7 figures in one month - facebook marketing case study

8/7/2019 7 Figures In One Month - Facebook Marketing Case Study

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/7-figures-in-one-month-facebook-marketing-case-study 1/14

SocialMediaCaseStudyRageAgainstTheMachineForChristmasNumber1

ByIanDavidChapmanandRobertGrant



FacebookCaseStudy:RageAgainstThe

MachineForChristmasNo.1

Thisreportwillgiveyouadetailedanalysisofarecentviral

marketingcampaignthattookplaceusingFacebookGroupsand

Pages.

ThismassiveFacebookcampaignorganizedbyfansendedin

triumphwhenRageAgainstTheMachinesucceededingettingthe

song"KillinginthenameOf"tonumber1intheUKChristmasmusic

chartsinprotestagainstthemonotonyofTVshowsliketheX‐Factor

monopolizingthemusiccharts.

5YearsagonoonewouldhavethoughtthatagroupofFanscouldget

theirfavoritebandtobenumberone,LetalonetakethecovetednumberonespotovertheChristmasperiod.Inthepastthiswould



neverhavebeenpossible.Onlynowwiththeriseofsocial

networkingsiteslikeFacebookhasthepowershiftedoutofthe

handsofthemusicindustryandTVstationsintothehandsofthe

masses.

Fromamarketingperspectivethiscampaignhasbeenvery

interesting,especiallyconsideringthecontroversyandglobalnews

headlinesthatthishasbeengrabbing.

Sowhatmadethiscampaignsospecialandwhydiditcapturethe

heartsofrebelliousBritishmusiclovers.

The7EssentialComponentsOfAViralCampaign

BeforeweexplorehowtheRageAgainstTheMachinecampaign

achievedsuchresoundingsuccesswewillfirstestablishaframework

toseetheessentialcomponentsthatweallinplaceandhoweach

factorhelpedandsupportedtheothers.

Oneofthereasonsomanymarketingcampaignsfailisbecausethey

failtoharnessthepsychologicalcommitmentoftheactualpeople

involvedwhichiswhatfuelsthemomentumofthecampaign.



Ifyouwanttostartaforestfireyouneedtomakeitinaplacewhere

thereisenoughdrywoodthatwillburneasilyandenoughwindto

keepthefiremoving.

1.IndentifyACommonEnemy.“UsAgainstThem”triggersaspectsofourhumannaturethatsee

certainpeopleorgroupsas“Oneofus”andothersas“TheEnemy”Its

importanttoalways“AskPeopleToIdentifyWithYourCause”this

forcesthemtochoosesides.Theyareeitherwithyouoragainstyou.

GoodExamplesfromviralgroupsonFacebookwouldbe“Iwantto

jointhefightagainstcancer”or‘Iwanttojointhefightagainstglobal

warming’

2.StimulatePassionAndExcitement.Createyourcampaignaroundasubjectthatpeoplearepassionate

about.Ifyoucan’tgetexcitedaboutit,youwillneversustaininterest

overaprolongedperiodandyourcampaignislikelytofizzleout.

3.BeRebellious.

Dosomethingthatgoesagainsttheconventionalnorms–berebellious,Challengetheestablishedauthority

4.UseOpposites.Framethingsineasytounderstandopposites,BlackandWhite,Good

andBad.Emphasizethebenefitsthatyourcampaignwillachieveand

thepainthatitwilleradicate.

5.CreateBuzz.Dosomethingnoteworthy,getpeopletalkingaboutyou.Publicity

stuntsattractmediaattention,mediaattentionwillnaturallyattract

alargercrowd

6.AspireToAHigherCause.Alwayshaveahighercausethatyouareworkingtowards.

Somethingthatisgreaterthananyoneindividualorbusinessand

benefitsmorepeoplethanjustyourself.Thiswillrallyroundpeople

whoarenotnecessarilyidentifiedwithyourmaincampaignbutwho

supportyourhighercause



7.SetGoalsAndCelebrate.Setyourselfachievablegoalsandcelebratepubliclywhenyoureach

them.Makeboldstatementsthatinspirepeopletohelpyouachieve

yourintendedresults.Harnessthepowerofthetribeorcommunity

togetthistohappen

RageAgainstTheMusicIndustryWithourframeworkestablishedwecannowexplorehowthe

FacebookGroupthatwascreatedtoputRageagainsttheMachinetonumberoneinthemusicchartstickedalltheboxesandeffectively

harnessedthemediaandthefanstoachievetheintendedgoal.

UsAgainstThem

JonMorterwhowastheoriginatorandfounderoftheFacebook

groupalongwithhiswifeTracy,madeacrucialdecisionwhenhe

beganthiswholecampaign.

Hechoseasongandgroupthatrepresentedhisownangerand

frustrationsatthecurrentstateoftheBritishMusicindustry.



