The Marvelous Marketing of the Ice Bucket Challenge

Wherever you turn, it’s there - the ASL ice bucket challenge™. The concept is simple: someone dares you either to douse yourself with a bucket full of water and ice or send $100 to the ALS Association. You in turn dare others to the same challenge; they also have 24 hours to respond or make the donation.

In our social media age, the challenge spread like wildfire. People of all walks of life across continents joined in, including a flock of tech moguls, politicians, actors, musicians and other celebrities. Most of those both took the challenge and donated money.



The result up till now is spectacular – donations rose from $2.1m in 2013 to over $50m in 2014. However, critics have pointed out the number of ALS sufferers is only a fraction of people dying of heart disease (596,577 in 2011), cancer (576,691) or Alzheimer’s (84,974) annually. This means that charities such as the American Lung Association, the American Cancer Society, and the Alzheimer’s Association are “losing out”.

For now, ASL is for now the charity du jour, not in the least due to savvy marketing and PR.

• The timing is perfect – August is always one of the slowest months for news
• Positive message – with daily coverage of human suffering in Iraq, Syria, Ukraine et al, people crave feel-good news
• Social media – posting videos, tweeting, pinning, liking, sharing, etc makes it a global phenomena taking place in near real-time
• Great personal PR – especially celebrities use the challenge for their own branding and promotion
• Reality TV aspect - looking at Oprah Winfrey screaming her head off or Benedict Cumberbatch being punked.

It’s a matter of time before this fad will be over. Participants are already daring people they want to get even with in the hope that those will make a fool of themselves on camera.
The challenge is also not without risks - four firefighters in Kentucky were seriously injured when it went wrong.

The main question remains: apart from balls, banquets, runs, walks, rides, auctions, and the current challenge- what new marketing gimmick will be next for non-profits to raise funds?

(Image courtesy of Among Tech)

Downton Abbey’s Perfect Handling of Its PR Blunder

Downton Abbey is far more than a stylish period drama – it’s also making heaps of money from a slew of merchandise. British retail chainMarks and Spencer sells a "Downton Abbey" beauty line which includes soaps, nail polish, lip gloss, lotions and scented candles. There are also Downton Abbey lines of jewelry, fashion, home decor and furniture.

To launch season 5 of Downton Abbey, a series of publicity photos was released in August 2014. Eagle-eyed fans spotted a plastic water bottle Lord Grantham and Lady Edith posing in full costume in front of a marble fireplace. The photo quickly spread like wildfire all over the internet.

How did Downton Abbey handle this PR blooper? With style!

The cast teamed up with the UK chapter of WaterAid, an international non-profit organization that tries to transform lives by improving access to safe water, hygiene and sanitation. They posed for a funny photo sporting the same kind of water bottle, showing that they care about drinking clean water instead of sipping cocktails.

An ITV spokesperson stated:
"After seeing the reaction the picture caused earlier this week, the cast and crew came up with the idea of turning some of this attention towards an issue around water that really matters. They hope that by posing for this picture they will be able to raise awareness and amplify the work of international charity - WaterAid."

This handling of the water bottle-gate is brilliant. It has all the elements of excellent crisis management:

• Respond quickly
• Do not make any (lame) excuses
• Come up with a way to turn it into an opportunity
• Link it to charity
• Use humor (if appropriate)

Chapeau!

Does Apple’s iPhone 6 Feature Wireless Charging?

Apple’s iPhone 6 will be coming to an Apple store close to you starting September 19. According to Forbes, the 4.7 inch screen iPhone 6 will retail at $199 and the 5.5 inch screen at $299.

Rumors are flying about its new features that will be shown at a media event on September 9.

TMZ claims to have obtained leaked pictures taken by an ex-employee at a Foxconn factory in China. Foxconn manufactures devices for Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Nintendo and BlackBerry.

Based on the leaked photos, it could be assumed that the port in the red circle could be for wireless charging. It is not as far-fetched as it sounds. One of the patents that Apple has filed in 2012 is for "Wireless Power Utilization in a Local Computing Environment". It describes a central hub that enables charging a device without wires.

If Apple is indeed launching a smartphone with wireless charging capabilities, that will be a major game changer. It will also be great marketing for the Cupertino-based company.