What happens when celebrity endorsements and eWOM have a baby?
If you are anywhere on social media, you most probably saw all the hype surrounding Beyonce’s new song ‘Formation’ and Red Lobster’s response to the lyrics in the song.
“When he f–k me good, I take his a– to Red Lobster”
While some may agree that Beyonce has the celebrity social and cultural influence to make anything go viral, electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) helped generate unexpected buzz marketing for Red Lobster that the seafood chain restaurant was not anticipating.
Red Lobster sales surged 33% after the release and Super Bowl performance of Beyonce’s new song ‘Formation’. Instead of paying for or planning a thorough buzz marketing campaign, eWOM via Twitter made Red Lobster relevant after various content spread about the brand in connection and response to Beyonce’s lyrics. Twitter flooded with hashtags and tweets mentioning Beyonce’s ‘Formation’ and Red Lobster and the celebrity’s endorsement of Red Lobster created a chain of reactions and responses that made Red Lobster a hot topic of conversation. It was the first time Red Lobster ever trended on Twitter.
Some criticized Red Lobster (and their social media manager) for taking hours to form a response to Beyonce’s song, since a few hours in the Twitter world can be considered an eternity.
They eventually stepped through the door of opportunity embracing the publicity and responding with a direct tweet to Beyonce, mentioning a possible new menu item using her nickname Bey.
It is worth asking ourselves if Red Lobster would have gone viral if a different celebrity had dropped the restaurant’s name in their lyrics? Or does Red Lobster owe this attention to Beyonce’s fans who spread the brand’s name and associated content via social media?
Depending on how Red Lobster handles this new-found publicity and engages with customers will determine whether Red Lobster’s spike in sales will be short-lived, or if this type of viral electronic word-of-mouth has the potential to bring an enduring increase in sales and continue to peak customer interest.
Celebrity endorsements and eWOM are by no means new forms of marketing, but brands that are prepared to engage with consumers and trends through digital platforms, especially social media, can harness this powerful way of marketing to push their brand forward. The Twitter madness over Red Lobster over the last few days serves as a lesson for brands to be equipped with social media adeptness to capitalize on this kind of publicity when it happens. It will be interesting to see what happens to Red Lobster and to pay attention to when instances of celebrity endorsement and eWOM can make for a success, and in some cases unexpected, viral marketing campaigns for brands via social media.
References
http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/6867242/red-lobster-responds-beyonce-formation-lyric
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/consumer/os-red-lobster-beyonce-bump-20160209-story.html
https://blog.kissmetrics.com/online-buzz-marketing/
3 Responses to Beyonce’s ‘Formation’ and Red Lobster