On Friday June 15, Justin Bieber put on a concert at the Today show before a throng of screaming and weeping tween girls. Before the pop crooner made the dreams of every adolescent girl gathered outside 30 Rockefeller Plaza come true, he gave an interview with Matt Lauer.
I’m not a “Belieber,” but I am a believer in the power of social media, so I found this interview extremely interesting. Here’s what happened when JB sat down with Matt:
- Justin inspired Matt to join Twitter!
- Justin sent out Matt’s first tweet using Matt’s iPhone. It was a shameless plug that was retweeted over 10,000 times.
- Matt Lauer gathered 34,000 followers in about nine minutes.
- Matt Lauer’s Twitter handle (@mlauer) became a Trending Topic.
Matt Lauer skyrocketed to Twitter fame almost instantaneously, thanks to the Biebs. Justin even sent out a Tweet encouraging people to follow Matt. This tweet was retweeted over 12,000 times.
Within 5 hours, Matt accumulated 100,000 followers. Bieber not only put Matt on the Twitter map, but he helped him build a following of which many people, brands, TV shows, and websites would be envious. This phenomenon shows us two things: one, Bieber has power, and two, Bieber fans are extremely loyal and will heed Justin’s directions, whether it’s paying $624 for a water bottle that touched Justin’s lips or showing some Lauer love through Twitter.
Why Bother with Bieber?
I might not jam out to Justin Bieber, but I’m intrigued by his social media influence. In fact, he is the only person with a perfect score on Klout. Obviously, it’s nearly impossible to replicate his social media success because he is a pop star backed by a phalanx of girls whose loyalty sometimes seems a bit obsessive. Not to mention that his Twitter followers exceed 23 million. But, Justin Bieber is relevant to anyone who has considered using social media to market their products or services. He is a testament to the brand affinity one can build through social media.
This leads me to the question: can people, companies, and websites who don’t churn out pop singles also build brand affinity through sites like Twitter or Facebook? Can everyday businesses benefit from social media?
Now I’m a Belieber—In Social Media Marketing
I have always believed in the power of social media marketing, but for those of you who haven’t, here is some compelling research:
Facebook Marketing:
- 51% of people are more likely to buy a product after becoming a fan of a brand page.
- A study looked at the average amount spent by Facebook fans compared to non-fans for 20 major brands like McDonald’s, Starbucks, Coca-Cola, and Nike. They found that Facebook fans spend more money than non-fans across all 20 brands.
- Across these brands, Facebook fans spend on average an additional $71.84 per year on products compared to non-fans. (Source)
Twitter Marketing:
- 34% of marketers have generated leads through Twitter, 20% have closed leads.
- Companies that use Twitter average 2x as many leads per month as those that don’t.
- 53% of people on Twitter recommend companies or their products in their tweets.
- 67% of Twitter users are more likely to buy brands that they follow. (Source)
Pinterest Marketing:
- “People like brands better after viewing their Pinterest pages.” Most people say that viewing a brand’s page improves their opinion of the brand and makes them more likely to purchase something from it.
- A study from SteelHouse reported that Pinterest users are 79% more likely to purchase something they see on the site compared to items they see on Facebook.
Social media can work for us mere mortals who don’t have perfect Klout scores! Sure, getting an endorsement from Justin Bieber would catapult anyone to Twitter fame, but even when that doesn’t happen, brands can still benefit from social media marketing.
Ball Your Bieber-Loving Eyes Out
A Bieber fan told Matt just how lucky he was to have Justin tweeting for him:
Ann Curry, please take note and bring Matt a box of Kleenex for tomorrow’s airing.
Post by Olivia Roat - Inbound Marketer @mainstreethost
Twitter: @MSH_Olivia
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