Every brand is hoping they’re the next Ocean Spray.
A TikTok video of a man on a skateboard, mouthing the lyrics to Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams” while drinking Ocean Spray juice not only put a smile on all our faces in the midst of a political-divided, hatred-filled social media scenario worldwide, it just proved the why, the power, and the influence of a platform like TikTok. Every brand is hoping they’re the next Ocean Spray, and that’s because ever since Nathan Apodaca, who goes by 420DoggFace208 on his social media, posted the clip of him vibing, 26.9 million viewers have enjoyed it on TikTok, while countless more across other social media platform, giving an unexpected, wild and profitable bump for the beverage. Because of it, Fleetwood Mac drummer Mick Fleetwood and Ocean Spray CEO Tom Hayes both jumped on the trend by posting similar videos of themselves vibing out, as Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams” had its best streaming week ever, even the #oceanspray tag on TikTok has over 25 million views (even though the video didn’t even use that hashtag) as well, making a short 22-second video one of the coolest things this year (imagine that!), and of course one of the best things ever to happen to a company, who is loving every minute of it. The company rapidly named Apodaca its ambassador and even got him a new, cranberry red Nissan Titan PRO-4X after the city local said to the L.A. Times in one of many media interviews that his car battery had died (hence he’s skateboarding to work), which is why he goes around town in the skateboard he rides in the famous video.
Why companies are looking and learning
Viral success on TikTok isn’t usually something one associates with the corporate C-suite, but just one week after Apodaca shared his carefree aura along with the drink, everybody’s on it, learning just what these actions can give, and hoping they can someday enjoy what Ocean Spray never imagined, but desperately needed, well, not really, but it’s like one day being handed a profitable gift by a mere casualty that’s pretty cool.
While in the social media arena, Apodaca gave TikTok users exactly what they wanted: good vibes in dark times. And, as the Boston Globe’s Anissa Gardizy points out, the TikTok algorithm is built to support the act of being cheered up on the internet by a stranger. In contrast, Instagram and Facebook prioritize accounts users already follow in the feed (although Instagram’s Reels offering aims to change that). PR Newswire adds that Ocean Spray’s donation and its CEO’s goofy video painted the brand in a positive light, and allowed the company to join the trend without detracting from the “good vibes” message that charmed millions. Avoiding the pitfall of an overly forced approach to social media, Ocean Spray’s entrance into the narrative was entirely organic (its product was featured in the original video, after all). This latest victory for cranberry juice lovers everywhere should remind communicators not to ignore TikTok, even if they don’t believe their target audience is using the app.
See Apodaca’s video below:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CFkxv93JvR5/
