Some Business Gimmicks Backfire
March 4, 2009
Silly business gimmicks are all very well. Trouble is, if you suck – they make it far easier for folk to remember that you’re the company who provides an appalling service.
As Kathy of Virtual Impax explains in “When The Pest Control Company Is Your Most Annoying Pest” – a yellow VW Bug, complete with ears and a tail, is a great way to get people to remember your business. But it’s not so great if your service is poor. They might forget your name but they won’t forget that bloody yellow car and neither will their friends.
Some businesses are a lot better at pulling off gimmicks and publicity stunts than others though and Virgin Atlantic are probably the best. They’re running a Richard Branson lookalike competition and Richard has pics of suggested poses you might want to copy. The prize is awesome and I’m confident that I’ll win.
As you may or may not know, I’m probably Richard Branson’s number 1 fan and I know he never uses a computer. So I felt like I was a bit late to the party when I discovered that he has his own blog: Business Stripped Bare. And he has over 40,000 twitter followers. How did he do that so quick? And why didn’t I get a “Dear No 1 Fan” tweet to let me know?
It was nearly as big a shock as the news that safe but boring Dell have made $1 million in extra revenue from Twitter.
The Dell brand may have the sex appeal of a sumo wrestler but they’ve been a lot smarter at the Twitter game than most of us.
Most other business are sending their customers email newsletters that go straight to the spam folder; or worse still – costly snail mail. But Dell are getting their messages seen for free. And they’re not interrupting anyone, as their customers chose to follow them. Plus, they have 32 different Twitter accounts, so their tweets are carefully targeted.
You could do that too – it makes a lot of sense. Why not open a new Twitter account, which is exclusively for folk who want to sign up for your special offers? You’ll get a much better response and you won’t need to worry about annoying people, every time you press the send button.
What do you think? Do you like the way Dell is using Twitter? Are you going to enter the Richard Branson look alike comp?
Comments
11 Responses to “Some Business Gimmicks Backfire”
-
Successful And Outstanding Blogger
I think it’s easier to get good Twitter following and response if you’re already well established. Won’t necessarily work as well for us mortals.
Vered – MomGrind’s last blog post..Parenthood Has Turned Me Into A Better Person
Hi Cath: I’m a big fan of Richard Branson as well. There`s a man who deserves his success. I don`t think I’d do well in a Richard Branson look-alike contest, although some people have told me I look like Gloria Estefan from Miami Sound Machine (I wonder if she’s having a look-alike contest).
Hi Vered – It seems that way. Big brands definitely win – even in social networking.
Hi Mare – I thought your face seemed familiar – but i haven’t seen a pic of Gloria Estefan for a while.
You don’t have to actually look like Richard Branson – although it seems that way at first. You’ve just got to pose like him in one of the pics. I’m going to enter – you get to go to his party plus free return flights in “the bubble” to New York.
That cute yellow VW bug with the mouse ears will never cause me to break out in a silly smile ever again! (Thanks for the mention!)
By the way – I’m boycotting Richard Branson’s Twitter because of his obvious lack of respect for his “biggest” fan. (VERY BIG GRIN)
I LOVE the idea of a separate Twitter account to alert people to special offers!!! I know I’m subscribed to the Dell Outlet Twitter account – I didn’t realize they had 31 others!!!
However, your post made me realize something – even though I’m subscribed to the Dell Outlet Twitter feed – I just got off the phone with my local computer store. This is the THIRD hard drive failure in my HP media center desktop and I’m getting ready to head down there to buy a laptop.
Twitter may let me know about the latest Dell deals – but there’s something about talking to a REAL human being and holding a product before you buy it that must still appeal to me. I mean, why didn’t I check the Twitter feed instead of picking up the phone and calling?
Kathy | Virtual Impax’s last blog post..An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure
Hi there Cath – that’s a good idea about having different Twitter accounts for different purposes – thanks for that.
Interesting about Branson!
Robin’s last blog post..The Journey, With Brandon Bays
Hi Catherine – After all of the wonderful articles you’ve written about Richard Branson, he should know you are his #1 fan. What gives?
I like the idea of having multiple Twitter accounts. Like you said it’s a great way to get out of the faces of people who don’t want to be sold to, and target a buying audience. Too bad I don’t have anything to sell.
Barbara Swafford’s last blog post..In Their Own Words
Hi Cath, Yes, Companies are finding new ways to use Twitter every day. Dell’s example is quite a model, and it makes perfect sense for all the reasons you give. Any company can take advantage of Twitter’s power, provided their customers or potential customers use it. Huge opportunity.
Brad Shorr’s last blog post..25 Writers Who Are Shaping My World
Hi Kathy – Thanks for your support. I nearly fell off my chair when I saw all their accounts – but it’s a bloody good idea.
I’ve also had problems with HP products. And I’d never buy another PC from PC world, as they’re not one bit flexible if you’re a few days over your guarantee.
Like you – I used to buy from shops – sometimes small ones. Then I started getting them online – often from Dabs. If you buy a Sony laptop, don’t bother paying extra for the 3 year guarantee, as they don’t get back to you and not everything is covered.
Hi Robin – It sounds good doesn’t it.
Hi Barbara – Thanks
I’m hoping you’ll have something to sell, after you launch your new proect. Don’t forget to let me know when you’re done.
Hi Brad – Twitter is proving to be a great tool isn’t it? Probably the best social media site so far I reckon.
Everyone seems to be trying to second guess how they’re going to monetize it. I don’t blame them for not rushing into it – they need to get it right. Apparently – they’ve raised over $50 million in venture capital, so I guess that buys them quite a bit of time.
The only Twitter guy I’ve run into from Dell left a really bad taste in my mouth. But that’s because he was running a mini-crusade against auto-dm thank-yous. He was publicly shaming people who used them to thank new followers and he was even shaming people who’d actually dmed him personally because he assumed it was an auto dm.
His username is richardatdell and he comes off as a complete self-righteous douche (ok, he was “exposing” some of my friendly friends who actually sent him a thank-you dm they’d written themselves and I got annoyed). I actually wrote a short note to the Dell social media team letting them know that if being a douche on Twitter wasn’t part of their marketing plan, then they should consider taking him off it.
I agreed with your opinion here, Catherine. We should always watch out for the backfire, as it might get ourselves burn if we didn’t pay attention on it!
Hi Ruth – It sounds like that guy is not doing much for Dell’s reputation. I’m glad you told them what he is up to, as I’m betting they had no idea he was doing that.
Hi Wilson – definitely. It’s one thing coming up with a great way for folk to remember you – but you’ve got to make sure they’re remembering you for the right reasons.