In early April the U.S. Secretary for Education, Linda McMahon, addressed a room full of educators at the ASU+GSV Summit, and mistakenly referred to Artificial Intelligence (AI) as A.1., the 163-year-old condiment, not just once, but several times:
“...a school system that’s going to start making sure that first graders, or even pre-Ks, have A.1. teaching in every year.”
“Kids are sponges. They just absorb everything! It wasn't all that long ago that it was, 'We're going to have internet in our schools!' Now let's see A.1. and how can that be helpful."
"A school system that's going to start making sure that first graders, or even pre-Ks, have A.1. teaching in every year. That's a wonderful thing!"
While it was an easy mistake to quickly dismiss, the quip caught the attention of A.1.’s creative agency, Mischief who quickly served up a “saucy” post for A.1.’s Instagram page to the delight of the brand’s followers. The post hit paydirt with over 7,200 likes (as of this publication) and generated buzz with Business Insider, Fast Company, People.com, Quartz and others.
View this post on Instagram
The Power of Timing
Although a moment like this can be extremely–ahem–rare, time is always of the essence when a brand moves swiftly, creatively and tastefully steals the spotlight. And sometimes, all it takes is a blackout.
Remember the power outage during Super Bowl XLVII at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome? While most of the stadium sat in the dark, Nabisco’s Oreo lit up social media with its now iconic seven-word payoff: “You can still dunk in the dark.” As it took 34 minutes for the lights to come back on, but Oreo threw a touchdown just six minutes after internal emails discussed how to cleverly push the brand forward during this pause at the big game.
The creative team behind this genius brand moment captured 10,000 retweets, over 18,000 likes and more than 5,000 shares in its first hour. It dominated headlines and garnered 525,000,000 earned impressions with $0 media spend. Even more impressive, they won a CLIO and Cannes Lions that same year.
Rules for Riding the "Brand Wagon"
Both A.1. and Oreo exemplify "hopping on the brand wagon:" When a brand quickly circles its wagons around a cultural moment to break through the noise and blaze a trail.
So, to successfully insert a brand into the zeitgeist during these small windows of opportunity, here are three key rules:
Be prepared, but be nimble: Like former professional boxer Mike Tyson once said, “Everybody has a plan until you get punched in the face.” Real-time marketing and communciations is unpredictable by nature. PR professionals can always prepare for what-if scenarios, but once something goes off-script and you’re faced with the unexpected, make sure you and your team are flexible enough to pivot and move in a different direction. Oreo’s win was possible because their team had already gathered supporting another real-time marketing campaign. They had the right people in the room and quickly switched gears when the lights went out and scored.
Be creative, but be quick: Cleverly inject brand elements into the creative and don’t overproduce. Spare your creative director from having to create something elaborate under an extremely tight deadline. More than likely, it’s a social post and you’re being cheeky, so less is more in this respect. All A.1. did was recreate its bottle and attach a pithy tagline. Oreo showed part of the cookie with a dimly lit background and added a line that dovetailed the power outage situation. Minimalism wins under pressure.
Be bold, but be respectful: Guerilla marketing and PR moments require courage and clarity. You can be irreverent without being insensitive. It’s okay to tip-toe over the line ever so slightly without overdoing it and risk damaging your brand with off-color messaging. A.1. struck that balance perfectly as they joined the conversation without mocking McMahon directly, and added levity without taking the low road. As this was already part of the news cycle and of topical interest, the brand cleverly inserted themselves into the conversation.
Although one can never predict when opportunities like the above will arise, remember, fortune favors the bold. If you and your team can move with speed, create with wit, and tread that fine line with care, you’ll be hitching up to the brand wagon on some happy trails.
Brian Gallagher is a senior executive of communications in the tech space. For over 15 years, he has helped insert organizations and executive leaders into the news cycle through impactful pieces of content, thought leadership and brand positioning.