Have you been living in a zoo cage? You do know about the Bronx Zoo's escaped Egyptian Cobra, right? However, were you aware that this cunning cobra has been tweeting about her escapade through NYC? Meet @BronxZoosCobra, a viral marketing genius.
"Checking Google maps. RT @sesamestreet The @bronxzooscobra is visiting places around NYC. Can anyone tell it how to get to Sesame Street?"
Within days, this sssssly snake gained over 200,000 followers and appeared on the Piers Morgan show with the founders of Twitter.
"Hey @piersmorgan, @jack and @biz, What does a snake have to do to get this account verified?"
Soon after, she was mentioned on CNN and Fox News and more. And her followers began to retweet and join in the fun at the hash tag #snakeonthetown.
"Enjoying a cupcake @magnoliabakery. This is going straight to my hips. Oh, wait. I don't have hips. Yesss! #snakeonthetown"
Magnolia Bakery along with Ellis Island, Guggenheim and many other NYC attractions received great (and we presume free) viral publicity. Not to mention the publicity for the Bronx Zoo.
The BronxZoosCobra lives on after her recent capture...
"Just regurgitated my iPhone. Oh, it's ssso on now. You'll never guess what's coming. #freethebronxzooscobra"
What can business learn from the Celebrity Cobra's twitter campaign?
The Cobra struck fast; being the first to enter the Twitter jungle. Her tweets were topical, humorous and relevant - visiting interesting sites in New York City. A few copy cat snake Twitter accounts came online; and fell flat. There was room for only one small snake in this big city.
And most importantly, the ssssneaky snake did not try to monetize it's adventure; at least not right away. She established an interested base of followers building trust and credibility. Has she began to monetize her adventures?
"Even while incarcerated my reach extends beyond my 20 inches. I have hijacked Ryan Seacrest's Twitter. See for yourself @RyanSeacrest"
Twitter can be an incredibly powerful tool in your social media marketing campaign strategy. Even for a 20" escaped snake: BronxZoosCobra.