FreshNetworks Blog

You’ve probably seen the press this week generated by Giovanny Gutierrez and his girlfriend, Lauren Bernat. A video on YouTube shows Lauren being filmed, apparently secretly, by Giovanny as she dances on her Wii Fit in only her underwear. This was picked up by the press in the UK and USA claiming that this wasn’t a spoof video at all but, because Giovanny works for a Miami-based ad agency, it was a viral video created for Nintendo.

There has been discussion all week in the press and online about this video – was it commissioned by Nintendo or is it genuinly just a spoof created by somebody in their spare time. The original version on YouTube has have over 3 million views and has sporned a range of parodies. And endless blogs and forums have been debating the origin of the video.

But does it matter? Whether this is a commisioned piece of viral marketing or a fan video the impact for Nintendo has been the same. If you just measured the value of this piece of social media in column inches alone it must be huge. In terms of equivalent media spend, this video has been an advertising hit for Nintendo. And that’s why I really hope it isn’t a viral.

The power of UGC can be huge. If this video is just a fan creation, then Nintendo, by the power of their brand and the engagement between with their consumers alone, has made somebody want to create huge advertising value for them. It’s the kind of situation all brands would like to get to – create a situation where your consumers do your marketing for you. Using social media allows them to do this more easily but also with greater, global effect than ever before.

The key is to create sustained engagement between the brand (or product) and consumer. Make them feel part of the brand, like real insiders. Reward them for being engaged and being loyal and make it easy for them to create and share their own content. Engage them both where they hang out (on Facebook or YouTube), but critically also in a space that you control. This builds trust and creates the feeling of an ‘insider’ that is critical in creating engagement.

The value of the discussion created this week by the Wii Fit video is without doubt; creating an environment where your consumers could create this kind of value for your brand is something every organisation should be dealing with.

If you’ve not seen the video that everybody’s been talking about yet, see it below.