Riding a viral hit: Lessons from Ocean Spray’s TikTok sensation

When Nathan Apodaca (@420doggface208) posted his now viral TikTok video riding a skateboard, drinking Ocean Spray and lip-syncing Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams”, he probably didn’t think he’d have a video with over 10 million views. He was just having a little fun while riding his skateboard because his car broke down on his way to work.

He posted the video on September 25th and by October 7th, Ocean Spray had surprised Nathan with a brand new cranberry colored truck filled with Ocean Spray. The CEO of Ocean Spray Tom Hayes posted his own rendition of the video on TikTok, while Mick Fleetwood also posted his take (Dreams hit the Billboard Top 100 for the first time since 1977 thanks to this viral challenge), bringing further attention to the #dreamschallenge.

When looking at their response, Ocean Spray made the right call - they didn’t just ride the wave of free publicity behind the scenes but instead, connected their brand of positivity to the moment with a gesture of generosity.

Key learnings from the Ocean Spray “Dreams” viral sensation: 

Don’t rip off the creator.

Brands make the mistake all the time of ripping off social media creators - whether it’s copying their creative ideas or taking advantage of their posts for brands that aren’t sponsored by reposting without permission. To ensure you’re not ripping off the creator, make sure to explicitly receive permission if you plan to reshare the content and appropriately tag the user when you reshare. TikTok creators have gotten backlash in the past when copying a dance move and not crediting the original creator, such as what happened with the Renegade dance. If you are lucky enough to have a viral sensation like this, make sure you reward the creator for their ingenuity and love of your product with a kind gesture beyond reposting (such as Ocean Spray giving Nathan a new truck). Not only will you avoid backlash, but you’ll be celebrated by consumers who loved the creator’s initial content.

Make your response authentic and down-to-earth.

When responding to a viral sensation around your brand, focus on what the brand can provide that’s valuable to the creator or moment. Ocean Spray focused on why Nathan was riding down the street on a skateboard, and by answering his need for a better truck, they made a deeper connection than just sending him some product. Tom Hayes also took a human approach with his video captioning it with, “Did we just become best friends?” and tagging both Mick and Nathan on the post. Beyond Tom Haye’s post, Ocean Spray uploaded a YouTube video of the surprise truck reveal. This was a low-res, probably filmed an iPhone film that had zero editing, making it feel much more real to the audience watching it.

Act fast.

One miss for Ocean Spray is that it took them a decent amount of time in the world of internet viral sensations (almost two weeks) to respond. The faster you can move, the higher interest consumers will still have in the moment, and they will also respond more favorably to your quick action. Make sure you have the processes and tools in place to act as fast as possible because you never know when a viral sensation like this might happen for your brand.

Source:

https://www.cnn.com/2020/10/07/tech/ocean-spray-ceo-cranberry-juice-tiktok-trnd/index.html