Success or failure? While the billboard did create buzz among the I-35 North commuters, I don’t know if I would call this campaign brilliant.First off, we all know that viral marketing success is extremely difficult to track. I can tell you that based on my own web traffic analytics people were very interested in who initiated this billboard proposal but for a truly successful viral campaign I would think those searching would have found Helzberg, not me. Could that be point of failure Number 1?The reason I question the success of the viral campaign are for the following reasons:Was it tracked? What determined the success? What was the outcome that was desired? Why was the campaign not followed through online?I’m also not sure that the banner they have placed over the billboard proposal makes sense. It now reads “This guy proposed on a billboard, regular men go to Helzberg.“Truth be told we as women don’t want to marry ordinary or regular men, so the natural next question I have — Is the skinny little guy with the beady eyes on the billboard really single? Hmmm…single girls might want to know, especially if they are not looking for the “regular” guy.When it comes to an advertising concept, in order to work in a viral perspective, the concept needs to add value to the user’s experience. This value can be explicated in something entertaining, in something educational or in something rewarding. I agree that the billboard was entertaining, but does it fit in adding to the user’s experience?I realize I could be missing key-points to this campaign, since I’ve not been in the market for diamonds lately. I’m interested in more details because where I’m standing I’m not really seeing the success of this viral campaign.While Helzberg may have been speaking to the gentlemen out there, they have now put the thought in the woman’s mind that if her guy buys a diamond at Helzberg — he is just a “regular” guy.
