Transforming an Internet Phenomenon into a Pop Icon: the Big Bucks vs. Pure Luck

What's this about 'Jeeves' being a Pop Culture Icon? Sure, almost everyone who's familiar with the World Wide Web and search engines has come across the somewhat charming image of the "Internet Butler", but how many of us would consider him a star of the Internet, or mainstream culture for that matter?

Promoters of the web site AskJeeves.com are actively trying to increase the unassuming butler's visibility by moving his image from the web to the 'real-world.' Although not appearing as a helium-balloon, Jeeves made his debut at the 1999 Macy's Parade as the first Internet company and Internet-born icon to appear as a 16-foot sculpture on a float.

Ted Briscoe, senior Vice President of the consumer answering service at AskJeeves emphasizes their desire to make Jeeves "a part of our culture, a pop icon," and hoped Jeeves' appearance in the parade would somehow validate him as a "powerful icon" (from Salon.com). Did it work? Let's not hold our breath waiting for the "Jeeves Doll" to hit the shelves...

On a somewhat more successful scale, however, is the tale of a dog who's lost its home site. In spite of the recent demise of Pets.com, their spokesman Sock Puppet lives on in our hearts as well as our homes as a result of a highly successful marketing plan that's out-lived its purpose!

As noted by Greg Farrell (USA TODAY), "Every once in a while a character in an ad campaign comes alive and takes on a life of its own. The Pets.com Sock Puppet is credited with being the first such ad creature to accomplish the feat on behalf of a dot.com." The little guy not only has an authentic plush Sock Puppet toy modeled after him and his own autobiography entitled, Me by Me, he even has a cult following!

But what's made this bizarre spokesman so appealing and popular? The answer: marketing, marketing, marketing... and a quirky personality, of course. The Sock Puppet campaign quickly rose to the top of the pack based on its "likeability". However, it cannot be ignored that over $2 million was spent to produce and air a spot for the Super Bowl alone!

Beyond commercials and plush toys, the Sock Puppet has appeared on Good Morning America, Regis and Kathie Lee, Access Hollywood and Nightline, and yes, even in the Macy's Parade! Take that Jeeves!

Furthermore, it's no mistake that the pesky pet has no name. Creator ad agency TBWA/Chiat/Day (also creators of the 'Taco Bell Chihuahua' and 'Energizer Bunny') dubiously named him "The Pets.com Sock Puppet" as part of a marketing ploy to help consumers remember the company.

But what about those dot.com startups that don't have any money to spend on major marketing schemes and huge ad agency's and their sophisticated marketing techniques? Well, according to Deidre LaCarte, creator of the Internet Phenomenon, the Hampsterdance, you don't have to do much.

In 1998, after creating a web site in honor of her pet hamster, Hampton, as part of a bet among her sister and a friend to see who could garner the most traffic to their GeoCities site, she literally just sat back and watched the counter tick... and tick... and tick.

It was only after the overwhelming popularity of the Hampsterdance was well established that any true marketing tactics were employed. Two CD compilations, a couple T-shirts and an appearance in a TV-commercial later, the Dancing Hampsters have only begun to establish themselves as mainstream pop culture icons.

Then there's the infamous "Queen of the Internet," Cindy Margolis, who used the World Wide Web just to get her name out there. Since her debut in 1995, she has earned the title as the "Most Downloaded Woman in the World" according to the The Guinness Book of World Records.

Her popularity on the Internet led to appearances on popular televisions shows as well as in countless magazines. Furthermore, Margolis has taken the concept of self-promotion to the extreme, with downloadable images and personally-signed autographs that can be ordered on-line. Not to mention calendars, key chains, fashion accessories and her own late night TV program, The Cindy Margolis Show!

In coming years, it will be no surprise to see more and more Internet and Web-based companies and individuals marketing their wares in the mainstream arena. It will be essential, then, to document the emergence of this phenomenon--from the origins of the Internet and the development of the World Wide Web to the latest emerging technologies.

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Related Articles:

Internet Icons on Parade? by Janelle Brown
http://www.salon.com /tech/log/1999/09/24/ask_jeeves/ index.html

'Me By Me': Pets.com Sock Puppet
http://www.usatoday.com/ community/chat/ 1204sockpuppet.htm

Sock Puppet wins hearts: Lovable mutt builds brand for dot-com, by Greg Farrell, USA TODAY
http://www.usatoday.com/ money/index/ad295.htm

Pets.com to put puppet on Bowl ad by Michael McCarthy, USA TODAY
http://www.usatoday.com/ money/admeter/2000msb001.htm

Pets.com fizzles in IPO, USA TODAY
http://www.usatoday.com/life /cyber/invest/in370.htm

Hampsterdance.com gets new gig, address, by Janet Kornblum, USA TODAY
http://www.usatoday.com/life/ cyber/tech/cth708.htm

Collectible Cindy!
http://www.ebay.com/...

 

Additional Stuff:

Order your own Pets.com Sock Puppet Today!
http://www.ebay.com/...

View one of several Pets.com Commercials
http://www.adcritic.com/search/?query=pets.com

How about a Hampsterdance CD?
http://www.amazon.com/...

More Hampsterdance Merchandise
http://www.t-shirtoutlet.com/...