A Dancing Nerd, Gum and Viral Video.
It’s an advertisers dream to have their product ride a major pop-culture wave for a low investment. The latest example of this is a viral video from a 31-year old, ex-video game designer, Matt Harding.
The “Dancing Matt” video that Harding created (initially in ‘04) is a quirky but very charming example of video self-expression that had nothing to do with any product until Stride Gum contacted Harding prompted by the growing viral buzz. Just to have its brand associated with the video, Stride offered to pay Harding’s expenses for an upgraded version and several months of world travel — not exactly an easy thing to turn down if you’re an unemployed 31-year old, ex-video game designer with a travel fetish.
Two years and over 10 million views later, Stride Gum is reaping the benefit of major viral buzz and national PR from their association. A great case study, right? I’m not so sure.
“Exactly what connection the company sees between gum and a guy dancing, but not chewing, remains a bit of a mystery,” says the New York Times. The answer is that it has no connection. But what does it matter if sales go up? Stride reports an 8% increase in sales since their video sponsorship. What they may not make so obvious is that Stride Gum, which is owned by the London-based global confectionery Cadbury, is also running an independent, multi-million dollar, TV ad campaign. So how much of that 8%, which isn’t huge, can honestly be attributed to the video connection?
The video is truely unique, uplifting and memorable. And, kudos to Matt Harding for following his muse and getting a free ride on Cadbury. But, if you want to see a true example of smart, successful viral marketing, check out Blendtec’s “Will it Blend?” or Jib Jab’s “Bush/Kerry”.