Vivienne Egan
Pyrotechnics stunt exhibition by “Giant Auto Rodéo”, Ciney, Belgium
We are all aware that social media is critical within any sales or marketing campaign. Most of us have used these platforms in relation to promoting a new product, responding to customers or to gain valuable feedback in terms of an ongoing marketing campaign. Still, let’s not forget that one of the best ways to take advantage of a public relations campaign is to utilise “stunts” that are designed to attract attention (both positive and negative). What are a few examples of this method and how can such stunts be used to your advantage?
PR Stunts That Broke the Internet
One of the best ways to use social media is through a targeted campaign that quickly goes viral. A great example of this can be seen in the 2014 ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. While the act of dumping a bucket of ice over one’s head and nominating three others to do the same seemed a bit odd, the fact of the matter is that this stunt raised no less than $ 115 million dollars towards medical research.
Another social media/PR success story is the recent Tinder “meltdown” that took place on Twitter. While originally appearing to be nothing more than an ill-advised rant towards a Vanity Fair article, it quickly gained a massive amount of popularity while highlighting some of the main benefits of Tinder. It actually seems as if this so-called “rant” was actually a well-played marketing coup.
The Public Edge
There are important reasons why social media is now one of the top ways to pull off a successful public relations stunt. Of course, the most obvious is the fact that platforms such as Twitter and Facebook are visited by literally BILLIONS of users each day. In fact, many are now likely to consult social media advertisements before committing to the purchase of a product or service. However, there is another reason why social media is the “king of the hill” in terms of public relations.
The key word here is “public”. There is simply no better way to interact with a target audience. As opposed to a traditional stunt and data that may take days to compile, a business can now see how their campaign is performing in a real-time scenario. This will help to address questions such as:
- Is our feedback positive or negative?
- Have we alienated a specific audience?
- How are other companies reacting?
- Have our sales increased during this time period?
- Not only can on-the-fly adjustments be made if necessary, but this type of insight would not be possible with other methods.
The bottom line is that with so many different advertising campaigns in existence, the audience is becoming more enticed by “shock” value than ever before. So, it only makes sense that the recent Tinder rant made waves across many virtual communities. We should expect the combination of social media and PR campaigns to increase in both complexity and sheer originality.
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