Is there such a thing
as a tipping point?

“Forest fires aren’t spread by
influential trees.” — Duncan Watts, Principal researcher, Yahoo! Research

Just as viral video and
key influencers are largely mythological, so too is the idea that there’s a formula for social media explosion.

There are clear tipping points
in social media, but they rarely — if ever — exist in isolation.

The one thing that’s universal?
You have to be good " before you can be great.

Two types of social media
tipping points: • Proactive • Reactive

A proactive tipping point is
a premeditated move aimed at launching your business onto the national stage. Photo source: nasa1fan/MSFC on Flickr.

Proactive tipping points The good:
• Happens on your schedule • Takes the form you decide • Ready for prime time on Day 1

Proactive tipping points The bad:
• Can be delayed by internal dithering • Can lack authenticity • Failure can be disastrous

A reactive tipping point is
an unexpected burst of publicity " (good or bad) that lands your business in the social media spotlight. Photo source: ChrisGoldNY on Flickr.

Reactive tipping points The good:
• Saves you lots of promotional dollars • Helps focus your message • Creates a sense of urgency

Reactive tipping points The bad:
• Can back you into a corner • Execs may prefer to “wait it out” • Little time for a learning curve

Proactive case studies:

Lessons learned from Little Debbie:
• Be patient. Learn your strengths in social media and build on them. • Be willing to invest. • Create a unifying idea, but multiple ways to engage your fans.

In late 2009, TGI Friday’s
embarked " on a heavy Facebook push called " “Fan Woody.” The goal? Reach 500,000 fans, " and they’ll each get a free burger.

The campaign reached its fan
goal " in just 11 days. Then things started to get ugly.

Fans were unhappy with all
sorts of stuff: • Woody was fake • No burgers past the first 500K fans (later expanded to 1 million) • Technical troubles with coupons • Offer only valid for 4 days

But the real problems were
in the strategy: • Why a TV push vs. Facebook ads? • Didn’t drive to TGI Friday’s page • Scenarios weren’t really thought through

By March 2010, TGI Friday’s
had disabled fan comments on the page. Then “Fan Woody” was deleted altogether, " taking more than 900,000 fans with it.

Lessons learned from “Fan Woody”:
• Walk before you run. • Plan your media spend (and timing) wisely. • Use campaigns to build a long-term audience, not as one-offs

Today, TED is the most-watched
lecture series on Earth. But that wasn’t always the case.

Founded in 1984, TED’s presentations
went largely unnoticed for 22 years.

In 2006 and early 2007,
TED organizers made the fateful decision to begin posting videos online.

TED videos became an instant
sensation. A year ago, they had been viewed more than 100 million times.

Today, TED’s views have surpassed
" 200 million. Source: TEDTalks, March 2010

Lessons learned from TED: •
Know your assets, and constantly look for new ways to leverage them. • Find the line between offering value and giving away the store. • Content is, and will always be, king.

Reactive case studies:

In 2005, Chicago band OK
Go created a rehearsal video of their new choreographed dance.

“If this gets out, you’re
sunk.” — Head of digital media, " Capitol Records/EMI Source: Sound Opinions, Chicago Public Radio, March 19, 2010

Never meant for public release,
the video was posted by a friend on an early video site called iFilm. It soon racked up 300,000 views.

“That was about as many
records as we had sold globally at that point.” —Damian Kulash, lead singer Source: Sound Opinions, Chicago Public Radio, March 19, 2010

As a thank-you to their
fans, the band created another choreographed dance, this time on treadmills.

But that wasn’t the tipping
point.

After months of languishing on
a hard drive, the video was abruptly posted by the record label…

After months of languishing on
a hard drive, the video was abruptly posted by the record label… ….on StupidVideos.com

The band succeeded in getting
the clip moved to YouTube, where it got " 1 million views on the first day.

The band succeeded in getting
the clip moved to YouTube, where it got " 1 million views on the first day. Today, it has been viewed " more than 50 million times.

OK Go continued to struggle
with record labels for years, until forming their own in 2010.

Lessons learned from OK Go:
• Innovation rarely sells itself in a corporate environment. • The social media revolution is never “won.” • Put profit over public access at your own peril.

In October 2009, Old Spice
established its Facebook presence with a large-scale ad buy targeting men.

In October 2009, Old Spice
established its Facebook presence with a large-scale ad buy targeting men. The result was a respectable 175,000 fans.

Then they created a work
of art.

The fan count has since
exploded to 536,000.

On YouTube, the ad has
been viewed more than 6 million times.

Old Spice reacted by focusing
most of its Facebook messaging on its ads.

Lessons learned from Old Spice:
• TV ads can still be major drivers. • When you strike gold, keep digging. • Find ways to engage your fans beyond “watch this.”

In summary: The tipping points
of social media don’t happen at random. Leveraging these moments requires skill, experience and flexibility.

Most of all, you need
a willingness to see the world through your customers’ eyes, to see what has captured their attention. Then just bust your butt to make the most of it.

Need more info and inspiration?
Be sure " to check out our blog, TheSocialPath.com

Thanks for your time. David.Griner@Luckie.com
Twitter.com/Griner TheSocialPath.com Slideshare.net/Griner