Putting it all together

What do you think of when you consider different methods of energizing the groundswell? While you are trying to construct massive online PR campaigns in your head, maybe we could start a little bit smaller than that. According to the text, word of mouth marketing relies on its ability to be believable, be self-reinforcing, and self-spreading (p130). So as an example, what do you do when you have a great cup of coffee? You might tell someone, right? You might invite a friend out to this new coffee shop, and next time they invite one of their friends to the same place. This goes on and on for a while until one day when you are desperate for a decent cup of coffee and find yourself short on time. You round the corner to your favorite shop and the line is out the door and you have to go someplace else. As the saying goes, word of mouth travels fast.

So, how do you do this exactly?

Today, people can take their word-of-mouth marketing online. You probably won't have to wait to take your friend to the new coffee shop for them to find out about it. You can probably broadcast it out on Facebook or Twitter and accomplish the same thing, but reach hundreds of people instead. If you take a peek at the Instagram post below, you can see the the user's photo was 'liked' over 80 times. That is a lot of attention for just one cup of coffee.

Since we are talking about coffee, I'm going to tell you all about how much I love Brew on the Grid located on Franklin Street in Worcester. I despise Dunkin Donuts, and am always looking for a great cup of coffee with a bit of atmosphere. I don't find myself downtown very often, but after having heard people buzzing online about this new coffee shop, I knew I had to try it.

Something like a new coffeeshop is a great thing to try to energize. Brand enthusiasts within the community have a simple motivation to spread the word - they NEED you to stay open so that they can continue to enjoy your product. Is it self-serving? Entirely, but that is okay. People inherently do things with themselves in mind because they want to be noticed. This form of online marketing allows the original poster to draw in the groundswell for any number of personal reasons, but ultimately it serves as an important tool for the business - it fosters an atmosphere in which businesses can hear what people are saying about them.

Today, it is assumed that if you have a service to provide, you will set up the necessary social media sites for your enthusiasts to congregate on. But what about the sites that you don't sign up for voluntarily? Sites like Yelp prove to be helpful because it allows both the stakeholders and the business owners to communicate their views and learn from the experiences of others. However, which Yelp, you relinquish all control over what people out in the world are posting about your product. But why are they there? They've probably been energized and energizing your customer base gives you, the business owner, more opportunities to listen to the groundswell, to talk to the groundswell, and then energize these people again from the valuable information you have already gathered. This is a cyclical process that, if executed properly should yield results over time. Ultimately, if all of the cogs (businesses, products, & consumers) in this machine work fluidly, nearly everyone involved wins. 

What I appreciate the most about this type of word-of-mouth marketing, is that it has held up against the test of time all the way from Oral traditions to Web 2.0. And while websites and reviews online may come and go, people will always desire the ways in which they can connect to each other in any way possible and when the internet isn't there for you, a cup of coffee will be.

Subscribers For Sale

How many times have you seen a photo on Instagram or a clip on Youtube that has gone viral? Now, how many of those pics or clips were so unimpressive that you have thought to yourself - "well, even I could do that!" I'm not going to doubt you because well, maybe you could - but would you be one of a handful of people whose social media accounts have skyrocketed them to internet fame?

Lucas Cruikshank knows a thing or two about the rise of Youtube stardom. Remember Fred Figglehorn? The obnoxiously-voiced character was created and performed by Cruikshank. The videos that he posted were made in his home, and featured him speaking directly to the camera - no heavy editing, elementary delivery, and over all poor quality. A few years later, he went on to star in his own Nickelodeon produced shows and movies. Fred literally went from this:

 

to this

The rise of the internet celebrity isn't a new one, but it has become much more profitable.

Forbes Magazine recently published this article, listing the highest paid online celebrities. For example, PewDiePie, a Swedish video game enthusiast, is currently seated at the #1 spot with $15 million in pretax income. Why you ask? What marvolous and innovative creative ventures does he share with the world that makes him worth 15 million dollars? 

He uploads snippets of himself playing video games for 50 million subscribers. 

Yeah...that is it. 

Toothpaste for Dinner

Okay, I'm not ACTUALLY naive enough to think that it is that easy. In fact, Most YouTube stars have varied revenue streams - but they have all stemmed from their online popularity.  They monetize their videos through "pre-roll advertisements and by integrating sponsors into their content" according to Forbes. They also may tour, sell merchandise and make cameos on traditional forms of media like television. A few have their own products, like the aforementioned PewDiePie who has his own mobile platform video game (complete with in-app purchases). Here are some other examples of regular people who became famous by creating Youtube followings, as compiled by Forbes:




It is obvious that with growing technology, the advertising platforms that are available through traditional media are no longer the only option. By tapping into popular social media users, some with MILLIONS of regular subscribers, a company or organization can contract with the user to push their brand sometimes, through apparent advertising or just through product placement. 

What is true no matter what, and perhaps the most valuable lesson, is that YOU the creator do not have as much control over your brand as the people WATCHING your videos do. Without the subscribers and without the groundswell, your videos are...well...just lame clips of your cat chasing a laser pointer. 

#catsofinstagram #mason #worcesterma #laserpointer

A video posted by Meaghan, Worcester MA (@modernphilistine) on Feb 12, 2017 at 2:46pm PST

I'm currently taking offers. Email me.

