It started with a tweet.
To launch the Samsung Galaxy S8, we asked new GS8 owners to show off the camera by sharing the first picture snapped on their new phones. They responded with glamour shots, 鈥榞ram worthy landscapes, pet pics and more. But of course, social media trolls replied, too. One in particular.
@SavEdward sent us a gross tweet: 鈥淚t was a dick pic.鈥 Thankfully, he didn鈥檛 attach proof. Twitter had become a hostile environment for the brand after the Galaxy Note7 recall, so we couldn鈥檛 let this go. This was our chance to stand up for anyone who鈥檚 ever received an unwanted picture. Within minutes, we responded with a savagely simple reply: The microscope emoji.
We knew the one-character tweet was a clever retort, but we didn鈥檛 predict the viral sensation that followed: More than 80 news stories worldwide 鈥 all from a single emoji.
We had already identified that we could rebuild trust with our community by being 鈥渞eal鈥 and transparent after the Note7 recall. After all, millennials expect more from brands; they鈥檙e drawn to those that take risks and feel human. Our strategy had become confronting negativity head on, in real-time.
Unfortunately, you never know what the Internet will serve up next. So we stacked our team with community managers and strategists who not only deeply understood Twitter, but could act on the unexpected quick. They knew what to look for, and how to react to it with brevity and incisive wit.
The moment itself happened rapidly. Our community managers spotted @SavEdward鈥檚 tweet in real-time and quickly shared it with our war room team. We came up with the emoji reply in under a minute and, 20 minutes later, we hit publish on the client-approved tweet.
The reaction on Twitter was swift and positive, reaching 鈥渆scape velocity鈥 by the evening thanks in part to the troll鈥檚 embrace of our reply. He captioned a screenshot of the interaction with 鈥淪amsung roasted me鈥 and an emoji of his own: The tears of joy. News coverage hit the following morning with zero PR outreach, sustaining organically over the next several days.
THE IMPACT
- Awareness: 528MM estimated media impressions from more than 80 news placements, all of which were earned organically with no PR outreach. Coverage was universally positive with 100% message pull through (e.g. picture of GS8 and mention of launch/availability).
- Viral Engagement: The interaction resulted in 72,483 Retweets and 228,000 Likes. It trended on numerous social content aggregators, including the front page of Reddit.
- New Audience Exposure: Coverage in top tier millennial and female focused outlets including BuzzFeed, Refinery29, Teen Vogue and Cosmopolitan.
- Brand Praise: 52% increase in brand praise week over week from time of microscope reply. Hundreds of replies expressing purchase/switching intent.