BuzzMarketing

Everybody has noticed that viral videos have been taking over the Web and are emerging as a real trend nowadays. So these videos have their own festival like other film festivals.

It is Vanksen | Culture-Buzz who launchs its first Viral Film Festival in Europe as part of the Buzz the Brand conference. The event hold in Paris and has been organized in partnership with Stratégies, (the French marketing magazine), and DailyMotion.

And so as to find the most creative videos on the Internet, Vanksen | Culture-Buzz has created a special contest. In fact, there will be awards and everything. Anyone can sign up to participate for free and submit their video(s) at www.viralfilmfestival.com. The submission deadline was set for this October 1st.

Whether the videos are amateur or professional, or of an advertising or artistic nature, the contest is open to everyone. This is a chance to make mark for anybody!

Look at the ad of the viral festival!:

The awards ceremony will take place on the 21st of October in honor of the winners in the following categories:

Golden Wom for funniest viral video
Golden Wom for most original video
Golden Wom for most effective viral video (category reserved for advertising videos)
Golden Wom for UGC viral video (category reserved for independent videos)
Grand Jury Prize

In addition, a professional jury will decide on the winners:

Thomas Clément, Associate Director in charge of online operations at DDB Paris
Frédéric Fleurier, DailyMotion
François Kermoal, Editorial Director at Stratégies
Otto, blogger
Joe la Pompe, blogger
Vincent Parachini, Chief Project Officer, BIC
Emmanuel Vivier, CEO and Founder of Vanksen | Culture-Buzz

Important figures in the world of Internet are also involved in this event. DailyMotion is helping to spread the word online about the contest and has even created a special DailyMotion group in French. So as to involve the public, a group has already been formed on Facebook.

I have found a very satirical viral marketing campaign against the US tobacco industry: SardsO’Glass.

The idea is that a new trend seems to exist in the United States: sorbet with shard of glass (inside): an American gastronomic dish!

At least, the website of the society seems to promote very seriously this dish: look!

The product is represented like any other ice cream, it is colourful and eye-catching

You can even find on the website the speech of the General Manager, the TV ads, and accounts given by the customers: everything seems to be real!

But nothing is real, this website is a new buzz marketing promotion, nevertheless a good one launched by an anti smoking association which is famous for its provocative campaigns. However, with this example of buzz marketing campaign, I want to emphasize the ethical dimension of advertisement and say that advertisement could be the way to awaken cousciousness and responsibility of people and not the contrary. In fact, in this viral campaign the association claims that it is outrageous to let some companies sell voluntarily noxious products and make so much money on it.

• The danger of viral and buzz marketing:

This comic shows us that viral marketing could be dangerous, like a virus.

In fact, the consumer may be manipulated or abused with buzz marketing (the main aim of viral marketing is to make people buy a product, manipulating it). Let us remember: This summer a video has circulated on the web, it was a video showing how to do pop corn with the waves of a cellular phone.

http://fr.youtube.com/watch?v=Oj6SZgbBuSQ

Everybody knows that these waves are dangerous for our health but this video was so shocking that a great buzz (a tidal wave) was born. Those videos were seen around the world, worrying some people.

As you can see in the next TV report, it was finally a buzz marketing operation made by a earphone manufacturer.

http://www.dailymotion.com/relevance/search/viral%2Bmarketing/video/x5u4ze_le-marketing-viral_news

And some people parody this viral video, so as to warn us: look at the parody!

http://fr.youtube.com/watch?v=puEPl8wPXNE

So: Trust no one!

What is Street marketing?:

Street marketing is based on the direct contact of a brand with the consumers. We name it street marketing because during an ad and promotional campaign, the streets and other public places are used so as to promote a brand. This sort of marketing existed before through distribution of flyers but nowadays street marketing operations are more original.

To my mind, Street marketing really uses the architecture of streets, it is not a simple billboard which damages landscapes or environment: street marketing not only plays with architecture but with people, the consumer thus become an actor of the ad campaign, he plays with the installations and then talk about this event and overall, about the brand. All in all, Street marketing is linked to buzz marketing because it depends on word-of-mouth.

