Thursday, November 26, 2009

Häagen-Dazs Loves Honey Bees: the Right Cause Could Be the Best

I love ice-creams. I love honeys. But little did I know millions of bees have been disappearing from their hives in a poorly misunderstood phenomenon known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). How can I still enjoy those honey flavors without the hard work of adorable bees? Häagen-Dazs told me the story about bees' dire situation in an interesting viral video:





When I first watched the video on the microsite dedicated to the campaign "Häagen-Dazs Loves Honey Bees" - I think the video was not properly conducted - there were no explanation, no story, no call-to-action. But when I found out the video was viewed by more than 1 million people I was amazed. And some of the comments are as follows:


"A funny video to raise awareness of a serious matter!"
"HaHa!!! The DJ is hilarious!!!!"
"Love the music!!!"
"A funny video to raise awareness of a serious matter!"
"Kool!
"lollololololool..."


Undeniably there were negative comments but pale in comparison to the positive ones. As I ponder over the seemingly untraditional way of doing cause marketing, I realized how important it is to align your brand with a cause that really resonates with your main stakeholders.


So who'd be an ice-cream brand's major consumers? Kids, young people... you'd say. That's for sure.
This is why a fun hip-pop music and dance could gain such popularity with online groundswell. And you think those healthy, carefree, energetic, sweet-tooth, fun-loving, ice-cream fans would feel more affinity to cancer patients, the poor and the homeless than diligent honey bees? I doubt. Obviously the latter has more to do with what they consume - isn't it enormous pain that they could not savor their favorite honey flavors?


That's my point - don't jump on the bandwagon and follow the "latest cause". The fittest could be the best.


In addition, do research regarding the media channels your major stakeholders/consumers find information. If they are 18-34, most likely they will be glued to their computers searching online 7/24. Social media, interactive Web sites, and viral marketing must kick in to engage the audience. Offer some freebies too - look for Bee Store and get a bee wall paper and screen saver for free.


So, are your brand still try to squeeze into the cohort supporting the most "prominent" cause? When are you planning to find your "Cause Right"?













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