Blue Monday has become known as ’the hardest day of the year’ through PR and marketing campaigns. Theoretically, it is the time of year where the weather is cold, we are financially challenged after Christmas, and New Years resolutions have been dropped.
In 2020, social media trends relating to mental health and creating content to help your communities were proven to be a strong and successful use of resource.
So, why were posts challenging Blue Monday so successful this year?
Case Studies: A New Approach to Blue Monday
There were varied approached to Blue Monday in 2021. Some brands gave out a small discount as a nod to the day disguised as ‘a way to help people’ through this day. Others posted words of wisdom on social media. In previous years this has been an acceptable approach, but in 2021, the campaigns that ‘blue us out the water’ were those that were far more thoughtful.
Let’s have a look at two different social media content marketing approaches to Blue Monday 2021.
Samaritans turn Blue Monday into Brew Monday
The name 'Blue Monday’ focuses on the problem. Mental Health charity Samaritans are all about providing solutions. Embodying their company values completely, Samaritans changed Blue Monday to Brew Monday through their communications this year. Rather than focusing on the challenge, they focus on empowering their followers to become part of the solution.
Brew Monday encourages people to have a cuppa and raise funds. Turning Blue Monday on its head, Samaritans encouraged people to get together (virtually) over a warming cuppa and to reach out to a friend or family member to really listen.
Their tagline: Each donation can bring warmth to someone in at their toughest time.
Key results: In less that 24 hours, their ‘what’s in a cuppa’ video reached over 3k views on Instagram, 7k views on LinkedIn, 618 shares on Facebook, and 1k retweets on Twitter.
The Nue Co challenge the concept surrounding Blue Monday
US natural supplement brand The Nue Co used Instagram stories to challenge the meaning of Blue Monday stating that it is a PR stunt based on very little fact. They encourage people to pay no attention whilst reminding their followers that mental health is unique to every single person. The kind nature of this challenge supports messaging surrounding self care making it assertive without shaming those supporting the message.
This year, Blue Monday coincided with Martin Luther Jr King Day, which is celebrated on his birthday each year. On this day, The Nue Co dedicated feed posts to Martin Luther Jr King.
Key stats: This post collected over 900 likes on their Instagram feed in less than 24 hours, a step up from their average likes per image post on Instagram.
Consumer Trends to bare in mind for next year, and for future Social Media Days
In order to understand why the aforementioned campaigns were so successful, we must adapt a customer-centric method of thinking. Let's look at the key consumer mindsets that these approaches tap into in order to plan successful content moving forward.
Authenticity is Key in Social Media Communications
The first thing to note here is that a marketers approach to key events surrounding important subjects such as mental wellbeing must come from an authentic desire to help your community. After all, why wouldn’t you want to provide a positive brand experience for your target audience?
At the same time, all marketing activity should fit in with marketing goals. Finding the right goal is integral to successfully marketing authentically. Is ‘Blue Monday’ really about sales? Or is it about awareness, reach and community retention by creating shareable content?
Discounting on every key date will devalue your product over time, whilst thoughtful content will be shared and saved multiple times for an increased brand reach and to retain those who follow you for interesting and meaningful content.
Thoughtful Reactiveness as a Social Media Campaign Strategy
Social Media tactics are a combination of proactive and reactive. Brands will plan important, goal-driven social media campaigns in depth. In the same breath, reactive thinking is key because these posts and campaigns can be highly engaging and extremely relevant. Reactive planning in 2021 must, however, be far more thoughtful than ever before. As consumers spent more time social media in 2020, through turbulent events such as lockdown and the Black Lives Matter moment, consumers looked to brands to react to and support important moments. Consumers and brands alike placed a greater emphasis on the importance of self education leaving followers far savvier than ever before.
Brands who approach important topics such as inclusivity, mental health and environment will be challenged. Whilst it is important to tap into key dates and events, brands have a greater responsibility than ever before to do this authentically and thoughtfully.
For ideas and planning for upcoming key dates, get in touch with our team.