl) this past Sunday had to be one of the most boring. Normally, I do watch for the game, but since I was not a fan of either team, I was all about the commercials and Beyonce. However, even the commercials were disappointing. The one, however, that did catch my eye (like I said in my last post) was Jeeps. For those of you who have not seen the Jeep Super Bowl commercial, here it is below.

Now...maybe I am biased. I am a military girlfriend after all. When your boyfriend is in the Air Force, it's hard not to get teary eyed at any sentimental thing that has to do with the military especially ones about our men and women in uniform coming home. However, it is what Jeep did after the commercial aired that really warmed my heart. I was looking through my twitter feed and came across a retweet by @KissMySthrnSass (if you like all the Southern, I suggest you follow her...like yesterday). It was a tweet about Operation SAFE Return with the hashtag #joinOSR. The tweet essentially said for every tweet that goes out with the hashtag #joinOSR, Jeep will donate $1 to the USO. The goal: raise $300,000 for the USO to help our servicemen and women with their return home. Not only did Jeep honor our armed forces with a really expensive commercial, but they are also giving back to them as well. I love a company that gives back especially to our military men and women. The best part is Jeep didn't need you to tag them in it. It didn't say tag or hashtag Jeep. It just said hashtag #JoinOSR. They are not begging for people to like them in order to donate or saying the charity will not get money if you do not follow them. They just want to show support for our troops and that has definitely brought them up a few notches in my book.

So...if you have not tweeted #joinOSR yet, do it now! Make sure to tag @Jeep and @the_USO in it to show your support! 

God bless our troops and bring them home safe. 

Cookie or Cream?

In my last blog post, I talked about how a few years back you would have never seen a social media section in sponsorship contract. As I am sitting here watching the Super Bowl tonight, I am noticing something else you never would have seen maybe even 2 years ago. So far tonight, I have already seen two commercials that used some form of social media. One was Miller-Coors and one of their Bud Light commercials. They had hash tagged their famous phrase, "Here We Go", at the end. The other one was from Oreo in their first ever Super Bowl commercial. Two people in a library started arguing about whether the cream or the cookies were the best part of the Oreo. The small, whispered fight turned into a full on whispered, brawl. However, the weird quiet, brawl was not what caught my eye. At the end of the commercial, it says to make your choice using Instagram. So, being the curious person I am, I investigated. They want their fans to take a picture with the hashtag #cookiethis or #creamthis. This will not only be their choice of cookie or cream, but it's also their choice for what they want their picture to be made of. Yes, oreo will sculpt their favorite pictures out of oreo cookies or cream.

While the sculpture and whispered commercial are odd, the idea of using Instagram is genius on their part. Instagram continues to grow as a social media platform. And other companies have seen major success using Instagram as a way of reaching their market (Taco Bell anyone?). And in order to really connect with your audience on Instagram, you have to do more then just post pictures of your product. You have to get them to interact with you. And people are passionate about their Oreos. I am Oreo will get a huge response from this campaign. Not only because people want to show their passion for the cookie or cream part of the oreo, but they also want to see if Oreo will really sculpt whatever they send in. It'll be interesting to check back in a few weeks and see if Oreo got the response they were looking for. 

Oh and also...Beyonce is fabulous and Jeep wins the best commercial of the night. 

#QueenBey #Merica 

Social Sports

It's always interesting to see the different social media campaigns that companies are implemented. What's even more interesting is to see them from the inside. Currently, I am working part time for Georgia IMG Marketing which is apart of the University of Georgia Athletic Association (pretty much my dream job being a sports junkie). Our main job is to sell sponsorships for the athletic association and to fulfill those contracts.

Years ago, contracts for athletic sponsors really only included radio spots, signage in the stadium, video board replays, etc. Now, in many of our contracts, we have a section for Internet. While this section may just include simply just banner ads on website, many include Facebook and Twitter campaigns. I actually think this is a brilliant idea for companies who want to reach a broader audience. Obviously, companies can use their own social media pages to interact with consumers. However, what about the consumers who do not like or follow them? Many consumers may choose not to like or follow a company in order to avoid promotions on their new feeds, but they will like their favorite college or professional team! Not only will contracting a social media campaign with a sport's team broaden your reach, but it may also improve your perceptions in a consumers mind. The fact that they are on promoting with your favorite team may increase how much you like a certain brand.

One of my favorite campaigns this previous football season was the Lowe's Countdown to Kickoff Question. A few days before a game we would post a football related question on the Georgia Bulldogs Facebook page and fans who answered correctly were entered for a chance to win a $50 gift card to Lowe's. Not only was it a chance for the consumers to win a gift card, but it was a chance for them to show of their bulldog knowledge. So, naturally the consumers jumped at it. I think it was a great way for Lowe's to get their name our there and to tie it to an extremely passionate fan base. I think as time goes on we will start seeing more and more companies do promotions with various sports teams. When close to 4,000 people are liking your post, why would you not?

This was my question from the week before the Auburn game.

This picture never gets old. Go Dawgs.