Social media marketing for causes.

1. Cause Marketing
A Social Media Case Study

2. Too many social media case studies
are commercially focused, typically
profiling men selling big ticket products
and services or major corporations.

3. This is a story of how one
woman uses the tools at her
disposal to spark a social
movement. She isn't an ex-
politician with fame and
financial backing like Al
Gore. She can't create a
mainstream media empire of
movies, books and TV like
he did with "An Inconvenient
Truth" - but she has
passion, drive and uses
these to create social
currency that she spends on
achieving her aims.

4. She takes queues from the dominant books
and thinkers of the time - but isn't afraid to
pick and choose the recommendations that
work for her.

5. She starts by creating
a consistent persona -
adopting a modified
version of her name as
an alias across all of
her activities - using a
pun to give her instant
recognition.

6. She gathers together like minded individuals in
forums - spreading her ideas through
conversations.

7. She keeps her edicts short, because the
medium only allows for limited text, and more
so because that makes them easy to
remember and to pass on.

8. She can't afford main stream media
advertising so she engages in dramatic offline
stunts that get their attention and have people
writing about her.

9. She responds when necessary engaging back
in the conversation through short posts in their
medium -

10. - or issuing her own.

11. She concentrates on creating advocates, identifies
influencers. She seeds media with these and because it
is both impactful and entertaining many of their songs,
often remixing popular tunes of the day, go viral.

12. Her methods are emulated by others who rally to her
cause, in other regions, and by those who see them
being effective for their own cause or business.

13. She has haters who parody her alias and mock her for
perceived self promotion but she carries on, knowing
she is creating change.

14. Sounds like a capable 21st century
social media practitioner?

15. Hold up...

16. This tale is actually from
the first decade of the last
century, the 1900s - the
woman is Carrie Nation,
known as Carry A. Nation...

17. - a prominent member of
the Temperance
movement that led to the
prohibition of Alcohol in
the USA for over a decade.
So let’s rewind and replace
the tools we thought we
saw with the ones she
actually used.

18. She takes queues from
the dominant book of the
time - but isn't afraid to
pick and choose the
recommendations that
work for her.
Carrie reading from the
Bible.

19. She starts by creating a consistent persona - adopting a
modified version of her name as an alias across all of her
activities - using a pun to give her instant recognition.
“Carry a nation”, get it?

20. She gathers together like minded individuals in forums -
spreading her ideas through conversations.
Carrie at one of the many Town Hall Forums she
organised and participated in.

21. She keeps her edicts
short, because the
medium only allows for
limited text, and more so
because that makes them
easy to remember and to
pass on.
A classic temperance
slogan used on placards.

22. She can't afford main
stream media advertising
so she engages in
dramatic offline stunts that
get their attention and
have people writing about
her.
A bar ransacked by Carrie
and her followers. The
inset is the hatchet she is
known for wielding.

23. She responds when
necessary engaging back
in the conversation
through short posts in
their medium -
A letter to the editor as
used by her and her
followers.
Published: March 11, 1901
Copyright © The New York Times

24. - or issuing her own.
Carrie’s own self-
published newsletter.

25. She concentrates on
creating advocates,
identifies influencers. She
seeds media with these
and because it is both
impactful and entertaining
many of their songs, often
remixing popular tunes of
the day, go viral.
A prohibition song based
on the Auld Lang Syne
tune.

26. Her methods are emulated
by others who rally to her
cause, in other regions, and
by those who see them
being effective for _their_
own cause or business.
Flyer advertising her
speaking circuit
appearance.

27. She has haters who parody her alias and mock her for
perceived self promotion but she carries on, knowing
she is creating change.
A slogan adopted by many bars mocking her.

28. Carrie A. Nation
Pioneering Political Activist Social Media Douche-bag

29. Moral of our story
There is nothing new or special about
today's social media. Don't be
swayed by douche-bags who frighten
you into thinking it is new and
unknown. Step back, think about
your goals and how humans have
always communicated, conversed
and convinced. Only then find the
tools you need to meet these goals.

30. Credits & disclaimers
• Thanks to Flickr users for Creative Commons licensed photos:
• http://www.flickr.com/photos/poptech2006/2967350834/
• http://www.flickr.com/photos/americanprogressaction/4565846726/
• Logos used without permission, no endorsement implied.
• Thanks to the Kansas Historical Society for archival photos:
• http://www.kansasmemory.org
• Sorry for any historical inaccuracies, hopefully my history teacher
father is not turning in his grave.
• Sorry about prohibition, that really must have sucked.