Mascots Rally Around Social Media Marketing

After a long day at the office, gracing your company website with welcoming positivity, and encouraging users to ask questions and learn more, mascots should go home to social media platforms.

Previously we outlined the basics and benefits of incorporating a mascot into your online marketing strategy. Now we’re going to get all upper- level on mascot performance.

As Advertising Age contributor E.J. Schultz says,

While it might be too early to declare a full-fledged mascot revival, brand characters are undoubtedly regaining attention.”

Let’s get in before the masses, and make the most of your mascot online!

Company blogs, Facebook profiles, and Twitter accounts, offer a unique narrative space for brand mascots to converse casually with customers and build on storylines from other advertising efforts.  For company executives who struggle to maintain a consistent ‘voice’ in social media, letting the mascot do the talking could be the solution.

Facebook and Twitter have created a new paradigm in which brands are obliged to speak, whether through their mascots or not.”
–Huffington Post blogger Val Brown

If you have a mascot that follows the basic structure we outlined previously, you’re prepared to have it speak for your company on social media platforms.

So what do you need to do to ensure that your company mascot pays his keep on your company Facebook and Twitter pages? Start with these tips:

1. Be consistent

Your mascot has a name, personality, and tone of voice that fits your company culture and goals. Every tweet, Facebook update, or interaction with users online must be delivered thoughtfully from the ‘voice’ of the mascot.  Without consistency, the mascot will look like a cheap gimmick, and fail to emotionally provoke users.

2. Maintain your strategy

“The biggest mistake marketing and brand managers make when approaching social media is not thinking of the social web in the same strategic light as everything else they produce”
-Social Media Examiner contributor Jason Falls

Before you toss your mascot out on to your Facebook page, make sure that you have a goal-oriented plan for the mascot to deliver upon.  Know exactly what the mascot is there to accomplish or provide, and see it through. For instance, will your mascot provide customer service support? Update users with clever storylines involving new products?

3. Avoid ‘marketese’

Grossly promotional language doesn’t fit a mascot, ever. Mascots are supposed to be personable and relatable to users. Don’t muddle up your social campaign with overblown claims and strictly ‘selling’ updates.

4. Tell stories

There will be opportunities for your mascot to interact with users and develop relationships through casual conversation. Involve users even further by using the Facebook timeline or detailed blog posts to nurture a narrative about your mascot that intrigues audiences and keeps them coming back for more. Keep it in the first person, as though the mascot is addressing the audience. It brings the users that much closer to identifying with the mascot personality.

Conclusion

Mascots provide a unique company representation on social media platforms for business executives who want to join consumer conversations in a light-hearted way. Social media also helps companies make the most of their mascot investment. And since consistency in advertising online features so heavily in current Google algorithm qualifications, stretching your mascot presence across all platforms just makes sense.

If your mascot were on the social media playing field today, what would it be saying to your customers?

References
Falls, Jason. “The 5 Essential Pillars of a Social Media Campaign.” 15 October 2009. Socialmediaexaminer.com: http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/5-essential-pillars-of-social-media-campaigns/
Schultz, E.J. “Mascots Are Brands’ Best Social-Media Accessories.” 26 March 2012. Adage.com: http://adage.com/article/news/mascots-brands-social-media-accessories/233707/