In the year 2022, social media is everything.
TikTok, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram RUN the world.
It’s a cutthroat industry that is make or break. And there are TONS of apps that have failed: Vine, Myspace, and Yik Yak just to name a few (#rip).
But what does it take to make it to the mount rushmore of social media apps??
Hosting a party in the basement of a burger shop, of course.
“Prof. Murray, what in the hell are you saying?”
Early in 2022 a new social media platform came across the pond (yes, the Atlantic Ocean) and began making waves.
I know you’re dying to hear what brand we’re talking about, but let’s be real 😉 I have to build suspense.
Just recently the app passed 10 million daily active users and is now valued at over $600 million.
Those are some BIG numbers.
And us marketers know, a brand can’t go anywhere without an effective AND cohesive marketing strategy.
So that’s why today’s lesson is all about the rise of BeReal…
It all started in the basement of a burger shop at Harvard University.
Students were offered free admission to a party at the burger shop if they downloaded BeReal and shared it with 5 friends.
Who wouldn’t want that as a college kid? Download the app, enjoy the party, and as soon as you leave delete it.
Except the students didn’t delete the app. They were hooked.
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BeReal was delivering users something they had never seen before. A social media platform not hyper focused on virality, but instead on authenticity.
This exposed a huge unfulfilled need in the market. Consumers are craving authentic content.
There is a constant production of unrealistic content on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube that has consumers fed up.
The rawness of BeReal is unlike any other platform we have seen. There is uncapped potential.
In an extremely saturated market, you HAVE to give consumers a reason to use your product.
And you do that through your messaging.
“What makes you different? Why would I leave TikTok for you?” BeReal had to answer these questions in order to carve out any resemblance of a user base.
So what did BeReal do? They put on a messaging masterclass.
Donned as “not another social network,” BeReal let their audience know “they won’t make you famous”, “they won’t sell your data to China”, and “they won’t make you waste your life scrolling.”
The messaging was as clear as my need for a Diet Coke.
BeReal was taking TikTok and Instagram head on.
But let me pause there…
If you have absolutely no idea what the heck BeReal is, it is super simple.
Once a day users are sent a notification to post their BeReal. These notifications are sent at random times throughout the days, so users never know what to expect.
You have a 2-minute time window to post your BeReal, otherwise your friends will be notified that your post was “late.” And you don’t want that, it’s a clear indication that you were not #beingreal.
Let’s get back to the nitty gritty.
BeReal is up against stiff competition.
TikTok is used by literally every human with a phone. Instagram is the seasoned veteran that has everyone’s respect. And Twitter was just bought by the richest man in the world.
Not only that, BeReal’s app is counterintuitive to exponential growth.
Users can’t go viral, there are no funny memes to share with friends, and influencers can’t do their influencing. Making it near impossible to grow as a platform.
But that’s where MARKETERS come into play.
I know what you’re thinking, a team of seasoned professionals developed a high production campaign to market BeReal.
Wrong.
A team of college students was the catalyst behind BeReal taking over.
BeReal kickstarted an ambassador program that swept the nation. And the entire program was built around empowering their ambassadors, a big risk.
But you know what they say, scared money doesn’t make money.
Unlike other ambassador programs, BeReal ambassadors managed a marketing budget, hosted parties, and executed their own creative.
Oh, and they got paid. Talk about aligning incentives.
Broke college kids were given the perfect opportunity to make money, simply by promoting BeReal on their campuses. The more signups you got, the more money you made, and the more users on BeReal’s app..
A match made in heaven.
BeReal identified who they wanted using their app, aligned incentives with their ambassadors, and grew like a weed.
