Best Viral Marketing Campaigns of 2008

Elf Yourself (Office Max) – I am sure we have all received this email of our loved ones dancing as elves.  Not only was this vastly popular, but fun, and has driven tons of traffic to their site … Kudos to Office Max for the brilliant idea.  www.elfyourself.com

Falling into Jeans (Levi) – These videos were very original and fun.  Guys’ jumping off of tall objects in their underwear into Levi jeans was a great idea for a viral marketing campaign.  These videos are all over YouTube and are now being aired on television.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pShf2VuAu_Q

Vote 4 Chris Bosh as an NBA All-Star- Toronto Raptors forward Chris Bosh brought it upon himself to get voted as a starter to the Eastern Conference All-Stars.  Not only did he have a career year statistically, but he put out a series of YouTube videos with him in a Cowboy Outfit talking with a southern accent urging fans to vote for Chris Bosh.  This was something never done before by a professional athlete.  Now this idea has caught on and is being used by various NBA players involved in the Slam Dunk Competition. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hv7IZP7u9FE

Kobe Bryant Jumps Over Aston Martin (Nike) – We have mentioned this before on this blog, but regardless, it was one of the better viral campaigns of the year.  The video was only released on YouTube and was a super smash on MySpace.  It was marketing for his new shoe that came out shortly after the launching of the videos.  The campaign was a huge success as the shoe was the top selling basketball shoe of the year.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hWJkdUMiMw

Ball Girl’s Amazing Catch (Gatorade) – I didn’t see this video until recently, and I have to say it is very entertaining.  It’s obviously fake but that’s not the point; it makes us feel that we can accomplish amazing athletic accomplishments without having to be a professional athlete.   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4SqJz0NgnnE

Related posts:

1. Viral Marketing – Where the Underdog Has a Chance
2. All Star Marketing
3. Kobe Bryant, Nike, and Obama Bring Change to Internet Marketing
4. 8 Best Moments of 2008
5. Pro Athletes Marketing Themselves on Twitter