Outrageously Huge Success - Old Spice Guy sets the bar - what are YOU doing?

I've been asking myself the same question after seeing the Old Spice Guy's viral videos on YouTube. It's been all the rage and everyone is talking about it. So what can be learned from the Old Spice campaign and how can you apply it to your business? Here are 4 ways that I'm learning from this campaign.

1.  We are starved for original, compelling content.  I think that one of the main reasons Old Spice Guy has been so successful is that it represents everything that is right about social media. They've done a great job of telling a compelling story and building the persona of the Old Spice Guy. They've attracted thousands and thousands of followers on Twitter. It's original, it's entertaining and it's attracting a ton of attention because it's well done, original and compelling.

2. Interaction is the standard in the social media world. The response videos are what made this campaign such an outrageous success.  Several videos were made of the Old Spice Guy videos on YouTube responding directly to Twitter messages. He even did a marriage proposal! And one of my personal favorites is the one he does for his daughter. Never have I ever seen a more engaging campaign with such a great and well done response provided to their community.

3.  It achieved its aim of getting everyone talking. Guy Kawasaki, Alyssa Milano, Lisa Barone, and numerous others including Cliff Ravenscraft - the Podcast Answer Man and so many others talking about Old Spice. Yes - Old Spice.  That stuff that you're dad used to use. Yet there have been hundreds of tweets mentioning that they just might now be ready to give Old Spice a try.  Mission accomplished.

4. It gave an otherwise clichéd brand a fresh new face.  Two weeks ago, Old Spice was a name more associated with stuff for old men and was reserved for the bottoms of Christmas stockings along with Ralph Lauren's Chaps and other scents and products for men of a bygone era. (Brut 33, anyone?) Now it's absolutely the hottest trending topic in the social media world.  Who's not going to try Old Spice body wash now? In interest of full disclosure I was using it before the campaign, but still have to say again - well done good sirs and madams.

There are numerous more lessons that are yet to be gleaned from this amazing campaign but I stop at this point to shift the focus of the enormous success of the Old Spice Guy and on to you and me and what we're all doing to make ourselves stand out from the crowd.  There is so much good stuff here to glean - will you (or me) let it go to waste? What will you learn and apply to your own business? How has your thinking been challenged by this campaign?  How can you take the lessons learned from the Old Spice Guy and this incredibly successful episode of viral marketing and use them to polish you personal brand? What about your business' brand?

I give a hearty tip of my cap to you Old Spice Guy.  Well done indeed.