Thiscollectiveangeragainst"themachine"iswhatunitedtheBritish

musictribestovoicetheirprotestandisareflectionofthearchetypal

“UsAgainstThem”theme

Thesong,“KillingInTheNameOf”wasjusttheFlag,orbattlestandardthatpeoplecouldrallyaround.

Inaninterviewthebandsaid:

“Therealtensionspeopleareexperiencingintheirdailylivesis

arageagainstthemanufacturedpopmusic.PeopleinUKare

tiredofbeingspoonfedonesmaltzybaladafteranother”

TheEnemy

Gettingpeopleangrythattheyarepowerlessandbeingcontrolledby

someunseenpowerisreminiscentofGeorgeOrwellsbook1984.

Tappingintothecollectiveforcesofangertowardsanoppressive

neighborarethesametacticsthatpoliticiansuseforwarmongering

InthiscasetheEnemywasSimonCowell,ThepresenterofTheX‐

Factor.



PressingButtonsGoodcopywritersalsodeliberatelypressthesebuttonswhenthey

writesalesletters.Theystimulateemotionintheirreadersby

pointingoutthecommonenemies.i.e.theirbiggestpainsandmost

pressingproblems.Latertheywillpositiontheirproductorservice

astheonlyviablesolutiontoresolvethisproblem.

AnyEnemyWillDoInterestinglyinthisparticularcase,afterfalserumorsand

speculationsthatFacebookwereactuallytryingtoshutthegroup

down,FacebookwerealsobeingpushedinthisEnemyrole,whenin

facttheywerejusthavingtechnicalissues.

Itwasonlythroughthe"machine"ofFacebookthatmadethiswhole

thingpossibleinthefirstplace.Butfromanemotionalperspective

anyenemywilldoeveniftheenemyisactuallyyourfriend.

JohnMortermadethisveryclearthathehadnopersonalgrudge

againstSimonCowellbutthisconflictwasdefinitelyplayedupby

otherFansandthemediaatlarge.

PassionateFans.

Inorderforacampaigntobesuccessfulyouneedtoharnessthe

passionandenthusiasmofyourtribalgroup.InthisinstanceRage

AgainstTheMachinealreadyhaveaglobalfanbaseandexisting

FacebookFanpageof463,000fans.



Itwasobviousthatthisfanbaseformedanessentialfoundationfor

thiscampaignbuttherealquestioniswheredidtheother500,000

peoplecomefrom.Thatmadeupthenear1,000,000groupmembers.

Many“NonFans”supportedthisbecausetheywerepassionateabout

musicandpassionateaboutexpressingtheircollectivefrustrationsin

thisway.

JonMorterexpressedthisfactinaninterview:

“…it'salmostmorelikeavotethanapurchase.Peoplewhoaren't

majorRATMfansarebuyingitanyway,justbecausetheyare

sickofX-Factor'sdominationoftheChristmasNumber1”

“F***YouIWon'tDoWhatYouTellMe”

Havingasongthatshockspeopleandoffendsnormalsensibilities

appealstotheyouthofeverygeneration.Breakingtaboosiswhat

getsyounoticed,andintheendthisiswhatthemainintentionofthis

campaignwasfor.Gettingthisrecordtonumberonewaslike

throwingabrickthroughaplateglasswindowthatbelongedtothe

wholemusic,TVandrecordingindustry.



Rebellion

Onceyouhaveacrowdofpeopleandtheglobalmediaattentionfocusedonyouitseasytoincitemassrebellionamongsttheyouth

whowanttogettheirvoicesheard.Inthedigitalagerebellioncanbe

expressedthroughonlinechannels.BarackObamaunleashedthe

samepowerinhisownelectoralcampaignwhenheralliedtheyouth

voteinhissupport,coupledwithextensiveuseofsocialmedia

channelslikeFacebookandYouTube.

JuxtapositionOfOppositesWhenyoutakealookatthecompetitionforthemuchcoveted

Christmasnumberoneyouarestruckbytheextremecontrast

betweenthesugarsweetJoeMcElderrysinging theClimbandthe

vitriolicvoiceofleadsingerZackdelaRochafromRageagainstthe

Machine.

Placingcontrastingoppositestogetherisakeyelementinanyviral

campaign,whetheritishumorousofjustshockingitgrabspeoples

attentiononadeeplevel.

Rememberyouareappealingtopeople’semotionalnature,which

wantstoseeeverythinginsimplistictermsofblackandwhite,good

andbad,topdog,underdog.

OnamoresubtlelevelthelyricsfromRageagainstthemachinearea

directandopenattackontheschizophrenicnatureofsocietythatcan

justify“killinginthenameof”.Referringtothepoliceofficerswho

werealsomembersoftheKluKluxKlan



GetBannedGetBuzzThefactthatmanyUKradiostationswontevenplaythesong“killing

inthenameof”furthersitspopularity.Makesomethingillegalandyouonlymakepeoplewantitevenmore.Radio1willonlyplaya

sanitizeddownversionofthesongthatremovestheexpletives.

