How Far Would You Go?

With brands trying to make meaningful connections with consumers online, most take their efforts to Facebook  Twitter, while others go a bit further. These brands are not only thinking of creative and unexpected approaches to connect online, but are taking their efforts offline.

The first example that comes to mind is Morton's Steakhouse surprising Peter Shankman with a free steak dinner upon his flight's arrival.  Peter jokingly tweeted @mortons that he would love them to meet him at Newark Airport with a porterhouse steak. The Morton's team spotted this in time and acted quickly, sending one of their employees off to meet him at the airport with a steak dinner to go. Sure enough, Peter spotted the waiter dressed in a suit toting the Morton's bag, and the surprise went off without a hitch. He was completely shocked, overjoyed and documented the entire event on Twitter and his blog.

[image error]

A stunned, Peter Shankman with his Morton's steak dinner

With many factors that could have gone awry, it was a big risk for Morton's, but one that paid off with Peter sharing the story of Morton's efforts on his popular  blog and to his 112k+ twitter followers. This act was timely, well-executed and created a lot of positive conversation about Morton's that week.  That extra effort not only earned them Peter's loyalty, but generated new interest in the restaurant as a caring, generous company.

[image error]

That makes for one loyal customer!

 

Another  example of unexpected surprises online and off comes from Nokia. As the global sponsor of Social Media Week this past September, they wanted to connect people online and in person to brighten people's days. Through some clever use of Twitter, they tracked conversations of those using the local social media week hashtag to give away free Nokia phones, organize tweet-ups, and perform random acts of kindness. These ranged from sending someone a get well soon kit who tweeted about their tooth infection, to sending a personalized pizza with a handwritten note to one of their tweet-up attendees.

[image error]

A surprise pizza sent to someone from their Tweet-up

That level of attention to detail and personalization is scarce today and makes a big impact on each person.  Nokia also performs random acts of kindness throughout the year, even handing out umbrellas to New Yorkers on a rainy day. By engaging with people online, then reaching them offline with personalized surprises, it strengthens that connection towards the brand and helps create positive word of mouth for Nokia.

[image error]

Nokia giving away free umbrellas to New Yorkers caught in the rain

 

Finally, Klout has taken its service offline by offering Klout Perks- surprise gifts sent to users who sign up for a Klout profile. While some are still online offers, most are physical packages sent in the mail. As someone who doesn't receive that much mail, I find it very exciting to get a surprise package-  instantly tweeting it and share the news on my blog, which is exactly what the sponsor of the gift intends. The thing that works about Klout Perks, is the gift is something relevant to your interests, since they're based on the area you demonstrate a specialization through your Klout profile.

[image error]

My first Klout perk: A zip-up hoodie from FOX

What examples have you seen of brands going above and beyond in the online and offline space?

[image error]