How Social Media Turned a Brand Into a Revolution
Feb 27th
As protesters in Cairo’s Tahrir Square faced off against government forces, they were prepared with this Facebook lesson from supporters in Tunisia: “Advice to the youth of Egypt: Put vinegar or onion under your scarf for tear gas.”
This exchange (as reported by the New York Times) was part of a remarkable two-year social media collaboration that began with bloggers calling for labor strikes and resulted in an energetic youth movement that is toppling dictators.
And I can’t help but wonder in a very public way, was I wrong?
Just a few months ago, I declared in “Is Social Media Creating a Generation of Cowards?” that I agreed with Malcom Gladwell’s now famous contention that “the revolution will not be tweeted.” He compared the heroic activism of the Civil Rights Movement to the “slacktivism” of today’s Facebook culture where involvement ends at “liking” a page. He boldly stated — and I agreed — that the weak connections and lack of organizational structure on the social web was unlikely to enable radical social change.
Was I wrong?
Yes, I was. I had completely missed a big idea that had nothing to do with organizational dynamics: Social media can be used to build and ignite a brand — even when the product is a political revolution! In fact, marketing has played an extremely important role in the shifting Arab political landscape.
Like the rest of the world, I was fascinated by the courage and discipline of the youth movement in Tunisia, Egypt and beyond. I’ve read as much as I could consume and although I do not have the benefit of a first-hand experience with the situation, I think that without question, social media enabled the movement, united protesters, and kept the revolutionaries one step ahead of the government counter-measures.
If you have any doubt about the courage displayed by the protesters or the critical role of Facebook and Twitter, click on the image above and watch a short video about the “Facebook Flat” in Cairo.
A branded revolution
While the protesters relied on classic tactics of nonviolent resistance, they also owe their success to marketing savvy borrowed from Silicon Valley.
The mastermind of the movement was Wael Ghonim, a 31-year-old Google marketing executive. Inspired by bloggers such as Ahmed Maher, Ghonim had little experience in politics but an intense dislike for the abusive Egyptian police. While the underground revolution had actually been fomenting since 2005, it needed a business perspective to get off the ground.
“I worked in marketing,” he said. “And I knew that if you build a brand you can get people to trust the brand.”
The marketer’s first campaign was a Facebook group called We Are All Khalid Said, after a young Egyptian who was beaten to death by police.
Ghonim filled the site with video clips and newspaper articles about police violence. He repeatedly hammered home a simple and memorable brand message: “This is your country.”
Engaging the “customers”
He eventually attracted hundreds of thousands of followers to the site and the “brand” actively engaged with them. For example, when organizers planned a “day of silence” in the Cairo streets, he polled users on what color shirts they should all wear — black or white. Finally, after the Tunisian revolution on Jan. 14, Ghonim used the Facebook site to mobilize support for a public protest. He asked for a pledge from 50,000 followers to turn out in protest. More than 100,000 signed up.
“I have never seen a revolution that was pre-announced before,” he said. Or, another way to look at it: He was launching the brand.
When a protest started to become a movement, best practices were shared via Facebook from counterparts in Tunisia and Serbia. Young Egyptian and Tunisian activists brainstormed on the use of technology to evade surveillance, commiserated about torture and traded practical tips on how to stand up to rubber bullets and organize barricades … primarily over social media platforms like the April 6 Movement Facebook page and Twitter.
On February 1, 2011 (the day the Internet was turned back on), Egypt gained 100,000 new Facebook users.
Al-Jazeera, a news channel with an agenda, added drama and emotion to the brand by broadcasting heroic stories and swelling theme songs. The revolution became an ongoing music video.
Entering new markets
Like all popular brands, this is already reaching into new markets like Libya. Where could it go next to reach new customers? This entry from the Youth Movement Facebook page may provide a clue:
So that’s the story of how I was wrong … and so is Gladwell because he missed this point, too. We were both looking at historical events and organizational dynamics, not realizing that the new social media business models can be applied to a wide variety of human activities, even something as unlikely and startling as toppling a dictatorship.
I realize my characterization of this revolution as a “brand” is unorthodox and I don’t want to come across as disrespectful in any way. I would never diminish the truly heroic personal efforts and sacrifices made in the face of real danger.
But I also think it’s important to recognize these new communication and societal dynamics and how social media will be used in ways we could never imagine. Truly, the revolution is just beginning. For all of us.
Lead illustration: This photo of Cairo’s Tahrir Square was taken by Tara Todras of the Associated Press and appeared in online version of the the New York Times
Reality check
Feb 26th
Today my wife and I took my 8-year-old mentee Elijah on a hike, as we enjoyed a Spring-like day here in Tennessee.
On the way home, Elijah noticed a copy of my book, The Tao of Twitter on the back seat. He was surprised that I had written a book and started reading it.
After a few minutes, he said, “Wow, this is just like reading your diarrhea.”
My wife thought a moment, and said “Oh, I think you mean it’s like reading his DIARY.”
Me: “No … perhaps he had it right the first time!”
Mobile Marketing — Old School! (video)
Feb 25th
This is a fun and fascinating case study. How do you use social media when your business keeps moving around from street to street? This shows how the Good Food Truck of Atlanta, GA is building a movement of passionate fans … even when they’re literally mobile!
Many thanks to Glenn Taylor and the wonderful folks from MLT Creative for piecing this together for me!
20,000 Followers. Now What?
