Over the last month it seems like an entirely new viral Marketing strategy has been born.
With Stanley responding to a viral TikTok video offering to buy one of their customers a new car and The North Face flying their new and improved jacket out to a drenched customer in the middle of the mountains (who also went viral on TikTok), this blend of UGC gone viral and branded responses are driving hundreds of millions of eyeballs and fostering community for brands.
For now, I’m naming this combination of a stellar customer experience, social listening, and social strategy: smart Marketing. LOL, I don’t have a name for it yet but one thing I know for sure is that it is INCREDIBLY smart.
Last week we delved deep into Stanley’s move to buy their customer a new car after theirs caught on fire, and this week we are FLYING in to crack the code behind The North Face’s viral TikTok move last month (with an awesome twist at the end).
Let me set the scene for you…
On November 16th a TikTok posted by Jenn Jensen, from the account @fannypack310 featured Jenn walking through the rainy mountains in Mount Cook National Park, New Zealand. Big whoop, right?
Well in this video Jenn is candidly describing how her “waterproof” North Face jacket had her walking around like a “drowned rat” and that she didn’t want a refund but instead wanted express delivery of a new and improved jacket to her exact location in the mountains. (Here’s the video.)
That incredibly organic, iPhone-shot, blurry camera video went viral (13M views on her TikTok to date) and The North Face saw the video and her request.
(Quick TikTok tip: iPhone-recorded content performs substantially better on TikTok than any other form I have studied to date. Don’t overthink it, grab your iPhone, hit record.)
An obviously sarcastic request from a disgruntled customer, but guess what The North Face did?
They ran to the closest store in New Zealand, got on a helicopter, and flew in a brand new jacket to Jenn on the side of the mountain. INSANE. WELL DONE.
This is what Marketing is ALL about.
The North Face’s response video garnered over 5M views and thousands of comments from TikTok users who have now become The North Face customers.
Similar to Stanley’s move with giving a car to one of their customers, this move by The North Face showcases their brand values to millions and gets tons of people talking about the brand.
If you’re speaking to an empty room, you can’t expect to thrive as a business, that’s why using your Marketing efforts to garner attention is so important heading into 2024.
But there’s a side of this story that I think can 10x the return of this gesture by The North Face that nobody is talking about.
It all starts with The North Face and Jenn’s relationship moving forward.
Jenn has proven she is good in front of the camera, she naturally is a North Face user, and is an explorer. This is a potential layup collaboration for The North Face and Jenn. The best influencer partnerships are one’s where the influencer doesn’t have to fake their passion for the brand, they’re organic users, and their values align with yours.
Now let me pause there, Jenn isn’t an influencer (I’ll explain later, but this is an ADVANTAGE). Before posting the viral TikTok she had a few thousand followers, but now? She has 36.5k followers.
She has become a prime candidate to be a micro influencer with an origin story that EVERYONE knows.
(Bold take for 2024: micro influencers >>> macro influencers. Micro Influencers have substantially more engaged communities and a connection with their audience that can drive real action. One-off collabs with large influencers is a strategy of the past.)
How would I go about this if I were The North Face and Jenn? Give Jenn the resources to continue her explorations and record them as she goes. Avoid at ALL costs creating content that is high-touch and branded like crazy, that will deteriorate Jenn’s biggest lever on TikTok, her honesty.
Instead, add her to the North Face Athlete Development Program (a program of up and coming North Face brand ambassadors) who create content that aligns with The North Face’s mantra of “Never Stop Exploring.” Send her free product and camera equipment to create UGC and document her explorations to share on TikTok.
Why? One, Jenn didn’t start out as an influencer, she is just like you and I (there’s an extra level of trust we share with her).
Two, Jenn publicly expressed distaste about The North Face’s waterproof jacket and publicly denied the offer to receive any money from the mishap, so consumers know that she is honest and never been in it for financial reasons.
Her real motivators have been her desire to explore from the beginning. There isn’t much of a better alignment for The North Face than working with a micro influencer with values like that.
It has been almost 1 month since this viral move by The North Face and Jenn and we have yet to see any more exploration content from Jenn, but the opportunity still presents itself for The North Face.
Come 2024 you know what I hope to see out of The North Face and Jenn!
MARKETING CHEAT SHEET (WHAT TO LEARN FROM THIS CAMPAIGN)
Empty Room. If you’re speaking to an empty room, you can’t expect to thrive as a business, that’s why using your Marketing efforts to garner attention is so important heading into 2024. The North Face is a prime example of capturing attention and capitalizing on the virality of TikTok to boost brand awareness.
Quick TikTok tip: iPhone-recorded content performs substantially better on TikTok than any other form I have studied to date. Don’t overthink it, grab your iPhone, hit record.
Bold take for 2024: micro influencers >>> macro influencers. Micro Influencers have substantially more engaged communities and a connection with their audience that can drive real action. One-off collabs with large influencers is a strategy of the past. True alignment of brand values and the influencer's values is what will propel brands in 2024.
IN A MEME
Ahh, the bell has rung. Please be sure to do the reading (follow The Marketing Millennials on LinkedIn and me, Professor Millennial, on Twitter).
Off you go, passing period is only 11 minutes and there’s already a line at the vending machine that sells the new The North Face waterproof rain jacket.
Until next time,
Professor Millennial.
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