The Meaning Of The Web In 3 Words: Mr. Splashy Pants

Lately I've been pondering 3 seemingly unrelated internet-y things:

• How addictive my fave site Cute Overload is (truly, I cannot stay away from it. It's like an adorable form or crack or something)
• What makes content turn "viral" on the internet, and what can we learn from those folks who manage to hit the viral marketing yummy sweet spot?
• How can the immense power of social media be used to impact and improve the real world?

Well, in a really unbelievable cosmic coordination of events, today on Servant of Chaos I find all of these ponderings addressed in 3 simple, silly words: Mr. Splashy Pants...

What's The Deal With The "Mr. Splashy Pants" Thing?

Let's start off with the urgent stuff--we have just a few short hours left in to which help Greenpeace promote their Save The Whales campaign, which comes to us interweb dwellers and social media hounds in the form of a Whale Naming Competition (vote!)

Apparently the winning name will be bestowed upon some lucky humpback whale (you gotta envy the guy who gets to be called "Mr. Splashy Pants" for the rest of his life), and we have the honor of picking the whale's name. (Yes, that's your cue to click the link and go vote for your fave name, which is Mr. Splashy Pants of course.)

They say each of us can only vote once, but the idea is to vote, then post about the competition on your blog so you can get your friends to vote, then they'll post about the whales on their blogs and get their friends..and on into infinity--or the 7th of December 2007 at 17:00 Amsterdam time, which is when the deadline is. (I always plan my schedule on Amsterdam time, don't you?).

Here's the place where you can vote for the whale name.

Why Does This Hit The Yummy Viral Sweet Spot?

What we've got here is a combination of viral marketing, cute overload and save the whales--the perfect Trifecta of Internet Ooomph which will one day save the entire world.

Let's analyze--The best viral content has these features:

• It's interactive--people love to share their opinions, even if it's on something as seemingly inconsequential as naming a whale who really doesn't even speak English or answer to his name, as far as I know. 
• It has a bigger purpose--obviously the purpose of this campaign is not to name a whale--it's to help promote Greenpeace's efforts to save the whales. (Duh, right?)
• Cuteness is involved. Cuteness is contagious--as human beings we are inept at resisting anything that is cute--this is why I find myself visiting CuteOverload multiple times a day. In this Greenpeace viral initiative, Cute was made front and center. Did they come at us full force with the hard cold facts and say "whales are being massacred by Japanese whaling boats!"? No, that would have been truthful, but it wouldn't have created a viral epidemic. Instead they created something fun and cute, something folks of all ages and backgrounds could get behind and have fun with.
• Silliness is involved--This contest thrives on quirky silliness in the form of the submitted name of Mr. Splashy Pants. Without that name on the submission list, I do not think that this initiative would be as popular as it is. Mr. Splashy Pants catches our attention, makes us laugh, makes us feel like telling others. Reportedly, folks are wearing Mr. Splashy Pants t-shirts, putting Mr. Splashy Pants bumper stickers on their cars, joining the Mr. Splashy Pants Facebook Group, and in general becoming obsessed with this Mr. Splashy Pants thing and feeling good about it cuz it's also serving a larger cause (saving the whales)
• A Call To Action and deadline is involved--Urgency is viral-nesses friend. On the internet, information can spread like wildfire, reaching millions of folks in a few hours or days. Having a deadline and definite contest rules (only vote once, but spread the word) makes the campaign have more structure and urgency. (See, it even got me off my blogging vacation and back in the saddle pronto!)
• Being involved in a "revolution" increases our sense of belonging--Special causes unite people and make them feel like they have a purpose. Folks want to share what they've found, then when the initiative takes off everyone involved looks on in awe at what they've jointly created.

Can The Web Save The World?

Since so many folks are web workers and basically live on the internet, this question is basically saying "Can we save the world?"

The web in itself doesn't impact anything, but the people who are on the internet do.

An effective viral marketing campaign is all about people--individuals like you and me--doing one simple, effortless thing that we can do in a few minutes. The tiniest effort of one person compounded by the combined efforts of thousands and millions of other people across the globe can produce astounding results in lightning speed, as demonstrated here with Mr. Splashy Pants.

It seems to be easier said than done to create a viral marketing campaign--not everyone is successful at it. There is definitely a viral sweet spot that some marketers/bloggers/conversation architects hit dead on, while other of us miss on a consistent basis (remember the time I tried to start the "Strip Tease Meme" that went nowhere quickly?)

So, all I can say is let's learn from Mr. Splashy Pants and maybe one day we'll figure out how to save the rest of the world along with the whales.

Comments

[KG]

Found a blog you might like. It's a combination of many of the features you describe above, but overall, it looks like an amazing story unfolding -- authentically -- and that's so compelling on its own:

http://dailycoyote.blogspot.com/

P.S. Which name won?

[Sharon Sarmiento]

Hey KG--Thank you! I just took a look at that site and I love it :-).

Oh, and the representative humpback whale is officially named Mr. Splashy Pants..hahaha!

Now Greenpeace has their marketing stuff saying: "Sign now, and sign up for your free Whale Mail newsletter for the latest news on Mister Splashy Pants and his friends!"

Totally cute :-)

[maryam in marrakesh]

Oh yay, you are back! I've missed you, Sharon. How did the book go?

Oh going viral - how amazing. Hard to conjure up all those factors in one package.

[Sharon Sarmiento]

Hey Maryam,

Yeah, I'm back sort of. Just writing when the muse strikes. :-) The book is still in the works...Thanks so much for stopping by!

[KG]

Wow -- so Mr. Splashy Pants is the official name! ROFL -- I love it, and I'm sure this silly name will appeal to many and will increase interest in the whale. :)