Brands on Twitter: Viral Marketing

February 3, 2017

It is no secret that Twitter has incredible marketing value. As one of the most popular social media and internet marketing platforms, Twitter enables brands and individuals alike to reach an enormous audience by chiming in on trending topics, using strategic hashtags, and participating in community outreach. If done right, a simple tweet can go viral in sheer minutes.

By: Taylor Lawshé

While I understand that brands are trying to portray a positive outward appearance, I personally find that to be very boring, not to mention that you’ll never go viral by playing it safe. Some of the most entertaining tweets I’ve ever seen were from brands that deviate from what you would expect them to say. With that said, here are 3 of the funniest and greatest tweets from brands that had some level of viral exposure.

Taco Bell. If you weren’t already aware, Taco Bell spends a LOT of its marketing budget trying to appeal to the younger demographics, especially millennials, and their Twitter account is no exception. In a platform overrun with memes and snarky comments, Taco Bell has managed to establish itself as a quick-witted, one-liner force to be reckoned with. In 2012, the fast-food giant had an exchange with Old Spice, a company known for its unique messaging approach. Old Spice fired shots at Taco Bell’s “fire sauce” and its ingredients. Taco Bell responded with a quip that made Old Spice look flat-out stupid. The two companies have since engaged in many exchanges on Twitter, all of which have greatly increased their Twitter exposure.
Pizza Hut UK. In February of this year, the always ostentatious Kanye West took to social media to announce his financial troubles to the world. I have never been one to laugh at the misfortune of others, but something about Kanye West being in $53 million in debt just warms my heart. During his several day Twitter rant, Kanye revealed that he was in desperate need of money to “bring more beautiful ideas to the world.” While I’m not sure if anything he does falls into the “beautiful” category, that’s exactly how I would describe Pizza Hut UK’s response. In a series of utterly hysterical tweets, Pizza Hut offered Kanye some “dough” and a job. The pizza chain even used Photoshop to turn The Life of Pablo’s album cover into a Kanye West resume. Their continued badgering of the rap star earned them a HUGE influx of retweets and favorites, thus augmenting both their Twitter presence and, ultimately, their business.
Deadspin. More and more frequently, brands are using Twitter as a customer service tool. This is what gives them the ability to engage customers, competitors, and whoever else they want on such a broad scale. While brands like Old Spice and Taco Bell may be pretty good, nobody compares to Deadspin, a sports news website. Long before his presidential campaign, Donald Trump felt the need to send a congratulatory tweet to the publication regarding the Manti Te’o situation. In an act of what I assume was unchecked, seething hatred, the sports publication expressed their disinterest in Trump’s opinion.

Okay, so maybe this one has a little less marketing value than the other examples, but come on, that’s hilarious.

So what does all of this have to do with marketing, you ask? Easy – viral marketing. With the explosion of social media and virality, brands have been given a brand new opportunity to market themselves. By chiming in on Twitter trends, hashtags, and topics, certain brands have been able to receive an enormous number of impressions on the platform. The power of viral marketing is evident in the lasting effect it has on those who view it. It exponentially increases brand recognition because – think about it – you’ll never forget that one time a pizza place in the UK offered an international rap/fashion mogul a job when he announced that he was $53 million in debt.