Several widely-distributed brands have been challenged in coming up with online community hubs to tap into the popularity of MySpace, YouTube and Facebook.
Among the disappointments was Coke, which last year replaced its website with one embracing consumer-generated content, running contests that solicited submissions from users worldwide to do things like send in videos that "bottle the essence of you." Billed as "The Coke Show," it was recently replaced by a more generic site. Also found wanting were Wal-Mart's social network for teens, The Hub, which was shuttered last October after three months and Bud.tv, which is being retooled after its launch at the Super Bowl.
According to Brandweek, successful corporate virtual sites have either tapped into a passionate audience around a niche brand or offer functionality unavailable on popular social media sites.
Among those that are working is the five-year-old Owners' Lounge for Mini Cooper. About 65 percent of the more than 200,000 Mini drivers in the U.S. have registered for the site, which is only open to owners; and 40,000 are active users. "It is a small, niche product," a Mini rep said. In contrast, this level of connection for mass brands that compete across categories is more difficult due to inconsistent messaging.
"The Coca-Cola brand is so broad, and it's so much easier to do this with niche brands," Fernanda Romano, a global creative director at Interpublic Group's Lowe, told Brandweek.
On a larger scale, one success is Nike+, a digital hub for runners to compare workout data, challenge each other and connect. Its focus on athletic performance provides the credibility to build a digital community. "They solve a problem, and because they solve a problem, a community forms," said Chad Stoller, executive director of emerging platforms at Omnicom Group's Organic. "But with Coke, what problem are they solving?"
A huge hit has been Mattel's Barbie Girls, a social network created for a new high-tech toy that attracted four million members in less than four months. Visitors can keep a virtual pet or download music.
Some feel most brands would be better off integrating with existing communities like Facebook and MySpace, although this path is not proven. Wal-Mart partnered with Facebook for its back-to-school's effort around The Hub, but quickly found criticisms of its labor practices littering the site's commentary section.
Pete Blackshaw, CMO at Nielsen BuzzMetrics, told Brandweek brands are still exploring their role in community building, whether launching their own virtual worlds, partnering with existing sites or simply analyzing the chatter.
"There's been a me-tooism on the social-networking front of 'I need to create a MySpace of my brand,' " Mr. Blackshaw said. "Every brand needs to do some element of it, but do they need to go all out? It's not clear."
Discussion Questions: Do you think online communities can work for mass-market products or are they just for niche brands? How should mass brands be looking to tap into online virtual worlds such as MySpace, YouTube and Facebook? What do you think is crucial to creating an active online social network site?