Let it FLO: Strategy For Social Media Campaign

Before Facebook the vocabulary for smart marketing existed in the realm of advertising. That was then, this is now. Television ad campaigns are augmented by social media (Youtube, web presence, Facebook, etc) and the lines between the two are beginning to blur.

Flo, played by actress Stephanie Courtney, is the star of Progressive Insurance television commercials for the past five years. The fictional character appears in more than 50 commercials. Flo has become so popular on Facebook she has her own page titled, 'Flo the Progressive Girl,' and as of August 2, 2013, has 5,260,724 likes and 47,221 people 'talking about' the page.

Needless to say the campaign is wildly popular, if for no other reason  than you either love Flo, or you don't. Such is the case in my household. I don't 'love' Flo, but I am amused by the ongoing roles she takes on. My husband thinks she is stupid and I wonder if we were to shop for insurance,  would this campaign's notoriety actually deter him from even considering Progressive Insurance products?

I like Flo's demeanor. She is calm and collective even when crisis seemingly are taking place in her showroom. She is in fact causing the disruption in  many cases. She doesn't press a button in time for a Michael Buffer, a secondary actor, who calls out in wrestling fashion, "Let's get ready to  bundle" holding the vocal note until Flo presumably should take the signal and end the call.

Flo succeeds in connecting to the audience. She portrays an 'everyday' worker who brings personality to her customer service role. All potential creatives want what Flo has - identity. Flo has succeeded in putting a face onto a product, Progressive Insurance.

If what I wrote or an image I made had the same effect on an audience as Flo has on hers, I'd feel I'd succeeded in making a point employing a good social media strategy. I post what I write, I share what I shoot on all platforms - Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Vimeo, YouTube. Why? To risk more of myself with each post, to share what's relevant to me because it matters to me, and I think it matters to you too. I enjoy the conversation and doing work that I love is reason enough to produce it. A social media strategy that works towards building a presence within an active community, be it photography or fellow digerati, is one I'd relish undertaking. That effort places me squarely where I want to be - in the moment, one click and thought at a time.