Lessons from a Super Successful Viral Video Campaign – Old Spice commercial

Lessons from a Super Successful Viral Video Campaign – Old Spice commercial

In this article I discuss the development of the now infamous Old Spice commercial and show just why the video became so viral.

Almost everyone has seen the latest Old Spice commercial which has gone mega viral. It stars Isaiah Mustafa a former NFL player who is now often referred to as the ‘Old Spice man’. The ad itself is called ‘The man your man could smell like’ and created by an agency called Weiden + Kennedy.

The advertisment aired in February 2010 and on on July 14th 2010, Isaiah returned in 181 Youtube videos answering questions that the viewers had sent in. This response video marketing netted the company over 6 million views within 48 hours and Isaiah become a household name.

But, did the agency really do anything brilliant or is there some other explanation as to why the advert is so popular?

Here are some key factors to consider:

• The original ‘Old Spice’ advert that started this series of ‘smug’ and ‘over the top’ style promotion aired in early 2007, some three years earlier.

• Since then there have been a number of videos (possible 2 or 3 a year), that build on the same style, using different actors.

So, this concept is nothing new to the firm or the customer. They have been following it for three years and the YouTube comments suggest there is a fan base for their style of advertising. Old Spice already had a cult following, which would make the process of going viral, a little easier.

• The advert recieved some great mentioned in media and even won a film award

International recognition obviously is a major boost to any commercial, but what it proved again is that the style of advertising was working and that it was standing out from the crown.

The next step in the campaign is genius. They took the winning formula and added the extra step of creating 181 video responses to questions viewers asked via social media sites such as Twitter. Now, it must be remembered that the writing for these ads was great and amusing to watch, but the video were kept very simple (Isaiah wrapped at the waist with a towel, standing in a bathroom).

Here are perhaps other factors which helped:

• Social media only campaign, meaning no/lower advertising costs and the ability to produce lots more videos

• 181 people who have their question answers and are likely catalysts to send the video to their friends (the start of being viral)

• Good build up with questions being asked on social media sites and an anticipation of what is to come from excited followers.

Of course, the advertisements themselves were great, but I do not believe that was enough to create the viral effect. What we have here is a story of a video developing over a number of year, improving the formula and adding viewers along the way. They kept at it until they reached the ‘tipping point’, the magic point where something goes from being good, to becoming astronomically good because of a sudden increase in attention.

They worked hard for this over a number of years, and their success is a result of all the good work that was put in before them. The ‘smug’ and ‘over the top’ style only worked because viewers knew to expect that from this series of commercials. It was just a few magical touches which helped push this advert into orbit, but all due to the hard-work before it.

The lesson for anyone else hoping to make a viral video is clearly seen by the ‘Old Spice’ example. Build a concept that you are consistant with, build on it and increase your fan base over time. Lastly, keep adding magic touches and one day, you also will reach the ‘tipping point’