Nice article and gives me food for thought on the B2B side. I don’t see influencer marketing in B2B in the same implementation as consumer, with the exception of much more traditional applications like case studies, videos and testimonials. All which are getting harder to come by in the manufacturing technology spaces where it takes legal and others to approve. However, the concept of the customer owning the product still holds true and exclusive customer feedback programs succeed quite well. My team at Razorleaf have been doing a tech focused podcast, and we are just getting to the point of inviting customers to participate. We needed a track record and audience prior to this point. I’ll see how that unfolds as we go. Thanks for sharing the story which gave me some creative ideas. If you or others reading are aware of good B2B examples, I’d love to hear it.
Hey Juliann, always appreciate your thoughts. I will be very curious to see how adding customers to your podcast works for you. I would think it would really help your message resonate to have customers/clients share their stories of working with you. It always makes the content more interesting and relatable when it’s spoken in the customer’s voice. I know you are excited that the podcast has grown to a point where this is possible, so congratulations!
For my Christian friends such as @Amy @Victor Canada and @Hege Kristoffersen, you will want to check out Juliann’s new Substack on her faith journey.
OK, so I actually watched the TikTok video, and out of curiosity, I checked out some of her other ones. Almost all of them are just her eating food—taking gigantic bites at a time—and she gets millions of views for it. I don’t get it. I just don’t get it.
That said, I do understand the concept behind videos like this and how they can drive sales, but I still don’t understand why people want to watch them.
Hi Bette, with these videos, I think the mozzarella cheese being so stringy is a factor. I think other people wanted to make a video to try to replicate or top the stretchiness of the first video in the post. It’s similar to the Eepybird videos with Mentos and Diet Coke. The first guys made a geyser from the two products, so everyone else tried to replicate or top the first video. Which again lends to the participatory element of these videos, which contributed to the viral trend IMO.
Did you watch any of her other videos though? They have millions of views, and she's just eating with little or no commentary. Most of the time in a very sloppy way.
Love it Mack. It reminds me a lot of an older article you wrote regarding the differences in book reviews, and how different reviewers express the impact of a book.
I like the phrase 'pre-vetted' here, and it's not dissimilar in some ways to the world of dating; we're far more likely to trust a pre-vetted dating introduction from a friend than an app!
Interesting, Scott. Do you mean ‘pre-vetted’ in terms of customers trusting other customers? If so, I agree with your logic. I think most customers trust other customers with little thought since they are both part of the same group. I think your dating app analogy is on point.
Yep that's exactly what I mean re: customers trusting other customers; those who can 'vouch' for the experience. And I 100% agree with you that customers think they may belong to the same group.
Love this breakdown Mack! It’s a great example of how consumers (not brands) are driving the conversation. Chili’s could’ve taken it even further by welcoming the organic buzz, but the lesson here is crystal clear. Empowered, happy customers are a brand's best (and often most authentic) marketing team. They’re advocates, content creators, and genuine brand ambassadors. Kudos to Chili’s for capitalizing on it, even if they were a little late to the party................
Thank you, sis, I agree completely with you. Let’s hope Chilis will at least be smart enough to look for opportunities to connect with customers and embrace UGC from now on. But the cynic in me suspects that won’t happen!
VERY astute observation, Jens! Ironically, viral videos that attack brands are often prompted in part by the brand NOT responding or engaging with customers. It's why I have made customer engagement the focus of this Substack. Doing so totally changes both the internal and external conversation around and about your brand. Smart companies understand this. Thanks for the insightful comment.
So China now knows Americans like Triple Dipper Meals. What are they going to do Implement Operation Clog American Arteries.
On a serious note: Good post, especially your recap of Customers Drive Sales. Based on the number of documented success stories out there, I am surprised we dont see more UGC social movements.
Jimmy, Americans love junk food lol. I am so bad about it, trying to learn what to cut out of my diet and what to add.
And I absolutely agree with you about how more companies should be leveraging UGC. I think so many companies want total control over marketing messages. This is ridiculous, because we are constantly buying off recommendations from other customers. Smart companies lean into UGC and what their customers are saying. Appreciate the thoughts, spot on.
