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Meg Whitman Campaign Shows How Not To Use Twitter

Posted by samzenpus on from the type-slower dept.

tsamsoniw writes "California gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman's campaign team attempted to share with her Twitter followers an endorsement from a police association. Unfortunately, the campaign press secretary entered an incorrect or incomplete Bit.ly URL in the Tweet, which took clickers to a YouTube video featuring a bespectacled, long-haired Japanese man in a tutu and leggings rocking out on a bass guitar. And for whatever reason, the Tweet, which went out on the 18th, has remained active through today."

13 of 147 comments (clear)

  1. It's not "for whatever reason" by tomhudson · · Score: 4, Insightful
    > "And for whatever reason, the Tweet, which went out on the 18th, has remained active through today."

    It remained active because nobody reads tweets. Just like nobody reads facebook.

    All you "internet marketers", forget it - people's eyes glaze over after the 1,000th message - it doesn't even stay in short-term memory.

    1. Re:It's not "for whatever reason" by blair1q · · Score: 4, Insightful

      The vastness of that opportunity has to be compared in size with the vastness of the negative wave of press this has already gotten her.

      Her staff are incompetent. They proved it not once, but twice. First by posting the link without double-checking it after pasting it, and second by not deleting the tweet and posting the correct link.

      I'm sure they will probably prove that they are incompetent a third time, by taking your advice to use spin instead of action to resolve their failure.

    2. Re:It's not "for whatever reason" by Dahamma · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Really?

      A YouTube video of a cross-dressing Japanese man playing the guitar now has over 950,000 views.

      I think people have been reading this one.

    3. Re:It's not "for whatever reason" by Arthur+Grumbine · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I know nothing of her campaign team, so I don't know if they would be this smart, but the fact stands that we're now reading a story about Meg Whitman.

      Trust me, if you live in California and spend any time: watching TV, listening to the radio, reading the newspaper, visiting websites of California news media, or even just going outside, you are already sick of hearing about Meg Whitman and Jerry Brown.

      --
      Now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure everything I just said is completely wrong.
    4. Re:It's not "for whatever reason" by tomhudson · · Score: 2, Insightful

      We marketers don't just throw stuff out there and hope it works. We test, test, and test again, and the stuff we keep doing is the stuff that brings in eyes / buys / signups for our clients.

      I can buy both followers and signups for well under a nickel each.

      Pay per click fraud is alive and well, and anyone who believes otherwise is a total idiot. Social networks have already passed their apogee in terms of effectiveness - like the Catholic church, it just takes time for the rot to become apparent to the average person.

  2. If I was a Politician by Basehart · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I'd rather be endorsed by a bespectacled, long-haired Japanese man in a tutu and leggings rocking out on a bass guitar than a police association any day.

  3. Re:well, it looks like we just got... by Pharmboy · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Not so much a meme as an AFD.

    --
    Tequila: It's not just for breakfast anymore!
  4. Re:Somebody translate, please... by zill · · Score: 2, Insightful

    No, Arnold can't run again.

    But he's the running man!

  5. You think it was an accident? by LoudMusic · · Score: 3, Insightful

    You think it was an accident? Shit, they've even got Slashdot putting her name in lights. Looks like a rather well played marketing tactic to me.

    And probably picked up thousands of new Twitter followers in the process.

    --
    No sig for you. YOU GET NO SIG!
    1. Re:You think it was an accident? by rtb61 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      No politician want's to be associated with a joke where they are the tutu clad butt of it. The reality is, it is popular because of the negative connotations associated with it and a lot of people want to see her in a bad light. A popularity poll certainly but a negative one.

      --
      Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
  6. Re:well, it looks like we just got... by bill_mcgonigle · · Score: 2, Insightful

    To be fair, Megrolled is being used more on the video's comments.

    Everybody, please join me in posting a serious headline with this video as the referenced URL to your favorite social media. Now, that's how you start a meme!

    And this guy is a really good bassist - getting him a good music gig would just be icing on the memewich.

    --
    My God, it's Full of Source!
    OUTSIDE_IP=$(dig +short my.ip @outsideip.net)
  7. Re:Missing Character by EdIII · · Score: 4, Insightful

    What a difference a character can make.

    While a really talented cross-dressing Japanese 8-string bass player is a pretty good result, it could have been much, much worse.

    Are you kidding? Considering how unbelievably perverted the Japanese can be with what they put online (not trolling, but sincere admiration) the fact they linked to a video from Japan with just cross-dressing involved and no pixelated areas was like winning the lottery.

  8. Re:well, it looks like we just got... by GameboyRMH · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Nascent memes belong on uncyclopedia, not wikipedia. It can go on wikipedia once it's well-established.

    --
    "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel