Social Media re-energises Old Spice

On July 14 2010, Old Spice launched the fastest growing online viral video campaign ever, garnering 6.7 million views after 24 hours, ballooning over 23 million views after 36 hours.

Since the campaign was first released their YouTube uploads have achieved more than 115 million views to date and Old Spice now have nearly 80,000 Twitter followers and over 600,000 Facebook fans.

What no one outside of the team running the social media campaign knew, was that they had been collecting people’s (and especially celebrities) questions and responses across a wide range of social media sites, including Reddit, Facebook, Twitter, even Yahoo Answers, and completed a two day all-day-video-shoot where Shirtless Old Spice Guy would answer these and new incoming comments.

Over two days the team of Wieden+Kennedy produced 200 short videos ranging from the a marriage proposal to odes to Alyssa Milano and Demi Moore. In the end Old Spice's agency had their TV commercial star, Isaiah Mustafa, reply to 186 online comments and questions from websites like Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, Digg, Youtube and others.

One of the best known users of Twitter and founder of Digg Kevin Rose got a personalized message from “The Old Spice” guy wishing him all the best and a speedy recovery (Kevin had said on Twitter he was poorly). Kevin of course tweeted the video to over 1 million followers and it is trending on Digg a site which will send 100,000s of views to the videos.

As a result of this campaign it has been suggested that the sales of this product increased by 107%. Now what we see is the fans are now developing their own solutions, so virally spreading the news even further.

Talked about everywhere on talk shows, TV, Media and more, this company and unknown actor Isaiah Mustafa have become quite an overnight success and is apparently appearing alongside Jenifer Aniston in her next movie ‘Horrible Bosses’ and has also appeared on Oprah, Ellen and even signed a talent deal with US network NBC.

The campaign was also given the Grand Prix at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival last month, the highest award for television commercials.

What began as a clever marketing campaign has morphed into a viral web phenomenon and an Old cologne is now well known again.