What Really Happened In Boston

At First Glance
People across the country are talking about the "viral" campaign gone bad by Turner Broadcasting to promote the television show Aqua Teen Hunger Force. The problem with this is that Interference, the company hired by Turner, did not launch a viral campaign at all.

This is Ignignot - the leader of the Mooninites. Only some of the signs were of him.

Boston's Mayor Thomas Menino did.

The Basics of Viral
A viral marketing effort is one in which the participant has to pass the message along in order to complete the experience. For example, let's say that Virgin Mobile hypothetically ran a campaign where you signed up via your mobile phone for a promotion that gave you a keyword. You then had to find someone else with the same keyword in order to win free roundtrip airline tickets. Playing makes participants tell other people about the promotion in order to find out if they're already participating. The message is passed on by simply playing.

People often confuse something that's popular as being viral, which it is not. The movie "Star Wars" wasn't promoted with viral advertising, yet it shattered box offices. Likewise, there was nothing about Turner's placement of LED Lite-Brite-like signs in Boston that was viral. For starters, there was no message to pass on. What was someone supposed to do after seeing one of the signs? Even if they told five friends, those people had no signs to pass on. Viruses replicate, but LED signs don't. The signs were simply small billboards. It was classic outdoor advertising.

This is Err - the second in command of the Mooninites.

Boston's Viral Campaign
Mayor Menino, however, jumped on the chance to launch a viral campaign. Initially, the police weren't sure what the devices were, and treated them as bombs. It didn't take long for them to realize they were harmless promotional items. At the same time, calls were coming in from all over to tell police departments and city officials that the devices weren't explosives. Just a couple of hours after it started, Boston officials knew what they were dealing with. Instead of defusing the situation and returning the calm in the city, Menino allegedly stepped up the pressure and knowingly continued a state of panic.

A bomb scare is *very* viral. As soon as someone tells you there's a bomb nearby, you run away and tell more people. Within minutes, your simple message has spread to thousands, with each new person being able to replicate the original message. By continuing the bomb scare, Menino was trying to show that Boston could respond to a homeland security situation responsibly. Turner tried to promote a television show, and would have failed. Menino took a perceived "failed" homeland security system (two of the 9/11 planes took off from Boston) and attempted to promote a safe and responsible city.

No matter what the situation, nor how well you're handling it, you never EVER want to have photos of the bomb squad involved with your company or work. Especially if you represent a city, or rely on tourism.

Don't Ever Underestimate Bad PR
The one thing both Turner and Menino did poorly was underestimate the impact of the negative PR the day brought. Public officials quickly branded Turner and Interference as irresponsible. They attacked guerrilla and viral marketing, and made sweeping generalizations putting these tactics in bad light. Instead of immediately calling a press conference and controlling the damage, Turner remained quiet, and Interference went so far as to pull down their web site and allegedly tell their employees to not speak to the authorities.

Also, because Turner and Interference weren't talking, the vacuum made it possible for the two suspects who planted the devices to hold their own press conference. This is a great example of how bad can always get worse.

At the same time, Menino was strongarming sensible and responsible public and safety officials into following his lead. Menino could have sent the message that Boston could respond quickly and maturely, but chose to send the message that he would overbear potential threats, even to the point of being silly. Had the problem been defused at 3pm, it would have been a PR success and a clear display of Boston's ability to handle terrorst threats. By continuing for so long, Menino unfairly called into question the professionalism of the area's emergency responders.

Sure you don't want to make a bad public impression, but if you don't at least try, someone will make a bad one for you.

Lessons To Learn From The Event
First of all, posting advertising materials in public and private areas without permission is already something that shouldn't be practiced. Besides being illegal, it immediately creates potential negative public perception. Somebody had to pay to have the sidewalks sandblasted the last time Interference Inc. used grafitti as an advertising tactic for a client. This time the city of Boston had to pay to have the bomb squad defuse their efforts. Getting permission from people to place your advertisements isn't just good for business, it starts the buzz about your campaign because at least some people know about it before you even start. It also informs the public ahead of time so they don't panic when they see your materials.

Secondly, in order to really make an impact and get people talking, you need to integrate your advertising efforts. The mooninite signs were hanging in ten cities for two weeks, and people ignored them. Without other complimentary advertising efforts to work with the signs, Interference had put together a failed campaign. Had one transit worker not suspected one device of being a bomb, the public would never have known about the signs.

Lastly, public relations is a crucial aspect of your business in times of emergency, and an important tool for marketing when things are good. When you are putting together any kind of effort that will include the public, you need to have your PR people in the room to help plan. When things get out of control, your PR people should right away be given the power to take control of the situation. Muting your response to the public, or worse, not having a PR team already affiliated with your company (in the case of Interference) is a recipe for disaster.