Budweiser vs. Heineken using Youtube as a "Secret Weapon"

Youtube has been considered as a “secret weapon” in the web 2.0 & social media era. However, until I had the “special” experience with Budweiser, Youtube was just one of the media channels to me where I saw funny videos and watched some music video.

In January, I received an email announcing a casting opportunity for an online reality show (named as “Budhouse”) sponsored by Budweiser. What happened was the film company in charge of making the show was looking for candidates from the 32 countries qualified for the World Cup 2010. Because I love soccer (football) and have played soccer (not professionally) since I started walking, I became very interested in the show and ended up applying for the cast. Things went pretty well actually... After I went through some application process, I even got a free trip to Hollywood for the final interview (free flight and hotel for three days). Even though I couldn’t make it to the final cast, it was a very special experience.



Besides the special journey to the “fancy” world, I managed to find an interesting thing in utilizing “Youtube” for marketing purpose thanks to this opportunity. When I was in the application process for the show, I wondered why the company spent so much money for just one marketing event. The thing is Budweiser paid for every single cost that took for the application process and living costs for the final 32 casts to live in South Africa during the World cup 2010 (30 days). I fully understand the World Cup is one of the biggest opportunities for companies around the world for their marketing campaigns. However, given the fact that the show was aired only through its Youtube channel, I doubted if it was that much worth.



I found another interesting Youtube video made by the Budweiser’s main competitor, Heineken. Heineken made a video showing a “funny” experiment with some Italian soccer fans. Although it did not deal with the World cup, its basic concept was the same as Budhouse, Soccer Fever. The result was fascinating! The video has been viewed by more than 5 million people in two weeks and created great viral among online and offline communities.

In fact, Heineken’s “Italy Activation Milan AC Real Madrid” and Budhouse took a little different approach for promotion- Heineken showed the content to the public through both TV and Youtube while Budweiser put short commercials on TV and aired the show only through Youtube. However, both have taken advantages of Youtube in a smart and unique way for developing more effective and efficient marketing and they have seen great success.

Below are a couple of advantages that I think Youtube provides to us:

1. A Youtube video can have an online presence forever unless Youtube is shut down or the video is taken down.
2. The video could have great chances to be spread among millions of online users quickly.
3. It could bring in trimendous (positive) marketing effects with low costs.

For example, even though their “official” campaign seasons were already over – Budhouse for the World Cup 2010 and Heineken for the Champions’ League – those videos are still viewed by many people around the world who look for interesting video related to beer and soccer. Considering the amount of money that those two companies pay for a TV advertisement to keep their brand awareness and spread words, a “creative” and “funny” Youtube video can be a “golden goose” that brings in “golden eggs” with low investments.

I think the Heineken’s “Italy Activation Milan AC Real Madrid” and Budweiser’s “Budhouse” are great examples showing how we could use Youtube for self-marketing, corporate-marketing, branding, small business marketing, etc. We have seen many companies spending lots of money on putting ads on Youtube (like Google Adwords) to direct those people to their video materials. However, I believe ultimate strategies/tactics for Youtube marketing should be focused on producing funny and creative contents that provide “fun” and “special” experience to Youtube watchers rather than looking for ways to direct traffics to contents using Youtube ads or some “SEO” skills.

How has the “New Resume Format” worked so far? You know, a Crazy thought became an “IDEA”!!!

I posted the article titled “New Resume Format in the Social Media Era” a week ago here on my blog, and the reactions from online communities have been amazing!! This post has been viewed by more than 1000 people so far, and I have received about 60-70 comments from the sites that I posted it on…… And I even received contacts from some recruiters asking about my career plan…. I have had a great experience and lesson just from this one post, and I would like to thank you all who have read the post and sent me meaningful advice and cheerful messages…:)

Anyway, since some people asked me why I shared it online, I would like to write the reasons briefly...

