The brand Steak-umm has become a voice of reason during the coronavirus crisis. It has been tweeting advice about how to interpret news sources and keep thinking critically. These efforts have quickly generated wide attention, including mentions in newsletters by well-known entrepreneur Tim Ferriss and retweets by professors in journalism.
in science there are “rules” and “exceptions.” rules provide consensus and patterns, while exceptions provide outliers that challenge (prove) the rules. in hard sciences like physics, a virtual 100% consensus is possible, but in soft sciences like economics, it's never that clean
— Steak-umm (@steak_umm) April 17, 2020
Why is Steak-Umm dropping truth bombs? https://t.co/Ocf7Tvor0k
— Jason Johnson (@DrJasonJohnson) April 18, 2020
How did Steak-umm become so successful with such a counter-brand campaign?
Key Takeaways
What you can learn about social media in times of crisis from Steak-umm’s successful campaign:
It's important to have a solid social media strategy, including a social media persona that fits your brand. This helps you come across as genuine and authentic as you relate to your audience.
Creating a successful social media campaign requires commitment to consistent and regular posting that fits your social media persona.
Helping others and making a positive impact breeds goodwill and favourable attention during crisis times, so focus on the value you can offer your audience.
How Steak-umm Built Its Social Media Persona Presence
The Steak-umm brand had already carefully crafted a Twitter persona over several years. Allebach Communications, the suburban Philadelphia agency that developed the persona, describes the brand's voice as ‘an amalgam of Nihilist Arby's, Spongebob, Joe Rogan and Rick Sanchez’.
The company gained notoriety with their earlier successful campaign #VerifySteakUmm, which was centred around getting the Steak-umm Twitter account verified. As they played the underdog and vilified Twitter for not verifying them, they gained an almost cult-like status.
But it was also due to their significant efforts. In November 2017 alone, they posted an astounding 3,640 tweets. And it paid off: in the same month, they added 1,965 new followers.
Why Steak-umm’s Recent Messages Are So Successful
There are a few key reasons Steak-umm has managed to succeed in their current efforts:
They carefully crafted a social media persona for their Twitter account that aligns with their brand and is relatable to their customers, described in detail in their Steak-umm case study. This makes the brand seem genuine and authentic. It also humanises the brand and makes Steak-umm's current efforts seem like the natural thing to do during a crisis: helping out your fellow human beings the best way you can.
They had already built a solid social media presence by tweeting regularly and running several successful campaigns, all in line with their social media persona. This gave them a considerable following and a consistent image even before the coronavirus campaign.
They’re adding true value and striving to make a positive impact with their recent actions. Not only have their messages about critical thinking been validated by PhDs and other experts, but they also raised money for the @feedamerica campaign.
What Other Brands Can Learn from Steak-umm
While a steak brand posting advice about how to think critically might seem weird, their campaign highlights many social media best practices during crisis times. Here’s what you can learn from Steak-umm's campaign:
It's important to have a solid social media strategy, including a social media persona that fits your brand. It helps you come across as genuine and authentic and relate to your audience, which is even more critical during crisis times.
Creating a successful social media campaign requires commitment. Steak-umm's tweets would have been far less successful if the company hadn’t already built a solid online presence and a group of followers. They achieved it through consistent posting and several successful campaigns.
Helping others and making a positive impact breed goodwill and favourable attention, especially in challenging times. As we mentioned earlier in our post on communication during a crisis, now is not the time to push your content into the world, but instead, to focus on how you can provide value for your audience.
What might seem like a strange strategy at first, in fact, turns out to be a great example of how to successfully communicate via social media during a crisis. Steak-umm's recent campaign and its achievements illustrate many best practices that other brands can learn a lot from.
This is important to note, especially with everyday life moving increasingly online and the need to differentiate yourself as a brand.