@JELLO’s #FML Campaign: Bizarre, Brilliant, or Abysmal?

To launch the start of its “Fun My Life” campaign, JELL-O’s official Twitter account announced “If you tweet #FML now thru 6/14, your Fun My Life wish may just be satisfied. By us.  See for yourself: http://jellofml.com.” The campaign’s website pulls all tweets with the hashtag #fml (I’m guessing we all know what #FML stands for in the Twittersphere, but if not, come find me in class and I’ll elaborate) onto the campaign’s website, and JELL-O responds to a variety of the tweets with a gimmicky suggestion on how the disgruntled tweeter can improve their day.

JELL-O is taking an unusual approach with its corporate social media campaign, and it has already generated a lot of online buzz, with some arguing its a brilliant marketing campaign, while others see it as a ridiculous attempt to garner short-lived attention online:

http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/jell-o-hijacks-twitters-profane-fml-hashtag-changes-it-mean-fun-my-life-149788

http://betabeat.com/2013/05/jell-os-ad-agency-thinks-it-can-change-the-meaning-of-fml-to-fun-my-life/

Since we’ve all just finished Likeonomics, I’d like to get people’s opinions on how these tactics compare to the marketing approaches recommended by Bhargava. I think this campaign is a short-sited attempt by JELL-O to garner attention and followers on Twitter. With less than 4,000 followers, JELL-O has a minimal social media presence, however, this tongue-in-cheeck campaign seems to do very little for the brand long term. Aside from my personal view that this campaign is an invasive, silly, and cringeworthy attempt on JELL-O’s part to splash itself all over Twitter, I think campaigns like these miss the mark on Twitter completely.  I’d be interested in hearing other perspectives on this. Is JELL-O’s #FML Campaign a brilliant social media marketing move, or a total miss?

–Hannah Griffin

Security and Social Media: Trouble Ahead?

An article posted on BBC.com yesterday, “Twitter tightens security after recent hacking spate,” reminded me of our brief discussion in class this week about online security and the way(s) in which it influences/interferes with our behavior on social media platforms.  The article indicates that recent high-profile attacks on Twitter accounts, such as the recent hacking of the Associated Press’ account, have put security on social media platforms under greater scrutiny. So, will these high-profile security threats have a longterm effect on the credibility of these social media platforms?

In my opinion, Twitter’s popularity has largely stemmed from its ability to foster a large-scale community of opinion leaders and influencers. Journalists, thought leaders, innovators, and celebrities thrive on this platform because it is an optimal online platform to connect these influencers to their audiences. To me, Twitter seems particularly vulnerable to these online security threats for this very reason. If the authenticity and credibility of its content is called into question, will the content on this medium become less credible, and will its users feel less confident using Twitter because of these perceived security risks?

I personally don’t see these types of hacking incidents as having a lasting impact on the platform or its users, but I do think examining how public perception is affected by incidents likes these does warrant some additional thought. If, for instance, an ABC News television broadcast was hacked and disseminated false information, I think the ramifications would be quite severe. While recent security breaches on Twitter have received international coverage, does the current somewhat subdued reaction to these security breaches indicate that information on these platforms is considered to be inherently less credible than news on more traditional mediums? I think the answer to this will depend on how credible the content on Twitter is perceived to be in the next few years, which in turn largely depends on Twitter’s ability to curtail security breaches like this in the future.

–Hannah Griffin

Quality VS Quantity

How long should a blog post actually be? Maybe 500 words. Never a thousand words, right? Everyone has a different opinion. But in the end, most agree that it better not be long.

The CAHOOTS website, which discusses social media tips, claims a blog post should be over 300 words for SEO purposes but no more than 500 words. After breaching 500 words, the blogger may be giving the reader too much to digest at one time.

Do NOT be repetitive! We live in this technological world where everyone is seeking information as quickly as possible, so get to the point. In order to help the reader process the information fast, the blogger must write in a simple manner. Wordy sentences only hinder the minds attempt to process information.

Why not break a large piece up into multiple posts? If your blog post exceeds 500 words, think about breaking the piece up into a series of posts. By creating a routine and posting about a certain topic over a certain period of time, it may attract readers to come back.

The most important tip to remember is that quality trumps all. If a reader comes to your blog seeking specific information and they come across a poorly written post, none of these other details explained above will matter.

Ultimately, a blog post must please the reader so much that they want to return to your website later to read more. If you would like to read more of this article from the CAHOOTS website, click here.

-Nicholas G. Guldin

Best Practices for Posting

While there are numerous studies done into when and how often to post on social media sites, this graphic gives some solid best practices that can be used by anyone. The advice is sound and realistic, particularly for a small (perhaps one person) shop that doesn’t have a lot of resources.

Visit http://topnonprofits.com/posting-guide/ for a downloadable .pdf of this chart.