MDIA 4902 - Blog Assignment #3 - Innovative Social Media Campaigns

Social media, once considered new technology in the world of marketing, now requires much more than ever before to engage an audience and connect them with a brand. In the past, a company could get by with just simply having a Facebook page or a Twitter profile, but today this is not the case. This post will highlight three innovative uses of social media and the ways in which companies and brands are using social media to market toward the general public.

1. Oreo's Brilliant Super Bowl Blackout Advertisement
Oreo was a big winner in the social media marketing efforts surrounding the Super Bowl, and accomplished it with little to no financial backing behind the campaign. During the Super Bowl blackout, when the power went out at the stadium, Oreo posted this on their Twitter page:

During an event where commercials are multi-million dollar efforts, Oreo managed to get themselves out there without the flashy, expensive advertising campaigns.

2. Red Bull's Felix Baumgartner Skydiving Stunt

Red Bull has been doing a great job at building their edgy brand image, and the highlight of their recent social media campaigns was the record breaking skydiving stunt performed by Felix Baumgartnet live on the Internet. My personal Facebook blew up with links to the stream, and the Internet went crazy over the stunt, and Red Bull's brand image was further solidified as the edgy energy drink brand they are looking to establish.

As you can see, the Red Bull logo is printed on the side of the diver's suit, and his parachute also featured a Red Bull design as he landed.

3. BOS Iced Tea Free Sample Twitter Campaign

This campaign is really interesting, and I think it's a really unique way to pass out free samples. BOS Iced Tea placed vending machines in public places, and a person was asked to tweet at the BOS Twitter profile in order to get the machine to dispense a sample. This not only distributes a free sample, but forces the consumer to interact with their Twitter page in order to get the sample.

With an innovative social media campaign, we can see that a company can build their brand and engage their audience, especially when done in a creative way that helps a company stand out in the sea of social media advertising.