Inthe80’sFrankieGoesToHollywooddidthesamethingwiththeir

controversialsong“Relax”Idoubtitwouldhavehadthesame

successiftheBBC(BritishBroadcastingCompany)hadnotchosento

banit.

GettingNoticedOneimportantfactorthatmadethiscampaignsosuccessfulwasthe

factthatitwasactuallyacknowledgedbymediamogulSimonCowell.

HadhejustchosentoignoretheFacebookgroupinsteadofinitially

attackingitthingsmighthaveturnedoutdifferently.

Thisexemplifiestheoldsayingthat “Allpublicityisgoodpublicity”

Oncethegrouphadreachedacertainsizetheband“RageAgainstTheMachine”alsoacknowledgedthecampaignandofferedtheir

officialendorsementandsupport.

Theyaddedfueltothefirewhenthedidaliveradiointerviewand

promisednottouseanyexpletiveswhenthesangthesong.Theband

truetotheirnaturedisobeyedtheir

DoingThingsForAHigherCauseOncetheFacebookcampaignwasrollingitwasobviousthatthere

wasapotentialtodosomethingnoteworthyforahighercause.The

charity“Shelter”waschosenandaproportionofallprofitswere

donatedtosupporthomelesspeople.Todatetheyhaveraised

nearly£90,000GBP



ReachingTheGoalWhatstartedoutasajoketurnedintoarevolution,Itfirmly

establishedthepowerofsocialmediaintheeyesoftheworldsmedia

andalsoshowedthatwhenpeoplebandtogethertheycan

completelyoverturnanysystem.

IncelebrationtheBandagreedtoplayaconcertintheUKasawayof

sayingthankyoutoallthefansthatmadethispossible.Rewardingandcelebratingsuccessisessentialtocarryoverandsustainthatfeel



goodfactorlongaftertheinitialgoalisachieved.It’sbeenshowthat

it’smuchmoreeffectivetorewardthewholecommunityratherthan

justafewluckyindividuals.Thisagainwasatextbookexampleof

thisprinciple.

MistakesAndLessonsToBeLearnedAsaFacebookstrategistit’sinterestingtolookandseethemistakes

thatweremadeduringthiscampaignandhowtheycouldhavebeen

avoided.

ThefirstandmostglaringmistakethatJohnMortermadewastoonly

startaFacebookgroup.(messagingrightsareremovedafter5000

members)anditsoonbecameunmanageableandastrainofFacebooksresources.

Inresponsehecreatedanothergroupasabackupafterthegroup

wasoutofactionforanumberofdays.

AnotherFacebookusercreatedanidenticalFacebookFanpageand

weresiphoningoffalotoftraffictotheirownaffiliatelinks.Thefan

pagegrewtoover500,000becauseitwasshowingupinsearch

results.

ItwasonlylaterthatFacebooktransferredthefansfromthisFan

pagetoJonsFanpage.

ThisscenariomighthavebeenavoidedbyrunningaFanpageand

Groupinparallelfromthebeginning.ThiswouldhavegivenJon

morecontrolofthemovementandbrandthathecreated.

Similarlyifyoubuyadotcomdomainnameyoushouldalwaysgrabthedotnetanddotorgtopreventbrandjackersfromstealingyour

traffic.

.

SummaryByobservingsuccessfulcampaignswecanlearnvaluablelessonsand

applytheminourownmarketing.



Whenyouareplanningyournextpromotionreviewthe7essential

componentsandseeifyoucanadjustyourstrategytomaximizeyour

viraleffectiveness.

1. IndentifyACommonEnemy.2. StimulatePassionAndExcitement.

3. BeRebellious.4. UseOpposites.5. CreateBuzz.6. AspireToAHigherCause.7. SetGoalsAndCelebrate.

WhenyoustartanySocialMediacampaignensurethatyouhavethe

necessarycomponentsinplacesoyoucanmaximizeandfuture

revenue.Ifyouhaveanopportunitytocollectemailsdosoevenif

youinitiallydon’thaveanythingtosell.It’smuchhardertogobackat

alaterdateonceyourgrouporfanpagehasanestablished

membership.

Viralcampaignsareallaboutsubtletymanipulatingemotionsand

opinionsinthedirectionthatyouchoose.Theendresultisthesame,

youareinfluencingthewaypeoplethinkandbehave.

References

FacebookGrouphttp://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2228594104

FanPage

http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=243632025810#/ratm

4xmas?v=wall

Articles

http://www.nme.com/news/rage‐against‐the‐machine/48816

http://www.clashmusic.com/feature/rage‐against‐the‐machine‐

christmas‐single‐the‐man‐responsible

7 figures in one month - facebook marketing case study

Documents