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The Today Programme on Radio Four has released a viral video which is actually very funny in a wry fashion rather than a ROFL way (…that’s ‘roll on the floor laughing’, please note Jim & John).   Given that Today is a radio programme they unsurprisingly focus on the presenters’ wardrobe requirements, but there are some good lines, not least when the head of hair, make-up and wardrobe refers to Jim “Nokkertie”.

The experiment points out a couple of things.  Viral can spread very fast…if I type quick enough this post will be up on PR Media Blog before the programme in which it was mentioned has finished (I’ve got 22 minutes).  Secondly, in the excitement about new media and new marketing we must not underestimate the power of mainstream media brands.  What makes this viral interesting and what is promoting its spread is the Today programme itself.  Now there are few greater bastions of mainstream media than that.     

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Cadbury’s broke new ground with the drumming Gorilla, mixing TV advertising, viral and PR.  When you have a great marketing campaign like that there is client pressure and a real desire on the part of the protagonists to repeat the success.  It seldom works.  The follow up to ‘Gorilla’ was a case in point.  The runaway trucks racing on a runway to Queen’s ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’ was nice enough but no match for the simian skin beater.   

However Cadbury’s might just have made marketing lightning strike twice.  Launching on Channel 4 tonight is a 60 second film that is quirky enough to set tongues wagging and destined to be a YouTube must see.  Two siblings perform some serious eyebrow dance moves to a piece of eighties electronica called Don’t Stop The Rock by Freestyle. You need to see it really.

This time the muti-level marketing ducks are all lined up.  They’ve added some good PR lines - publishing a list of top ten famous eyebrows and renaming the second month in the calendar Fe-brow-ary.  They’ve even gone for a shade of branding in the ad by putting the sister in the film in a Cadbury’s trade mark purple dress.