Will Old Spice Guy Leave Alyssa Milano at the Altar of Her $100,000 Donation Request?
UPDATE: Old Spice Guy tweets back to Alyssa Milano here, and stays on message, of course.
UPDATE 2 (July 22): Alyssa Milano posts her latest video response on her blog.
It's not every week that the Old Spice Guy and Alyssa Milano exchange video messages online, especially ones where they are both clad in towels and standing in bathrooms. But, it appears this was one of those weeks.
For a couple days, the Internet truly belonged to the Old Spice Guy as the brand unleashed an impressive social media campaign. The main focus of attention was a large number of custom-made videos written and produced in real-time response to comments from individuals made on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Reddit.
Many were directed at celebrities and online influencers, including Alyssa Milano. She received not one, not two, not three, but four videos.
The $100,000 Question
Much has been written about how the Old Spice Guy social media campaign has rolled out, but a very interesting question has been posed by Alyssa Milano. In response to his video professing his affection for her and asking for direction on what to do next, Alyssa responded with her own video asking him to donate $100,000 to the National Wildlife Federation to help with the restoration of the Gulf of Mexico.
So far, neither Old Spice Guy nor anyone from the brand team has responded - publicly at least. Which isn't hopeful news for Alyssa, especially since the video campaign has been brought to a close.
Shifting Dynamics
For brands accustomed to controlled messages and one-way advertising, it takes courage to step into the world of social media. With the greater interaction social media offers also comes higher desire from people for intimacy and immediacy with the brands and organizations they care about. One derivative of this is the rising expectations for brands to demonstrate they care about the issues facing their customers and community.
Unexpected Consequences
I'm willing to bet those running the Old Spice Guy campaign knew there'd be risks associated with the campaign, but didn't have "celebrity asks publicly for a large donation" on their risk board. But that's what happened.
[Disclosure: I consult with P&G, the parent company of Old Spice, on strategic cause matters, but am not involved with the Old Spice campaign.]
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