Categories: Articles

Word Of Mouth Marketing And Viral Video Ecstasy

If you happen to be in Toronto on June 12th, 2008, you should make it a point to join me at the CMA – Canadian Marketing Association – Word of Mouth Marketing conference called, From Mass To Grass (full disclosure: I sit on both the Board of Directors of the CMA and have taken part in the organizing of this From Mass To Grass event). I’ll be doing a very special session called: Behind The Music with David Usher.

Here’s how the CMA website describes this session:

"He’s sold millions of albums worldwide as both a solo artist and the frontman for the rock band, Moist. David Usher is a multi-platinum award-winning musician who has entertained millions. Through his own website, www.DavidUsher.com, David is in constant experimentation mode with online social networks, video sharing sites and more. He’s not only a passionate artist, but someone who understands the power of word of mouth. During this very exclusive luncheon conversation, David will discuss the ever-changing face of the music industry, how his word of mouth continues to spread, and what marketers need to know about nurturing fans. Mitch Joel – President of the award-winning digital marketing agency, Twist Image, Blogger and Podcaster (Six Pixels of Separation) will conduct the interview."

Prior to accepting to take part in this exclusive event, David and I have spent the past year or so talking about the new media space. We’ve been friends since my days in the music industry, and this is the first time that we’ve decided to take these conversation public, and share our thoughts about how Word of Mouth Marketing has changed, and what he’s done to stay relevant and connected to his fans. David has also been working on latest project (it’s a Blog and consulting practice to help musicians better embrace these digital channels) called, CloudID.

In other From Mass To Grass News, Jay Moonah (the Podsafe Music guy from the band, Uncle Seth) also created this cute little promo video for the From Mass To Grass event called, The Ballad of the Marketing Executive (see if you can find Waldo in this one ;):

On a similar note, David Jones (or, as I like to call him, Dr. Jones) from Hill & Knowlton, the Inside PR Podcast and Shill Podcast forwarded on this very clever new video from the rock band Weezer. It’s a smart one, simply because the band had one strategy in mind: get those people online talking about it and passing it on. How did they do it? even simpler – they made everyone a part of it: Pork and Beans:

Happy video watching.

Mitch Joel

Mitch Joel lives at the intersection of technology, business transformation and consumer culture. He is the Executive Director of Next Era Institute, a strategic intelligence platform helping leaders understand the forces reshaping business, technology, culture and society. The Institute identifies which shifts matter, explores their wider significance and translates them into strategic direction and momentum. Mitch is also a globally recognized keynote speaker. He has delivered thousands of presentations across both B2B and B2C industries to organizations including Google, Walmart, LEGO, Shopify, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble and Unilever. Strategy Magazine has called him “one of North America’s leading visionaries.” Mitch built his career by working directly inside the waves of change that reshaped modern business. He founded and built a digital marketing agency that worked with some of the world’s largest brands and was later acquired by WPP, where he served as President of a firm operating in 25 countries with almost 3,000 employees. Mitch is the bestselling author of Six Pixels of Separation and CTRL ALT Delete, and the host of Thinking With Mitch Joel, one of the longest-running business podcasts in the world. His writing and commentary appear in outlets including Harvard Business Review, Fast Company and Inc. Magazine. He is a member of Dr. Marshall Goldsmith’s 100 Coaches and was named to the Thinkers50 Radar. Mitch also hosts Groove – The No Treble Podcast, documenting the oral history of electric bass players. Mitch is also Co-Founder of ThinkersOne, a platform that enables companies to bring personalized thought leadership from world-class experts into meetings, events and off-sites in focused 15-minute bursts.