KONY 2012 "The Next 27 Minutes Are An Experiment...

[Daniel A]

...but in order for it to work, you have to pay attention."

Hmmm...

Do you remember KONY 2012?

The topic of viral videos was being discussed here recently so I can see how I suddenly remembered it.

I'm going through the video right now. It's a genius marketing piece.

They get personal, trigger emotions, tell a compelling story, create an enemy, in some ways created a community or movement ("join our army for peace"), show people listening to Jason's speeches (social proof), use scarcity ("Time is running out...this movie expires on December 31, 2012"), give a simple solution (Donate; in order to buy a bracelet and an action kit to help market it further. Sign a pledge. Sign up for a subscription donation, share it online), build anticipation, etc.

In the beginning 1 minute plus they also prepare your mind to share the video too. You can even look at the stats, it got 1 million + shares!

It's just under a 30 minute video and it effectively sold A LOT of people. It's a perfect example of great viral video marketing.

 

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[Mike Kavanagh]

I prefer to study cults for my marketing techniques. They create stark-raving fans.

^Just kidding.


As for the Kony 2012 thing. They do have some great marketing ideas, but the whole organization was as corrupt as Uganda. The "CEO's" all went and bout 800k cars and did stupid things publicly.

Some things I pulled marketing wise-
Have your fans/customers promote your business - Free advertisement
Have a compelling back-story to what ever you're selling - I think this was covered in another thread about selling stuff better on eBay...

Some unethical (IMO) stuff pulled from it-
Convert children into fans/advocates - This irritated the piss outta me. Children don't know better.
Using depressing stories (Child soldiers) to sell - No one wants to feel bad and have to buy because they do
Creating a "Common" enemy - I think this should only work in highly competitive markets (Coke fans vs. Pepsi fans)

 

[Gordon J. Mouras]

Wow, what a wonderful place and idea thanks for sharing that video.

 

[Daniel A]

@Mike Kavanagh Haha, I bet there are some marketing companies that did study cults though

I wanted to keep my thoughts on KONY 2012 itself neutral and focus just on the marketing of the video because this forum doesn't allow political conversation. I know what you mean though and heard about that.

Some things I pulled marketing wise-
Have your fans/customers promote your business - Free advertisement
Have a compelling back-story to what ever you're selling - I think this was covered in another thread about selling stuff better on eBay...

Sharing is caring Haha, really though, sharing can significantly boost awareness of a brand or offer and drive many extra sales.
Stories too man! Even look at some of your food items in your house, I bet they have the story of their business on the bad or box. David Ogilvy mentioned this before in one of his writings about a beer company I believe. Basically the company that told the story of their business beat out the others with the help of the story. A story that is educational and/or is emotional for the buyer can really help.

Some unethical (IMO) stuff pulled from it-
Convert children into fans/advocates - This irritated the piss outta me. Children don't know better.
Using depressing stories (Child soldiers) to sell - No one wants to feel bad and have to buy because they do
Creating a "Common" enemy - I think this should only work in highly competitive markets (Coke fans vs. Pepsi fans)

Great insights! I agree about the children part, very annoying. I don't watch TV anymore but I remember the sad dog/cat ads and I found it on YouTube! After that video played on many peoples' TVs a nice percentage of viewers called I am sure.

 

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