Over the last few years every company from the smallest mom and pops to Fortune 100’s have been attempting to take their brand “Viral.” Some have had success some have failed miserably.
The challenge for many has been to create a viral campaign that’s effective in promoting their product or service, but still maintains that organic essence that has made successful viral videos like the “JK Wedding Entrance Dance” among the most watched on YouTube or the Vietnamese Cebu Prison Thriller Exposition.
Still others have adopted a different strategy by reversing the process and taking already popular viral videos and integrating their branding into them. When done successfully marketers have been able use viral videos to reinvent their mainstream brand image making it fresh thus opening the door to new consumers.
That was the strategy recently executed by the creative minds behind the McDonalds brand. Burrell Communications, the fast food giant’s U.S. advertising agency responsible for marketing to their ethnic demographic implored this strategy to help launch McDonalds new Dollar Breakfast menu to a new and financially conscious audience.
Already one of the world’s most recognizable brands, Burrell’s creative team sought to partner McDonalds with cult followed viral music video series, Dollar Van Demos in effort to tap into their hard-to-reach audience.
Dollar Van Demos, a client of Highbrid Outdoor is a viral music video showcase that features the hottest emerging artist out of New York City performing inside a commuter van, these same vehicles are used by Highbrid Outdoor for their Moving Marketing Experience program.
Videos are made using a 3-person camera crew plus a host. Eight to ten videos are produced per production day and those videos are then posted on viral video and social networking sites (MySpace, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, etc).
As of press time DVD has reached over 100,000 cumulative views in a few short months achieving a 10% increase in viewers per new video. Not only has DVD become a must for any up and coming artist in the New York City area, it has also proven to be a unique and energizing marketing vehicle for sponsorships, promotions, and publicity.
| Joya Bravo DVD Music Video | Wordspit’s DVD Music Video |
To capitalize on Dollar Van Demos, McDonalds recreated the video concept into two separate :30 commercial spots featuring DVD vets, Joya Bravo and Word Spit. Each artist penned lyrics about how fun, convenient, and new McDonalds dollar breakfast menu is. The final product features both artist performing in a Dollar Van while passengers around them enjoy items off McDonald’s Dollar Breakfast Menu.
News Channel 12 Brooklyn Coverage
The spots have been in regional rotation since January 1st on network and cable television and generated a ton off buzz even among media outlets. The commercial has been well received and a second spot is due to premiere in March.
Dollar Van Demos has proven to be a great brand ambassador. If you’re looking for an effective piece to a viral campaign, DVD may be the way to go, especially for the 16-34 demo, male and female across different races. If you’re interested in sponsorship or advertising opportunities through the DVD series contact your Highbrid Outdoor representative.
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Marketing Matters From Viral to Mainstream.
The last few years in advertising have been interesting to say the least. Every company from the smallest mom and pops to Fortune 100’s have been attempting to take their brand “Viral”, some have had success some have failed miserably. The challenge for many companies has been to create a viral campaign that’s effective in promoting their product or service, but still has a raw organic feel that make some viral videos like the “JK Wedding Entrance Dance” wildly popular.
Some have actually reversed the process and have taken already popular viral videos and concepts and integrated their product or service into them combining their mainstream popularity with the viral videos popularity in hopes of having the best of both worlds. That was the approach of advertising juggernaut McDonald’s and their agency of record in charge of ethnic demographic Burrell Communications. When the creative team at Burrell were introduced to the Viral Video Series Dollar Van Demos they instantly saw an opportunity to match the launching of McDonalds Dollar Breakfast menu with this popular viral series.
Dollar Van Demos an affiliate of Highbrid Outdoor is a viral music video showcase that features the hottest emerging artist out of New York City performing inside a commuter van, these same vehicles are used by Highbrid Outdoor for their Moving Marketing Experience program.
Videos are made using a 3-person camera crew plus a host, 8-10 videos are produced per production day and those videos are then posted on viral video and social networking sites (Myspace, Facebook, Youtube, Twitter, etc). As of press time DVD has reached over 100,000 cumulative views in a few short months achieving a 10% increase in viewers per new video. Not only has DVD become a must for any up and coming artist in the New York City area, it has also proven to be a unique and energizing marketing vehicle for sponsorships, promotions, and publicity[DG1] .
McDonalds and the people at Burrell chose two artists that were featured on the Dollar Van Demos series Joya Bravo and Word Spit. These artist penned lyrics about how fun, convenient, and new Mc D’s dollar breakfast menu is and sang/rapped these lyrics while driving around in a makeshift commuter van surrounded by passengers eating items off the menu. The makeshift commuter van was branded w/the DVD logo on the exterior so people made the connection between the viral series and this 30 second commercial. The spots have been in rotation since January 1st on network and cable television. The commercial has been well received and a second spot is due to premiere in March[DG2] .
Dollar Van Demos has proven to be a great brand ambassador. If you’re looking for an effective piece to a viral campaign, DVD may be the way to go, especially for the 16-34 demo, male and female across different races. If you’re interested in sponsorship or advertising opportunities through the DVD series call Highbrid Outdoor (347)335-0376, or email dgutzmore@highbrid.com .