Feb 24th
There is no playbook for Twitter. I’m learning as I go, just like you, and I’ve tried to share my ups and downs along the way.
I’ve written about the spirituality of the social web, the social media time crunch, and my anxiety about the velocity of change and my own social media overload.
One year ago, I wrote a post called 8,000 Followers. Now What? Since that time, I have gained 12,000 new followers … so a lot has changed! I don’t often write about myself but it seems to connect with people when I share my experiences, so here’s what it’s like to have 20,000 followers on Twitter.
Where did all these people come from?
As {grow} continues to … well, grow, I’ve been blessed with many new readers from every corner of the world. This has directly translated into Twitter followers — about 1,000 per month and accelerating. I haven’t had any specific plan to gain followers, it has come in an organic way. If you follow me, or I see that you tweet about {grow}, I will generally follow you back.
Not only do I have a lot of followers, I have a lot of ENGAGED followers because I have aggressively culled spammers from the beginning. So my tribe is legitimate and my tribe is awesome!
One question I’m often asked is, why do I follow so many people back … what good can possibly come from it? Actually, a lot! I discuss this at length in my book The Tao of Twitter, but the short answer is this: Think of Twitter followers as atoms bumping around in a test tube. The more atoms there are (as long as they are relevant to your business) the better the chance for a reaction — a business benefit! The catalyst for that reaction is engagement through meaningful content, and the relationship is sustained through authentic helpfulness.
Business benefits of Twitter
I’m a blogger but I also teach and run a business. Why do I spend so much time with Twitter? Because it flat-out delivers the goods! Here are a few real business benefits I realized DIRECTLY from Twitter connections in the past 12 months:
- Invited to teach at Rutgers University.
- Awarded an engagement to be the social media consultant for the UK consulate in New York.
- Enabled the dozens of connections that created Social Slam, one of the premier social media events of the year (you’re coming, right?).
- Acquired my three largest customers.
I could easily write 100 more business benefit bullets. I have been very fortunate, but I see this same kind of success happening repeatedly for many friends and students. Here’s the best part of all – I’ve developed deep, meaningful relationships that will last a lifetime. Not just Facebook-style “friends.” Friends you would have over to dinner!
It is poetic and sublime that my 20,000th follower has the last name of Gandhi. You can’t make this stuff up.
What about the wall of noise?
When I wrote my last Twitter update a year ago, I was creeped out by this growing number of people following me. How would I cut through the noise?
To be honest, it hasn’t been that bad. Yes, Twitter is mostly noise even if you do a good job culling the spam. But I realized I had neither the obligation nor the patience to engage with a crowd that large. However, I DO engage with anybody who makes an effort to engage with me. I manage this primarily through lists, which I view on Hootsuite or Seesmic. I’m at peace knowing that I can’t be on top of everything and respond to everybody as I would like. I know that sometimes messages are going to slip through the cracks. I just have to do my best and hope people are gracious.
Another trend I’ve noticed is that some connections last forever but others come and go in waves. People will connect for awhile and then I won’t hear from them for a few months. So it’s more like waves of people lapping at my beach, not a tsunami knocking me over!
The economy of favors
One advantage of a large number of highly-engaged followers is that I can tweet stuff out for people and topics I believe in and sometimes it makes a difference. It’s nice to be in a position to help wonderful people.
I receive requests for favors about every hour of the day. I’m glad to help, with one exception — When I have no idea who you are! That makes it kind of awkward. I think sometimes people feel they know me through the blog but if you have never showed up through comments or tweets, I probably don’t know you’re out there. I “tithe” at least 10 percent of my time each week to help people in the {grow} community through phone calls, emails and other forms of free consulting. I enjoy this … but let me know you exist first : ) If you make an effort to connect, I seldom refuse a request for help!
How many followers is enough?
The answer is different for every person. If you run a beauty salon in New York, having followers from Australia probably won’t help you. Nurturing targeted followers from your area is probably all you need to concentrate on. But if your potential market is the world, then why not nurture contacts from all over? So it all depends.
According to statistics in an interesting post in Tom Webster’s wonderful Brand Savant blog, I would be in the top one-half percent of Twitter users with this follower base of 20,000. That doesn’t mean squat. I know my place in the world, and here it is — Twitter doesn’t affect my marriage, my kids, or my friends. To the extent that it helps my business and my students, that is a plus.
What about Klout?
Since last year this little topic called social influence has started to make waves. It’s easy to get knocked off center when somebody is making a report card about you. I like to compete in business and in sports but I think paying too much attention to Klout will be destructive. My Klout score was 76 at one point and the other day somebody said it was a 71. I had to admit that just for a moment, I felt competitive about that! But that is going to drive the WRONG behaviors in me and others. So I am blocking that stuff out and focusing on what I love — creating insanely great content, connecting with amazing people no matter what their “score” is, and being helpful.
What’s next?
Obviously you can’t plan for something like 20,000 people showing up on your virtual doorstep. I think that I liked Twitter best when I had about 400 followers. But when somebody follows me, I consider it an honor and I’m not going to disrespect that, especially with all the proven benefits that have occurred. So, come on in. We’ll be in this together and I’ll figure out a way to handle it.
Well, that’s my 2011 Twitter progress report. What successes and frustrations are you experiencing with Twitter, and how can I help?
Illustration: National Geographic
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-Mark SchaeferFollow Mark
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