We've taken a massive interest in Social Media here at Orchard. We all have Twitter accounts and there are probably 30 tweets a day getting fired out of Orchard Towers, sharing things we find interesting or amusing, or just generally joining in conversations. Between us we follow, and are followed by thousands. Basically we love it!
You may have noticed that the guys here at Orchard have been taking an active interest in some of the local networking evenings that are held on a monthly basis here in Manchester and one that I go to month in month out is the Social Media Cafe and it's not just to get into the BBC!
Those of you that have been to the SMC_MCR will know the format, several different talks over the course of the evening in a very informal "unconference" style. Its always great to hear people talking about their passion and that's one thing that comes through time and time again. Everyone that works in Social Media is passionate about it, they live it and love it and I'm starting to see why!
The one thing I would say though is that the talks were, in the main, focused on the theory of Social Media. The ways it could and even should help brands and businesses reach the hundreds, thousands and even millions via ingeniously led campaigns that cost not a penny, but deliver an ROI that would be the fantasy of every marketing manager worth their salt.
Imagine my delight then, when I attended the last SMC_MCR, to see that the first session was going to be about a new phenomenon thats sweeping the North West, in the rather unsuspecting form of the Manchester Egg.
The egg was the brain child of the owner of local agency We Are Cahoona, Ben Holden. The first batch was put together as a gift for business partner John Grant and by all accounts they went down a dream with not a crumb left. They went down that well that they soon became a regular on a Friday lunchtime in the Castle on Oldham Street and sold out time and time again. Over all you would say a great success and a local treat for those in the know.
This is where social media comes in. Ben and many of his friends and colleagues are big users of Twitter. In fact many of you will know Ben's business partner for who the first batch of eggs were created and will have read his infamous Tweets under the handle of Jonthebeef. Collectively they started tweeting about the egg and it soon became an entity in it's own right, not just a product but a brand! Just search #manchesteregg on Twitter and you'll find hundreds and perhaps thousands of hits. It has its own Twitter page. It even has its own website! The effect snowballed to the point where he had to enlist the help of local Norther Quarter eatery The Soup Kitchen to produce and sell the egg.
Before he knew it he was getting contacted by the local media and was fielding questions from local journalists and breakfast radio presenters alike. Then came the big break! The Guardian were in touch and all of a sudden the Manchester Egg was emmortalised on the (web) pages of one of the nationals with a circulation that hits the millions. This puts the exposure of the egg to a level that would take up a marketing budget of mammouth proportions and would cause all but the most hardened of Marketing managers to twitch. Add to this the fact that Ben didn't contact a soul about his egg, they contacted him! Why? Because of Social Media. Because people bought into it and spoke about it, they left a digital footprint, they got followers, brand champions, people shouting from their desk tops that they wanted a manchester egg and they wanted it NOW!
And how much did all of this publicity cost? Nothing! Not one solitary penny did it cost to gain over 500 followers, to get invited on three local radio stations (including BBC Manchester) and virtual column inches in one of the most respected papers in the country. Nothing other than a few well worded tweets!
To hear Ben talk about the rise of the Manchester Egg and how he attributes that success almost entirely to his use of Social Media (and a cracking tasting egg of course) was absolutely fantastic and it had the attention of the room with not a single interruption. A perfect working example of how Social Media can and should be used!
Who knows the future of the egg, but thats not the point, the point is that Social Media works, we've seen it, we've smelt it and thanks to the Manchester Egg we've finally tasted it!
Chris Jones
Find out who's who on Twitter at Orchard HERE