My Thursday’s nights are no longer empty. Scandal has returned to ABC after its two-month break, and I am rejoicing. I found myself tweeting every thought and criticism about Olivia Pope and her gladiators. I was glued to the television and to my Twitter timeline. It felt good to discuss the show among other Scandal fanatics. I was scrolling down my timeline, and I saw a tweet from Tide. It said, “Tide to Go: The Original Fixer #scandal.” I thought this was a brilliant move on Tide’s behalf.
Tide was able to seize a real-time marketing and public relations opportunity.
Tide cleverly tied its content to Scandal and tweeted while the show was on. I also noticed Tyler Perry’s new movie, “The Single Mom’s Club” tweeted using the hashtag Scandal. I do not think “The Single Mom’s Club” tweet was as effective as Tide’s. The Single Mom’s Club tweet did not use content that was tied into Scandal. It just wasn’t a good fit. You can tell the primary goal was to get retweets, and not to interact with the Scandal fanatics.
Real-Time Marketing Gone Wrong…
The difference between Tide and “The Single Mom’s Club” tweets was the lack of connection between their brand and the show. The lack of connection makes “The Single Mom’s Club” look like an opportunist and not authentic. I decided to get on “The Single Mom’s Club” Twitter page, and I noticed it has tweeted during The Bachelor as well. The Bachelor was number three on Nielsen TV Twitter Ratings, so I understand the opportunity “The Single Mom’s Club” saw. “The Single Mom’s Club” once again disappointed me with its content. The content is not creative and doesn’t even try to make it relatable to the ratings giant or to its audience.
Real-Time Marketing Gone Right…
Companies should make a visible connection with content if you are going to piggyback off another product, company or person’s publicity. I remember during the Super Bowl when everyone thought J.C. Penney’s twitter was hacked or its tweeter was drunk. J.C. Penney’s tweets became the main conversation on Twitter. I think I began to pay more attention to J.C Penney’s tweets than watching the Super Bowl.
I knew a brand like J.C. Penney would not be that careless with its twitter, so I knew it had something bigger up its sleeves. Brands like Snickers and Kia Motor Vehicles began to mention J.C Penney with relevant content that built a bridge between the real-time event and their own product.
I thought this was brilliant and creative. I only hope “The Single’s Mom Club” will take notes.
What brands do you think do a go job with real-time marketing?
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