I've been reading through many, and quite different compilations of the favorite and/or most successful social media campaigns in 2011-and none of them seem to include the Greenpeace and Mattel "Barbie, It's Over" campaign, in which the nonprofit targeted the toy company with a multimedia campaign in hopes of improving Mattel's poor deforestation policies. It happens that this social media campaign is my pick for this year's "Best of the Best."
The environmental nonprofit's "Barbie, It's Over" campaign featured shareable videos and location specific quick-links to write to Mattel's CEO from anywhere in the world. The same letter writing campaign was linked to Facebook Connect, ultimate forcing Mattel to address the campaign and modify its practice of purchasing pulp from Asia Pulp & Paper (APP), one of the world environment's biggest offenders (according to Greenpeace) for harvesting its paper pulp from the rainforest, threatening the habitat and its endangered species.
Featuring an ingenuous online video spoof of Ken breaking up with Barbie- he doesn't date girls into deforestation-the campaign attracted at its launch over 180,000 views in a single June day, and for the English-speaking video alone. And while the video utilized humor to convey its message, the campaign in no way belittled the seriousness of its intent. Not only did the Greenpeace social media campaign prove effective in helping reverse Mattel's purchase of pulp, it forced the brand to issue a public statement of commitment to sustainable practices. Later the popular video campaign was translated into approximately 18 languages and went globally viral.
Based on our Localspeak search using the NetBase social analytics engine, we saw a chaotic trend line during the year for Mattel, with a stumble in net sentiment. A sophisticated use of social media to affect change, "Barbie, It's Over" was not the brand's only problem, as it showed other downward ticks in net sentiment- during its Bratz Doll copyright trial, for example.
Throughout 2011 we have witnessed a quantum shift in consumer engagement and expectations for social media, as well as in brand adoption, investment, and strategic integration of social planning. Exhibiting implications at all organizational levels, social media has specific applications, albeit wide ranging industry use; for example, ad monitoring and campaign assessment, brand audits and brand equity tracking, the gauge of customer satisfaction, market research insights, product launch tracking, product ideation, market research category analysis, crisis management, and sales lead generation, just to name a few.
As this MDG Advertising infographic illustrates, the advertising industry, for one, has been turned on its head by social media, with changed consumers now spending spend 22.5% of their time online at social media sites and blogs. The study shows that, in Q3, ad media clients had shifted priorities and were almost equally focused on TV and Internet/Digital, at 35% and 34%, respectively-a significant shift from priorities of 45% and 23% for the respective categories in Q1. And while the industry's tactics have had to adjust to new platform, social media spending there is expected to double in the next five years, and metrics for measuring advertising success are no longer singularly linked to sales and lead generation. This has compelled the industry to come up with a more holistic approach to metrics.
So what have we learned in 2011? In recapping our coverage of brand social media use throughout the year, we arrived at several insights that include the following:
- Vigilance & Creative Community Management. Even the most socially media astute brands such as Coca-Cola can misstep when tracking of their net sentiment isn't being monitored at all times. At the viral spread of a bogus public health warning that cautioned consumers the combination of Coke and ice would rot their teeth, the brand's net sentiment imploded in August and company stock equity dipped. Had Coca-Cola employed use of a community manager monitor, this dip would have easily been detected. Surprised at the conspicuous absence of any official response to the viral hoax, evidently Coca-Cola opted to ignore the incident.
- We surmise brand competitors might have grabbed the bad buzz by the horns and given it a good old fashioned spin by responding, perhaps, with a real and timely "Back to School" PSA of their own promoting dental health. They might have been able to ride wave of social buzz to new heights.
- Authenticity & Responsiveness. Netflix learned invaluable social media lessons this year- the hard way.
- Netflix might have utilized the early discovery system inherent in a basic social media-monitoring Scorecard. Doing so would have detected, perhaps even reversed brand dissonance.
- Quick thinking could have diverted massive customer defection by offering unique pricing plans to, let's say, its initial million subscribers: for example, a uniquely tired pricing plan for subscribers based on term of subscription.
- Even as CEO Reed Hastings posted his "apologies," had the brand sensitively measured the prevailing social climate it might have been perceived as authentic, not arrogant. Hastings and team also would have detected early warning signs of brand encroachment by competitors.
- Blinded by ambitious global expansion, Netflix chose to ignore the rage of its highly engaged and vocal customers at home, losing total sight of its most valuable asset-brand loyalty.
- Strategy & Partnership. The "American Express Small Business Saturday" social media campaign is a brilliant example of strategic social planning and a creative brand marketing partnership for a cause. The small business initiative, which required strategic recruitment of partners and investment to encourage holiday shopping at local retailers, inspired up to 90 million Americans to shop their local retailers, compared to the 138 million Americans who shop on Black Friday. Now in its second year, the Small Business Saturday campaign showed a 28% jump in sales volume by merchant retailers compared to previous year sales. Still many feel that small businesses are worse off more now than recent years. American Express (AmEx) has created a new foundation for creative business partnerships and marketing for a greater cause, suggesting their campaign set a precedent for an expanded ongoing local business development programs.
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- What if AmEx were to sponsor local/regional "buy local" initiatives at different intervals throughout the year?