I posted it NOT because I wanted to promote myself or tell people I am smart, but because I wanted to know how people think about this crazy thought. Actually, I made this kind of resume format 6 months ago to use for my internship application, but every time I showed it to people like professors or even my fellow students, I heard it does not look professional or companies would not like this kind of format…..So, I had to use a traditional resume format to get a summer internship because I did not want to look like a “fool”……… But, I have always looked forward to using it in exposing myself to the world…

One day, I saw Derek Sivers’ video that I also mentioned in one of my blog articles, How to start a movement_Derek Sivers, and it inspired me and changed the way I’m thinking… So, how did he change the way of my thinking then?? Using Derik’s idea, let me give one theoretical example….Let’s say, I just get bored in my office….. So, I just get out of the office and go out to a park near my company building. And suddenly I feel that I want to dance in the middle of the park for some reason….People are going to look at me dancing at the park as a crazy nut or insane person… But, let's say, one stranger walking on the street suddenly join me and dance with me together… Now, there are two nuts… People are still going to think these two nuts weird…. However, once two or more people join the dancing in the middle of the park after the second follower, this crazy happening would become a “news” or even a “public party”. With followers, a “stupid” thought or act can become a “innovative” idea… Ths is the power of marketing or even social media marketing! You know…. I believe this should be all about “Marketing”

My point is that even if you believe yourself to have a fabulous and excellent idea that no one could think of, if you don’t have a follower(s) who like or agree with your idea, it can NEVER become an "IDEA". We cannot bring a change to people’s lives and influence the public without their supports, or without any "fans" in "social media marketing" term..

This is the main reason why I posted it and asked people about their opinions. Many people have so far told me that this is a great idea and something that we should utilize along with the new marketing trends….My crazy thought became a good “idea”, and now there are more chances that it would work well…. But what if I used it without any support??... what would happen?? It would stay as just a crazy “thought” and “meaningless” post…

New Resume Format in the Social Media era??

Two months ago, I was asked from a business professional to make his profile (resume) in sort of a “online-friendly” way. He showed me a professor’s resume as an example, which had different concepts compared to other traditional resumes... It used the same basic format as a traditional resume, but the main difference was that he added hyperlinks to name of companies and schools he belongs(ed) to so that readers can actually visit their websites for more information. He also listed some of his (popular) blog articles and put hyperlinks to them, and I was able to enjoy his blog posts by just clicking the links…

He even included small logos of organizations he used to work for in his resume and linked them to their websites. I was very impressed with his creative resume format and managed to get lots of information about his careers for a very short time (by just clicking some links).

After making the professional’s resume like the professor’s, I also wanted to make my resume the way the professor used for his. I mean, I wanted to lead future readers of my resume to actually see my social media involvements, SEO knowledge, my past experience by just clicking links on my resume.

Some people say there is no need to be creative in making resume, and they instruct us to use a standard and conventional resume format (and font). I do not disagree with this, but as the marketing tactics/strategies of companies today have evolved due to the advent of social media, I think the ways of marketing ourselves to recruiters should also evolve to the next level. As we all know, most of companies these days accept resumes (job applications) online, and thanks to remarkable technologies, I heard some companies even use iPad or netbook to review applicants’ resume during their job interviews… In addition, this type of resume formats can effectively expose yourself to online users, specifically to recruiters, in search engines and social media sites…

Anyway, I created my resume in a “online-friendly” way and posted it on my blog… In about two weeks, it’s generated 130 views…I even received contacts from some companies although I didn’t apply for their job openings…kinda surprising… I am still not sure if it will be working as I expected or going to have positive effects on my future job hunting, but we will see :)


Here are my 5 tips for people who might be interested in making this type of resume;

1. First, add hyperlinks to the names of the companies (or organizations) that you have worked for so that recruiters or interviewers can get detailed information easily…

2. Second, place links to your social media accounts like Twitter, Blogger, or LinkedIn on the top of your resume to bring your resume readers to your social media networks..

3. Save your resume into a PDF form. This makes it easy for readers to go through your resume and click the links.

4. Sign up for Slideshare and upload your resume there. This way, your resume can have an official address in search engines.

5. Embed your resume link (Slideshare) in your blog and linkedin profile so your resume can reach out to your target audiences.