Thought it would be fun to square off two "viral" efforts and have you sound off on which is better, what works what doesn't... This week alone I have had discussion with two major potential clients on word of mouth. As most of you know it is difficult new territory for clients and a huge creative challenge for agencies. (here is a recent article on the subject from USA Today)
This week:
www.runworldrun.com vs www.bringthefast.com
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Strategists & Planners
Comments (4)
I personally found both of these very tough to watch and couldn't see the viral component (other than that they were strange creative ideas).
My vote would be for bringthefast, but it's a win by default.
Posted by Joe Dee | July 1, 2005 8:05 AM
Posted on July 1, 2005 08:05
On pure content, I like the animated video from Brooks. Made me smile. I would want to pass this along, HOWEVER, the long load time is sure to send most away before they can enjoy it and it was still presented in a broadcast model. No interactivity, no engagement, no personalization, no discovery. What now?
Viral score: 5
"Bring the Fast" is flawed. It feels very contrived – trying too hard to say "look at me, I'm funny viral content". The production is slick and the writing is mediocre. In the end, I don't feel like buggin' my friends with this.
Viral score: 4
Posted by Guthrie | July 1, 2005 8:25 AM
Posted on July 1, 2005 08:25
The first rule of viral is that is has to be entertaining, and to me, there's no contest. Run World Run is a diversion, Bring the Fast is a commercial.
You can debate whether RWR appeals to your particular sense of whimsy, but I bet that the more you are into running, the more likely you would be to think it was great, and maybe to pass it on to another runner friend. I think many clients make the mistake of thinking they have to appeal to a wide audience to have viral success. It's enough to get a micro-audience engaged, if they're the right people.
The "speed" relationship between Verizon broadband and the Napoleon Dynamite-wannabe is too manufactured, probably in an attempt to reach that mass audience. It also has the Verizon logo all over it, disrupting the illusion of being entertained and reminding me that I am being marketed to. A worse crime is that it's boring- the joke takes way too long to develop.
Posted by Misha | July 1, 2005 1:46 PM
Posted on July 1, 2005 13:46
I agree with Misha. No contest.
I thought of two people who would enjoy watching Run the World. I need to say hi to them (it's been a while) and this is like a free, fun and unique greeting card so I will probably send it along.
Bring the Fast is over-produced. I closed the window a few seconds in. The experience was too complex. Was it a video? A website? Was I supposed to click around? What was the point? I felt like I was being marketed to.
Posted by Mark | July 7, 2005 5:18 AM
Posted on July 7, 2005 05:18