Viral videos

This blog post will assess one viral video that I think worked and was effective and another that I think did not work and was ineffective.

Wikipedia define a viral video as "A viral video is one that becomes popular through the process of Internet sharing, typically through video sharing websites and email". It could be questioned how it is determined to be popular? How many views? How many times is the link forwarded on? How many times it is 'liked' on facebook? It would be interesting to see how company's measure the success of their videos if it can not be truly defined to be viral?

I'll start with the viral video I believe to be very effective.

Brand - Greenpeace - it could be argued that this is not a brand but it is the organisation behind this video.

Message - The video shows an average office worker who stops for a break. Initially the branding colours makes the viewer believe it's an official Kitkat video as the worker opens a Kitkat wrapper but the viewer is shocked on discovering the Kitkat is not chocolate as expected but the finger of an orang-utan with blood spilling across his desk.

Value Offering - Alert people of the sourcing of palm-oil from Indonesian forests which is "pushing orang-utans towards extinction". Further information can be found on Greenpeace's dedicated 'Kitkat' website

Audience  - anyone with an interest in the environment or ethical matters such as sustainable sourcing. Nestle customers and employees may also be interested in watching the video. 

Conclusion - The evidence of the success of this video is clear with over 1.5 million views on YouTube. After two months of campaigning, Nestlé also released an announcement to stop using products that come from rainforest destruction.

Now onto the video I believe to be ineffective.
Sadly it has been removed from YouTube now [don't whatever you do search 'ass cam' on YouTube like I just did!]
Brand - Levi Jeans were behind the making of the video BUT they did it in a sneaky way by
Message - The video shows two very attractive girls walking down the street with lots of people staring at the bum! They had a secret camera to film how many people checked them out.
Value Offering - Despite no obvious brand references or logos to make the watched realise it came from Levis, it was to get people talking about how good your bottom can look wearing a pair of jeans.. Levi jeans in particular!
Audience - Younger guys and girls - anyone interested in a giggle
Conclusion  - Although the video was very successful in terms of being a viral video with 7 million views worldwide, I don't believe the video will have been particularly effective in making people want to buy Levi jeans as it really wasn't made obvious enough. Asher mentioned in class today that a viral marketing campaign should really make an attempt to obtain your email address as by just watching a video, a consumer will not change their buying behaviour. To be more effective, Levi could have released the video under their own You Tube channel and had more reference to their brand.