THE WOW! REPLY
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC
DATE: JUNE 2012
AGENCY: CAMPFIRE
SETTING THE STAGE
Our concept launched with an on-air and online teaser video, providing instructions on how everyone could participate in a twitter event, scheduled to coincide with the premiere episode of Chasing UFOs.
On that night, everyone who tweeted using the hashtag #ChasingUFOs would get their message included in an interstellar transmission, timed to coincide with the 35th anniversary of when scientists first detected a strange signal from space — The Wow Signal.
THE ONLINE TWEET SCHEDULER
At National Geographic’s website, we launched an innovative tool – the “tweet scheduler,” which allowed people to plan their 140-character messages in advance, and set them to be automatically tweeted on the night of the event.
CELEBRITY PARTICIPATION
We also invited “pop-culture friendly” celebrities to record short messages that would accompany the tweets. We received videos from comedians, scientists, sportscasters, musicians, actors and bloggers.
POPULAR REACTION
In the run-up to the premiere, the project captured the imagination of mainstream viewers and entertainers, generating hundreds of blog posts, extensive press coverage, social media mentions and even coverage on network television.
STATS
The night of the premiere, social media mentions topped 40,000, propelling National Geographic to No. 3 on the social TV chart.
Additionally, the #ChasingUFOs Twitter hashtag trended organically across the country.
MORE VIDEOS
Jorge Garcia’s message to the Aliens
Miss Universe’s message to the Aliens
Fox News commentary