Let us see an example of street marketing:

As we can see on the photo, Haribo used a very common and non very pleasant to see facility; an escalator; ‘replacing’ the black plastic ribbon by a liquorice roll

http://adsoftheworld.com/files/images/Haribo_Charts_englisch-1.jpg

Now a street marketing campaign made by Oreo:

Once again, the brand uses a common facility; a lift; so as to remember to the customer how tasty are these biscuits with a glass of milk. Moreover, it is a good game for everybody: pressing the button to call the lift anybody can enjoy the scenario.

http://fr.youtube.com/watch?v=zxeOCrRBELw

Another example: A few years ago, the famous band Gorillaz decided to offer several copies of their last CD which are hidden in a cube of ice in different capitals all over the world. Thus, the fan; as everybody walking on the street; was invited to break it to discover what is inside (Gorillaz last CD “Feel good inc.”).

Let us see the video of this marketing operation

http://fr.youtube.com/watch?v=_vTWATHsYqU

To see more good examples look at the next website: http://www.conseilsmarketing.fr/communication/70-pub-de-street-marketing-droles-creatives-a-imiter

Lesson two: provocation, astonishment and curiosity.

I have noticed that the best viral campaigns are the provocative ones. I think it is merely due to the fact that people easily remember what is shocking or controversial and that this sort of ad arouses curiosity.

For instance I remembered a viral campaign from Belgium named “rent a wife” in which you can see a man exchanging goods, but not any goods, he changes his wife!

Look at the advert:

http://fr.youtube.com/watch?v=fELjA6QEpdI

First, you think “What a shocking ad!” but then you wander “What is really hidden behind it?” and you can check it on their website: www.rentawife.be.

Apparently, the website promotes the same idea: you can rent a wife among 9 500 ideal women who are in the ‘rent a wife’ catalogue. But in reality, it is a viral website created by Emakina (a Belgian advert agency) so as to promote another website (a real website): a website where you can rent DVD’s, DVDPost.

This ad did a great buzz and succeeded in making people talk of them, so we can say that the viral ad was effective. In fact, it is really hard to launch a product or a brand and to establish a reputation for a brand new brand and viral marketing may be a way to do it well.

Lesson one: you must use technology and bet on customers’ curiosity: the example of the Dark Knight campaign.

Some of you may have seen the film Batman: The Dark Knight. I saw it and as I am interested in marketing and advertising I wanted to know how the Warner Bros Company did advertising for this film. And definitely, this film was a good example of a big viral marketing campaign based on curiosity and the perfect use of technology.

In fact, this campaign shows how to use technology and viral marketing during an ad campaign.

The company has created a website called “The Dark knight” and on this website you can only see this graphic: 

What a frustration for Batman excited fans!

 But don’t go by appearances, just click on the image and you are instantaneously redirected on another website where you can find another graphic:

 And « that’s all folks! ». No, this episod is to be continued…

Then the Joker is coming in the campaign: the web user can see (another) graphic in support of Harvey Dent but modified by the Joker.  

 As from NOW the user can be active. In fact, entering his email address, the user can receive a specific email which gives him X and Y codes. These codes permit remove one pixel of the previous poster and another image appears.

Thus the fans can interact in the film promotion and thanks to word of mouth each person can remove a pixel and finally discover:

The Joker !

All in all it is not just another campaign for a blockbuster, it is a really good viral advertising campaign that we can find in different websites, blogs or videos.

Moreover they use all media and all stands:

Phone:

http://fr.youtube.com/watch?v=YDkh62oL1Y4

  Television and internet:

http://fr.youtube.com/watch?v=F-TbI5EJw3g&feature=related

http://fr.youtube.com/watch?v=gKkcrB3GFpU&feature=related

 Money:

Welcome to my blog!

You may have heared about buzz, viral or other forms of marketing recently. You are lucky, my blog is about the different forms of marketing which struck me most!

So, what about viral marketing and buzz?

Viral marketing consists in using the communication network so as to improve the notoriety of a brand and, as a consequence, the sales of its products. Nowadays, this sort of marketing is very trendy and useful. In fact it is a low cost marketing because the consumers themselves vehicle information about the brand that is spreading like a virus.

But how does it work? Viral marketing is merely based on word-of-mouth or buzz and on the fact that people easily pass along a marketing message chatting with others.

The natural behaviour of the customer: the customer tells an average of 3 people about a product, service or brand he likes and those 3 people do the same: that is a domino effect.

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