How Fake People Promote Fake Viral Videos to Blogs

There’s an (allegedly) iPhone-taken video with 60,000 views that went on YouTube on June 9, 2010. It’s not very good or very funny, but it surely is black ops marketing for one major burger chain, even though it’s shot in another major burger chain. And this is how the greatest minds behind the big business of viral marketing today apparently think is the best way to get their video “picked up” by blogs: casual emails that look pretty much like emails anyone with a blog gets on a daily basis except… less good.

subject: “The [NAME OF BURGER CHAIN 1] Miracle Bun”
date: June 9, 2010

We werent sure where to send this, one of our friends suggested we try to email it out to a bunch of blogs and sites. So here we are.

Here’s what went down. Last week my buddy dragged me to a [NAME OF BURGER CHAIN 2] for the first time in forever. What happened once we got our food was the craziest thing. I’m still kind of creeped out by it. You sort of have to see to understand. Check it out for yourself. And please please post and pass along, we are trying to get this to the world.

[VIDEO LINK]

Thanks a trillion.
Toby Crenshaw
Jake Smith

What’s weird about this email is: those two names actually Google up as real people? So I was giving this a “wait and see.” But then there were more emails!

subject: “tip/ submission something miraculous from [NAME OF BURGER CHAIN 1]?”
date: July 6, 2010

hey there. saw this the other day and thought it might be cool for the site or someone you know…

I found it on SFist and then saw it on Barstools too. It’s two kids from San Francisco who went to the [NAME OF BURGER CHAIN 2] s @ Fishermen’s wharf and found somebody special in their bun. Makes me wonder if it might be an irreverent marketing ploy to stick it to the Golden Arches. Check it out and pass it on.

[LINKS TO SITES AND VIDEOS]

Jen Marsh

subject: “new work for [NAME OF BURGER CHAIN 1]?”
date: July 20, 2010

been a fan of the site for a while now, and thought you might be interested in this.
I’ve seen this video a bunch of places recently was wondering.
Regardless, a fun jab at the Golden Arches.

[VIDEO LINK]

Regards
Tyrese Washington

They’re still at it! They’re going to make this video happen if it kills them.

If you really want to look at this video, which isn’t much to see, you can copy and paste this URL:

Maybe it’s not even viral marketing for the burger chains! Maybe it’s like, just guys who want to be famous, or to have proven their prowess at going viral. Who knows? We don’t. But also: do not want.