Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream…Need I say more?

In keeping with the theme of extraordinary social media campaigns and food, I of coarse had to shed light on the famous Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream.  Jeni’s opened its first shop in Columbus, Ohio’s North Market in just 20o2.  Since then, they have expanded to nine shops, predominantly located in central Ohio, and service over 700 grocery markets nationwide.  While the success of the company can be attributed to the astounding yet delicious flavors and local appeal, the rapid nationwide growth is due in part to Jeni’s large social media presence.

Jeni’s features local high quality ingredients in their products and therefore really want to accentuate this to their consumers.  In order to accomplish this, Jeni’s creates short video clips, often illustrating the processes and ingredients they use but in light entertaining fashion.  By disclosing their ingredients and processes, they’re giving the consumer a first hand look at how their product is made.  It shows this transparency and lets the customer know that they have nothing to hide.  Additionally, when Bauer shares her personal experiences , it shows the viewer that she as an owner is close to her brand and product, again illustrating transparency and the value of the brand. They share their videos predominantly via Vimeo and YouTube.  The videos below illustrate two different formats, yet both give off a vibe of a good quality product close to home.

Through the use of pictures and videos, Jeni’s depicts their brand with flavor and vibrancy.  On Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram and Pinterest, Jeni’s uses images to capture a moment.  Each picture tells a story, whether its about the food or the journey.  Either way, Jeni’s focuses on sharing compelling images to really capture the viewer’s attention.  Typically they’re accompanied with a little description or quote, just to give the viewer something else to spark their interest.

This past Monday, Jeni’s posted about their new vending machines in the Columbus Airport.  Firstly, the picture is intriguing all on its own, as it features the traditional Jeni’s look but on a vending machine.  An ice cream vending machine is unique, but for a quality local brand to create their own custom machine and put it in an airport is completely unheard of.  This topic all together sparks interest, as it is a unique and compelling topic.  I’m personally highly intrigued to check it out next time i’m at the airport.  Jeni’s posted it on several different social media spaces and received positive feedback on all the forums.

While generating activity in almost every online social media space, Jeni’s goes one step further and maintains a blog of their own, bringing all of the mediums together in their own space.  The blog focuses its attention more on the promotion events, store re-openings, and new flavor profiles.  They use their blog as a new kind of forum.  The posts are unique and relate back to the brand through the value of exceptional quality.

Overall, Jeni’s uses social media to advance their brand to the next level.  They really take full advantage of each medium and it helps their brand excel to the next level.

Dove and Their Social Mission

As social media grows to envelope almost every aspect of daily life, often detrimental side effects accompany this technology driven industry.  Young girls look to these avenues for advice but their vision is often clouded by the negative effects of social media.

In response to all the negative connotations to social media for girls, Dove decided to put out this campaign that exposes the truth behind the pretty faces and false realism.

Dove recognizes that magazines, advertising, television, and the internet frame , cut, color, and edit women to be “beautiful.”  However these images that young girls are looking up to aren’t real.  Their perception of beauty is altered by the media.

Dove’s campaign works to abolish these false images and build girls up to feel great about themselves in their own bodies.

Dove created a specialized Toolkit based on the specifics you want to address.  It’s customizable by age, topic, and also based on your audience and who you are trying to use the kit.  Then, based on the attributes of your situation, you can choose which activities guide best fits your needs.  The guides are filled with Q&A, personal stories, and steps to success.

One thing that I thought was especially interesting was their guide to the internet– “A Girl’s Guide to the Digital World—How to Log Off of Digital Drama.  It discusses a lot of key information gauged for teenage girls, while also keeping it down to 5 major points.

1. Online Friendships–  It is very easy create a profile online so it is important to demonstrate caution when befriending people you don’t personally know.

2. Privacy- The digital lifespan of your words, pictures, and data can be endless.

3.Rumors- Keep gossip positive because rumors, just like anything else, can spread quickly via the internet.

4. Self-Image– The things you share paint a picture of you so make sure you’re representing yourself in a positive manner.

5. Mobile Conversations- Once you send something via text message, there’s no turning back.  Make sure it’s something you would be comfortable saying face to face.

In addition to this guide, there are plenty more like it, designed for helping girls understand the media and themselves in a different light on the Dove Real Beauty Campaign webpage.