eJ does eJournalism

It’s hard to predict what makes viral marketing work on Facebook; however, if you successfully reach one person, they can pass your message on to 300 of their nearest and dearest facebook friends in an instant.

Budweiser harnessed this tool effectively over the summer with the launch of its “Bud Light Lime” facebook fan page. One day, one of my friends became a fan and it popped up in my news feed.

The next day, 14 of my friends were fans.

The day after that?

I went out and bought a case of the delicious (read: average) lime concoction and became a fan myself.

82,193 fans later, I’d bet that someone from Bud’s marketing team is patting themselves on the back.

If I got to judge the Webby Awards, I’d put this example at the top of the “Facebook Marketing” category… if one existed.

According to CheckFacebook.com,18-24 year olds are the largest group of Facebook users. Over 50% of them have some post-secondary education. Bud chose the perfect channel to reach its target – students with too much summer vacation time on their hands. It did it in a way that was not seen as obnoxious, intrusive, or contrived.

David Nicholls, brand manager for the beer’s Canada division, told Media in Canada in August, “We’ve gone well beyond the traditional media of just outdoor or television and really done the strong focus of social media and online.”

“It was actually Facebook that we put most of our efforts towards right out of the gates because that’s where there was a group of petitioning fans to bring Bud Light Lime to Canada.”

Love the listening, David. Love it.