I can't believe he did that to an iPhone!

Tens of thousands of videos are uploaded to YouTube each day. Some barely attract more than a handful of viewers while others go viral, attracting millions of viewers as they are passed from friend to friend. The difference between a successful video and one that falls flat takes more than creativity. Dan Ackerman Greenberg, co-founder of the viral video marketing company The Comotion Group, said in a 2007 article in TechCrunch that viral videos require more than just good content. Effective ones are short, don’t seem like advertisements, contain a shock value and when all else fails appeal on a sexual level.

Short and shocking is exactly what you get in BlenTec’s “Will It Blend?” videos featuring BlendTec CEO Tom Dickson blending up non-food items in the company break room. They have been featured on major mainstream media, including The Today Show, The Tonight Show, The History Channel, The Wall Street Journal and others. This one, featuring the iPhone, is one of the more popular, having been viewed more than 8 million times. Anyone who views is left saying, “I can’t believe he did that to an iPhone!” Take a look.



What makes this video and others in the series move beyond entertainment to truly effective is that it has helped drive sales of blenders without the use of traditional advertising. BlendTec saw its sales increase 700 percent from 2006 when the first video was introduced to 2009 (Briggs, 2009). As BlendTec Vice President George Wright said, "We're not creating advertising. We're creating something people want to watch," (Angwin, 2009).

Anyone whose ever tried to make milkshakes or frozen margaritas knows how a poor quality blender can leave lumps of ice in such drinks. The BlendTec videos leave the viewer wanting to know where they can buy such a machine. If it can do that to an iPhone, just imagine what it can do to ice.

The series has prompted numerous copycats, including the latest “Will It Burn?” announced in May (O'Neill, 2010). Within a week, “Will It Burn?” attracted 24,000 subscribers, even though a single video had yet to be uploaded to YouTube. Imitation is, as they say, the sincerest form of flattery. Still , it will take time to see if “Will It Burn?” is as effective at “Will It Blend?”

References:

Angwin, J. (2009, February 18). Recipe for a Successful Viral Video Campaign. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved June 7, 2010, from http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123481783053894227.html.

Briggs, C. (2009, January). BlendTec Will it Blend? Viral Video Case Study. SociaLens.com. Retrieved June 7, 2010, from http://www.socialens.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/20090127_case_blendtec11.pdf.

Greenberg, D.A. (2007, Nov. 22). The Secret Strategies Behind Many “Viral” Videos. TechCrunch.com. Retrieved June 7, 2010, from http://techcrunch.com/2007/11/22/the-secret-strategies-behind-many-viral-videos.

O’Neill, M. (2010, May 6). Let the Burning Begin On “Will It Burn?” Social Times.com. Retrieved June 7, 2010, from http://www.socialtimes.com/2010/05/let-the-burning-begin-on-will-it-burn.