New Viral Marketing Campaign?

[ElectricBarbarella]

I'm posting here for a friend, who is actually confused and a bit scared (she isn't in to horrors or anything like that) and I did so in entertainment because I truly believe what she got sounds like a new type of "viral Marketing".

Here is her text:

My 15 yo dd got a cell phone call at midnight last night. She didn't answer it because it scared her and no one calls her that late. She checked the voice mail this morning and when she heard the creepy voice, she hung up and handed the phone to me.

NOw, I don't want to creep anyone out, but this was the message. "Congratulations... you've been selected for the mass murder of 7-07-07. 7-07-07. You're all gonna dieeeeee...".

We did not recognize the voice. The phone number did not show up on her phone - it only said "new call". So, we have no way of knowing the number that it was called from.

They did call the police, who seem to be taking this seriously. This is why I told her it sounds like Viral Marketing. The only thing I can think of coming out on that date is Harry Potter and no way would Rowling even need to consider VM for her books.

So since I don't believe it is HP, what movies are coming out on that date that might use VM and benefit from it? Or is there something else aside from a movie?

Anyone?

toni

[mags]

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is not coming out on 7/7/7. It's coming out on the 21st.

I doubt it is viral marketing, because making a threat over the phone is illegal.

I think it's some idiot pranking. Being that the call went to a 15 year old, it's probably someone she knows from school. I hesitate to say a "friend."

[ElectricBarbarella]

I thought the HP movie was coming out on the 7th? In any case, it still sounds like VM, not a prank(it could very well be), I just wish I could figure out which it was a VM for.

The way the call is laid out, is what makes me believe it is VM.


BTW, this is a homeschooler. Not that we can't be little prigs, but her core group of people are all like minded with her...which is why I am stearing away from prank from a "Friend". Doesn't mean it can't be a prank, but well... now I'm confused.


toni

I agree with Mags, I seriously doubt this is viral marketing. First of all, what company would piss you off by first a) calling at midnight, b) threatening your life, and then expect you to then want to run out and buy their product/service?

-Tim

I'd guess, if you're in marketing (and I'm not) you have to weigh the costs against the benefits. If you piss a couple of people off, but not enough to raise a national outcry, just to get them talking, than, hey, maybe. I'm not the world's biggest fan of viral marketing, though, so maybe I'm just being cynical.

If nothing else, though, I'd suggest the probabilities are going to look something like (in heavily decreasing order):

1. Viral marketing (actually, I do agree with EB)
2. Prank call
3. Wrong number but not actually a prank (hey, it happens)
4. Phone gnomes
5. Space aliens (or perhaps some bizarre combination of 4 and 5. "ET, phone gnome" and all)
6. Jimmy Hoffa
7. Jimmy Stewart
8. Martha Stewart
9. Martha Washington
10. The Washington Redskins
11. Having been selected for the mass murder of July 7, 2007.

(ETA: Googling for that suggests the only big release then is (speculation?) the new Harry Potter. I don't see any other upcoming video games or anything. The date is good for a release--I'd think--but nobody seems to be picking it)

-Baikal

According to IMDB there aren't any movies coming out 7-7-7 at least not in the US

[Jonny T]

Wiki shows the following events:

July 7-July 29 - The 2007 Tour de France will take place; the grand départ will be from London.
July 7 - The New Seven Wonders of the World are set to be revealed in a ceremony in Portugal.
July 7 - Oxegen 2007 is set get underway in Ireland.
July 7 - The Live Earth concerts are set to be begin.

None sounds that likely to me. I'm not convinced it would be viral marketing tho.

[MidgardDragon]

If it's viral marketing then your best bets are:

Horror movie

Horror book

A band's new album (check for hard rock/metal releases)

[Jonny T]

Don't forget video game.

Quick question, then. If it is viral marketing, and they are trying to build up momentum towards a release date, would that release date necessarily be public? Does that defeat the purpose if any old yahoo can Google "07/07/2007" and say "oh, well, son of a gun, Zombies Who Select People For the Mass Murder of 07-07-07 comes out for PS3 then!"?

-Baikal

[KirkMcD]

If this were a text message, I would say that the 7-07-07 is really LOLOL or a variant of LOL (Laughing Out Loud), but since it was a voice mail, I got nothing.

[marrya]

FWIW - someone here [bad snopester, me - I'll have to do some more research] is claiming that DOYCH told her that Jesus was coming back on the 7.7.7 date ... oh goody, it's a red letter crazy day.

[ElapheG]

Just as a pointer, the new Harry Potter film isn't coming out on 07.07.07 either - it's coming out the weekend of the 13th of July (they keep changing the day of the week though).

[James G]

While I wouldn't put this past being viral marketing, I would have thought that if it was it would only be in response to some action by the person recieving the message. (ie. Signing up on a website related to the product/event) She's not tried to sign up for an ARG or anything like that has she?

ETA: Okay Google finds nothing in the news or on the blogs, so it is almost certainly a prank call.

[TwoGuyswithaHat]

Originally Posted by James G

While I wouldn't put this past being viral marketing, I would have thought that if it was it would only be in response to some action by the person recieving the message. (ie. Signing up on a website related to the product/event) She's not tried to sign up for an ARG or anything like that has she?

ETA: Okay Google finds nothing in the news or on the blogs, so it is almost certainly a prank call.

Not necessarily, V for Vendetta and Snakes on a Plane both had a website where you could have either V or Samuel L. Jackson call your friend after you put in information for them.

[Beastly Despot]

Originally Posted by Jonny T

July 7 - The Live Earth concerts are set to be begin.

That one is my vote. Those bastards...









Hey, I think I'll go.

The fact that 7/7 is my 20th birthday would make that call even creepier to me.

Maybe I should reconsider having "mass murder" as my party theme.

Wait...I got it.

[TrishDaDish]

So...anything happen yesterday? Is ya friend still all in one piece?

[ElectricBarbarella]

Friend is still in one piece and I don't know if I am pleased or not, but unfortunately it wasn't Viral Marketing.

It was, in fact, a very horrible prank call by someone she thought was a friend. But this "friend" did it to several other people--her and her boyfriend--hoping not to get caught.

I don't remember all of the update, but suffice it to say, it was an unfortunate prank call.

toni

[Jonny T]

viral marketing did seem somewhat unlikely.