Mack,
Nice article and gives me food for thought on the B2B side. I don’t see influencer marketing in B2B in the same implementation as consumer, with the exception of much more traditional applications like case studies, videos and testimonials. All which are getting harder to come by in the manufacturing technology spaces where it takes legal and others to approve. However, the concept of the customer owning the product still holds true and exclusive customer feedback programs succeed quite well. My team at Razorleaf have been doing a tech focused podcast, and we are just getting to the point of inviting customers to participate. We needed a track record and audience prior to this point. I’ll see how that unfolds as we go. Thanks for sharing the story which gave me some creative ideas. If you or others reading are aware of good B2B examples, I’d love to hear it.
Hey Juliann, always appreciate your thoughts. I will be very curious to see how adding customers to your podcast works for you. I would think it would really help your message resonate to have customers/clients share their stories of working with you. It always makes the content more interesting and relatable when it’s spoken in the customer’s voice. I know you are excited that the podcast has grown to a point where this is possible, so congratulations!
For my Christian friends such as @Amy @Victor Canada and @Hege Kristoffersen, you will want to check out Juliann’s new Substack on her faith journey.
Thanks Mack. I’ll check out the podcast. Juliann, I look forward to getting to know you and following your journey.
OK, so I actually watched the TikTok video, and out of curiosity, I checked out some of her other ones. Almost all of them are just her eating food—taking gigantic bites at a time—and she gets millions of views for it. I don’t get it. I just don’t get it.
That said, I do understand the concept behind videos like this and how they can drive sales, but I still don’t understand why people want to watch them.
Hi Bette, with these videos, I think the mozzarella cheese being so stringy is a factor. I think other people wanted to make a video to try to replicate or top the stretchiness of the first video in the post. It’s similar to the Eepybird videos with Mentos and Diet Coke. The first guys made a geyser from the two products, so everyone else tried to replicate or top the first video. Which again lends to the participatory element of these videos, which contributed to the viral trend IMO.
Did you watch any of her other videos though? They have millions of views, and she's just eating with little or no commentary. Most of the time in a very sloppy way.
Yes. Cute young girl eating sloppily. I suspect hormonal young boys love her videos :)
Oh I’m sure they do - the millions and millions of them watching those videos. It’s like food porn. SMH
Love it Mack. It reminds me a lot of an older article you wrote regarding the differences in book reviews, and how different reviewers express the impact of a book.
I like the phrase 'pre-vetted' here, and it's not dissimilar in some ways to the world of dating; we're far more likely to trust a pre-vetted dating introduction from a friend than an app!
Interesting, Scott. Do you mean ‘pre-vetted’ in terms of customers trusting other customers? If so, I agree with your logic. I think most customers trust other customers with little thought since they are both part of the same group. I think your dating app analogy is on point.
Yep that's exactly what I mean re: customers trusting other customers; those who can 'vouch' for the experience. And I 100% agree with you that customers think they may belong to the same group.
Love this breakdown Mack! It’s a great example of how consumers (not brands) are driving the conversation. Chili’s could’ve taken it even further by welcoming the organic buzz, but the lesson here is crystal clear. Empowered, happy customers are a brand's best (and often most authentic) marketing team. They’re advocates, content creators, and genuine brand ambassadors. Kudos to Chili’s for capitalizing on it, even if they were a little late to the party................
Thank you, sis, I agree completely with you. Let’s hope Chilis will at least be smart enough to look for opportunities to connect with customers and embrace UGC from now on. But the cynic in me suspects that won’t happen!
Great point companies want to control their marketing messages. AI will help them in the process..
Mack Re: Americans love junk food. They also love their leader (MAGA)
Great message in here, Mack! Very smart and high ROI customer marketing.
Also what comes to mind is that these viral videos can work both ways when customer feedback is not so good :o)
VERY astute observation, Jens! Ironically, viral videos that attack brands are often prompted in part by the brand NOT responding or engaging with customers. It's why I have made customer engagement the focus of this Substack. Doing so totally changes both the internal and external conversation around and about your brand. Smart companies understand this. Thanks for the insightful comment.
So China now knows Americans like Triple Dipper Meals. What are they going to do Implement Operation Clog American Arteries.
On a serious note: Good post, especially your recap of Customers Drive Sales. Based on the number of documented success stories out there, I am surprised we dont see more UGC social movements.
Jimmy, Americans love junk food lol. I am so bad about it, trying to learn what to cut out of my diet and what to add.
And I absolutely agree with you about how more companies should be leveraging UGC. I think so many companies want total control over marketing messages. This is ridiculous, because we are constantly buying off recommendations from other customers. Smart companies lean into UGC and what their customers are saying. Appreciate the thoughts, spot on.