The youngest of my two YouTubers in the household (11) enters the room and insists that we watch a video with him immediately, “it’s the most amazing thing I’ve seen,” he exclaims. Given he has a YouTube Channel of his own with 89 subscribers, I don’t take this comment lightly. My husband and I settle in his room to enjoy what is an OK Go music video “This To Shall Pass.”
He is correct, it is amazing. The 15M+ views confirms our point of view. I then say to them, “it’s a State Farm commercial;” they both retort “no it’s not!”
My heart is instantly warmed and a huge smile draws across my face like a Cheshire cat because I know that this is “supreme viral marketing.” Artist being paid for doing what they love and brands reaping the benefit. This article explain the arrangement.
Here’s how this viral marketing story plays out in my household. My husband and I are already State Farm customers, but we feel much “cooler” now that our 11-year-old son has shown us what State Farm is doing for the arts. We explained to our son that we are a part of this company that is doing this cool stuff. He now has a affinity for a company in an industry he never even noticed before, now when he starts to drive in four years, what insurance company do you think will come to mind for him? Our State Farm agent is a friend of ours, so we mentioned this experience with the video to him. He instantly looked proud, even motivated, and good about the company he owns and operates. How will that experience affect the way he goes out and does business? Is he going to use his experience with us to inspire his sales team?
It not only works for State Farm, but also to build awareness for the artist. I’d never heard of OK Go. We watched other videos with my son that night. My personal favorite is “WTF!” I ordered the CD that night.
The imagery in it literally makes one say WTF and the music is methodical. So imagine my astonishment when I visited a San Diego Art Insitute the following weekend and found this piece of art that completely mimicked the imagery and reinforced my experience with the two brands.
David Silverman
Art imitating art, supporting life. My life support. Paying attention in this way is a natural high for me; exciting and fun. I’m not disillusioned to believe that the average consumer thinks in this way and makes these kinds of connections. I am completely aware that my mind is wired at high frequencies. However, consumers behave in the same way whether they are aware of it or not and that is why viral marketing works!
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