Mythical Creatures of the Groundswell

If you are from Worcester, MA or have spent any significant amount of time here - you are probably familiar with Polar Beverages - purveyors or all things bubbly and good. Upset stomach? Someone has probably offered a Polar Ginger Ale. That cold cup of Coca-Cola that you asked for at your favorite local eatery? Yup - you were probably served a Polar Cola instead. Decided to give up soda completely? Polar seltzers should be your go-to carbonated beverage of choice.

Polar prides itself on being a  'fourth generation owned' company which is fantastic but also implies some archaic attitudes. In my (almost) ten year tenure at Polar, I have developed a number of personal opinions on how they could better market themselves - particularly through social media. Only recently, have I realized that there is a defined ideology behind these social marketing trends and initiatives referred to as the groundswell. As defined in the book by the same name, the groundswell is "a social trend in which people use technologies to get things they need from each other rather than from traditional institutions like corporations" (pg 9).


Polar unexpectedly hit the groundswell jackpot in April of 2016 when the majestic limited edition (only 5,000 cases) Unicorn Kisses "mystery flavor" came out to coincide with April Fool's Day. As a company that only used social media seemingly out of obligation, the users of these social technologies took matters into their own hands and created a massive buzz both locally and nationwide.

Online users began crowd-sourcing information in order to locate bottles of this elusive flavor. At the time, I was fielding consumer emails and I was overwhelmed by the number of people trying to locate this item. Emails that I sent in response to retail locations were being shared across Twitter. People were tapping into into the groundswell in ways that I am confident, Polar was not expecting. In fact, Polar sold out of all 60,000 bottles in a 72 hour period.

The momentum behind this item as well as the brand as a whole, should have been an opportunity to pursue the groundswell by listening to stakeholders, engaging with the messaging of the brand, getting energized, supporting the customer base, and embracing what the stakeholders had to offer in terms of feedback (pg 68-69). I can offer more in-depth analysis at the conclusion of my social media marketing project, but in short, Polar let this momentum fade quickly by relying solely on the work of their consumers rather than becoming a participant in their experience and actively pursuing the groundswell. What potential harm can come of a company when they ignore the will of the people? How long will they idly sit by and wait for the next great thing? Does the corporation ever REALLY know what is best for the brand if they aren't paying attention to what people say about it?

                                 

Even today, nearly a year after their debut, bottles are still being sold on eBay for $25.00 per liter. There is still a demand for a product that we would not recommend consuming based on its "best-by" date. If Polar doesn't take heed of the groundswell, its bound to be swallowed up when the next best competitor brand comes along. 

 

 

The Joy of Missing Out

The Oatmeal

Social Media has undoubtedly had a massive impact on humans. Not only has it changed the ways in which we interact with people, but it also has a severe effect on us when we are not interacting; specifically out in the 'real world'. One specific phenomenon that predates our obsessions with Facebook and Twitter is the 'Fear of Missing Out' or now casually referred to as FOMO. Basically, it is the underlying anxiety that someone feels when they KNOW that there are people out in the world doing AMAZING things that they are not apart of. 

We all have that friend that can't prevent themselves from posting what they are doing and where they are doing it, at any given moment in time. You know when they've showered, what they had for lunch, who they visited, and where they will be enjoying themselves this evening. That friend wants to make sure that you are aware of EXACTLY how much fun they are having while you are at home doing laundry and boiling pasta for the third night in a row. A Washington Post article from 2013 says that "FOMO is often associated with a perceived low social rank, which can cause feelings of anxiety and inferiority. When someone misses a party, vacation or other social event, he or she can feel a little less cool than those who showed up and snapped photos." While I don't doubt the existence of such a anxious state, I have a hard time understanding it on a personal level.

The Oatmeal

Now, I spent most of my formative years without the added attraction of social media during my social development so it is difficult for me to grasp the psychological effects of seeing my friends enjoying themselves while I figuratively whiter away at home, anxiously awaiting an update on their whereabouts while simultaneously beating myself up for not being there as well. 

What is even more bizarre to me, is that today, people will actually take time out of their live to advertise online that they are missing out - often followed by #FOMO, so that everyone knows just how debilitating the thought of not participating is to them. I suppose it isn't all that surprising when you look at the research that has been done on the topic. According to an article published by Texas A&M University back in March of 2016, "The average college student spends eight to 10 hours killing time on their cellphone each day, and when we consistently believe we are 'missing out,' anxiety and depression may set in." If you aren't out living in the real world, what better way to vent your frustration back into the same arena that triggered it in the first place? 

                    The Oatmeal

This real life occurrence based on passive online interactions is one of the reasons why social media as a whole is absolutely fascinating to me. It has undeniably weaved its way into our very psyche and will have a lasting impression on how we relate to others virtually and in real life. If one thing is for certain, I'm happy that my social development wasn't dependent on social media in the same ways in which it is today. 

I had it easy...if I wasn't invited out I generally didn't find out about it until days or weeks later when someone accidentally let it slip, and in most cases, this type of situation avoided the entire FOMO-feeling all together. That, and I was more interested in music, art, and books than people...and books never post selfies that make you feel like you are missing out.