- What if AmEx were to make the program sustainable with partners during the year?
- What if AmEx were to help foster and create, in true social ROI fashion, merchant programs to drive viral outbound sales and lead generation initiatives with local communities?
- Crisis Mitigation. JetBlue experienced a déjà-vu moment with the freak October snowstorm in the Northeast. A crisis in the making is easily detectable, as our JetBlue social analytics sentiment monitor revealed. But speedy sensible damage control-what a company decides to do or not to do with the information- is what counts in crisis management. So it came as quite a shock that the airline, an award winning brand for its consumer engagement in the social media sphere, tolerated the October 29th snafu in Hartford, CT which left passengers stranded on the tarmac for seven hours.
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- Sentiment tracking is a vital monitor for detection of sudden setbacks and/or looming crisis. Early detection can help minimize brand equity loss, even avert it altogether.
- For crisis management companies must read between the lines. Real-time social analytics can help reveal answers and/or suggest timely tactics to prevent an exacerbated crisis.
- JetBlue needs to take a page from the Netflix disaster and be/stay responsive. Customers expect you to be listening at all times and acting responsibly.
- To maintain competitive edge, make note of secondary, even tertiary social sentiment and find ways to make the bottom line your top line. Mine your corporate and brand responsibility in an uncertain economic environment to weave creative stories.
- Had the airline not comprised its positive sentiment for the year with the October 29th tarmac snafu, it could have avoided painful and costly consequences. Now the brand must work harder to maintain customer loyalty. And according to the "Passengers Bill of Rights," it may cost them $27,500 per stranded passenger.
- JetBlue shows that ROI can be created in social media. Message to self: Don't screw it up.
- Keep an eye on social metrics at all times. The social email box is now public.
- Customer Loyalty and ROI. Dunkin' Donuts continues to rank #1 in customer loyalty for five years running, according to Brand Keys. A smart model on how a brand can sustain positive sentiment, the company is an exemplary case study in linking a dedicated social media strategy to social ROI. Among Quick Service Restaurants, the brand has bucked the QSR notoriety for consumer grousing about customer service and the quality of food and beverages. Kudos, Dunkin' Donuts.
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- While tributary in our theme mapping (and not without strong passion), emotional state and mood could be mined in Dunkin' Donuts marketing campaigns, perhaps offsetting the brand's strong negative association found between bad customer service, sour employee attitude and slow service.
- Chronic bad customer service, particularly bad employee attitudes, incompetence and slow service are a legacy of a 63-year old QSR brand, which doesn't serve customer loyalty requirements and lifestyles today.
- The brand must address disconnect between frequent coffee taste complaints and unambiguous service in contrast to high marks for bean quality and strength.
- Its "green" packaging unfortunately was found also to include sharp straws and flimsy cups; not a good formula for sustained patronage.
- Great coffee quality could be more heavily exploited in an updated brand image campaign. (We were stuck in the past century mindset equating Dunkin' Donuts to watered down mud!)
- Social Sensibility. Dr Pepper's launch of its new "10" beverage marketing campaign didn't make a splash among women. It was flat out misogynistic.
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- Social sentiment analytics can be used effectively as an early detector of consumer response, facilitating corrective action.
- Even better, prior to locking in advertising creative, pilot spots can be launched virally to test the commercial waters, which could prove valuable in pre-empting such advertising bombs as was Goodby, Silverstein & Partners' latest campaign for the California Milk Processor Board's "Got Milk-before it was pulled.
- Interim social media tracking of artistic campaigns using the same talent (e.g. Pitbull) over a period of time will reveal the underbelly of consumer emotion.
- Fans of a particular talent may be turned off to a brand if/when identity is portrayed in questionable form (e.g. Fergie's Cherry July spot).
- Dr Pepper 10's "It's Not for Women" and "What's It Taste Like" campaigns are the only creative spots not featuring a sexy celebrity musical talent. Maybe the time has come for brand Dr Pepper to research and rethink its creative and use of humor-and cease using it at the expense of it consumers, males included. Rolling out a full-blown misogynistic viral marketing is just plain stupid, and costly.
- Protecting Brand Equity. For the protracted NBA lock-out hindsight is 20-20, netting some interesting social lessons.
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- Astute players using social media for self-branding may have gained adherents to their entrepreneurial pursuits, while the NBA itself failed to stem sliding sentiment and brand loyalty.
- If the NBA hasn't looked at its social analytics trend line lately, it should.
- Adopting a social media strategy that includes critical-timed monitoring can prove an invaluable tool for averting and/or handling a crisis, mitigating brand equity erosion or irreversible brand loyalty loss.
- Aptly used strategic social media monitoring can inform brand messaging, helping effectively to avert or altogether reverse irreparable competitive brand equity damage.
But that was then, and this is now. And so a few of our predictions for social media in 2012?
- Strategic thinking by executives in charge will give rise to increased investment in and adoption of social media analytics tools offered by NetBase
- More and more brands will require end-to-end marketing solutions, including social media marketing, which will give rise to an increase in creative partnerships.
- Non-English analytics tools will be launched and utilized to their capacity for better ROI of social media campaign.