76: Discover How Lucidchart is Mastering the Art of Viral Marketing Campaigns

Apr 27, 2018

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When you think of Lucidchart, you probably think of the massively popular "doggo meme videos." These viral marketing campaigns are the result of Lucidchart taking risks and creating a culture of experimentation within their company. What started out as a simple idea from a team engineer has morphed into a global campaign that introduced Lucidchart to hundreds of thousands of new viewers.

On this entertaining and educational episode of Renegade Thinkers Unite, Drew and Lucidchart’s CMO, Nathan Rawlings, discuss the 3 major ideas behind a viral marketing campaign. Throughout the conversation, they discuss how the "doggo meme videos” became a staple in Lucidchart’s marketing portfolio.

Don’t miss the conversation behind why your website must be rock solid before launching into a campaign strategy and how to effectively track the impacts of a digital marketing campaign.

This podcast episode will leave you laughing and inspired - it’s one you don’t want to miss.

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What You’ll Learn

[0:30] Drew introduces his guest for this episode, Nathan Rawlins, CMO of Lucidchart
[1:03] How are marketing and torturing marshmallow peeps connected?
[4:11] The marketing strategies going on behind the scenes at Lucidchart
[5:30] Successful demand generation method examples
[6:16] Search engines are ground zero for marketing and why you have to master the basics
[10:16] Why practical effectiveness sometimes trumps creativity
[11:49] The genius idea behind the "doggo meme" campaign
[17:13] Memes are great, but some of Lucidchart’s ideas weren’t as successful as the “doggo speak” campaigns
[18:21] How Lucidchart measured the impact of the meme videos
[22:03] How viral videos can increase morale and allow people to have fun communicating
[25:26] The future of Lucidchart’s meme videos
[27:58] Had Lucidchart not taken a risk with the meme videos, they would have never discovered the rich vein of viral marketing
[29:53] Drew summarizes his conversation with Nathan and outlines 3 major points for successful viral marketing campaigns
[32:06] Have a strategy to try many different marketing tactics

Before you can begin thinking like a Renegade, your company’s digital infrastructure must be built and optimized correctly

Even the best viral marketing ideas will fall flat if your company does not have a stellar website. Combining best practices for SEM and SEO optimization, refining your blocking and tackling techniques, and understanding what your target market is looking for are crucial. This is where data and metrics trump creativity. If your website doesn’t flow well and give people the answers they’re looking for even the best demand generation strategies won’t succeed. Nathan experienced this firsthand when he joined the Lucidchart team. He walks listeners through the process of tweaking your website on this episode of Renegade Thinkers Unite.

Brand awareness can be created through viral marketing campaigns, like Lucidchart’s wildly successful doggo meme videos

Creativity can be found anywhere when brainstorming for ad campaigns. Lucidchart’s team desired to reach out to potential customers and go beyond the low hanging industry fruit of people already creating diagrams. Thus the “doggo meme” diagram videos that describe the “internet love language for dogs” were born. Each video has millions of views and as a result, the company’s global brand awareness has skyrocketed. A combination of endless internet memes, pop cultural awareness, and a willingness to produce great content simply for the sake of brand awareness allowed this viral marketing campaign to flourish. This campaign is shaping the way Lucidchart looks at customer engagement and you don’t want to miss hearing Nathan talk about the videos with passion and excitement. Be sure to give your full attention to this episode of Renegade Thinkers Unite.

Finding the intersection between culture, product, and storytelling comes after your team has built a culture of experimentation

Nathan explains to Drew that “drawings are the most natural form of communication.” Even before Lucidchart developed the meme diagram videos they had developed a culture of experimentation within their team. No idea was ever too simple or too outlandish to be considered. Nathan urges other CMOs to be human in their storytelling and to always seek out ways to communicate authentically with audiences. Drew also states that you can test a lot of things on the internet, and to not be afraid of the potential (minor) fallout if a digital campaign falls flat. When creative teams who are willing to take risks and try unconventional strategies are united with powerful technology strategies, brilliant ideas are able to flourish.

Connect With Nathan Rawlins:

Nathan’s introductory blog feature on the Lucidchart website
Connect with Nathan on LinkedIn
Follow Nathan on Twitter

Resources & People Mentioned

VIDEO: Nathan’s torturing peeps family tradition
VIDEO: “What is a Pupper? What is a Doggo?” Lucidchart ad
VIDEO: “Doggo Chart - Part 2” Lucidchart ad
VIDEO: “Doggo Chart - Part 3” Lucidchart ad
VIDEO: “Visualize Your Nopes” Lucidchart ad
VIDEO: “Kitteh, Kitter, and Catto - internet names for cats” Lucidchart ad
VIDEO: “Catto Chart - Part 2” Lucidchart ad
VIDEO: “Internet Aninmal Names” Lucidchart ad
VIDEO: “Internet Aninmal Names - Part 2” Lucidchart ad
VIDEOS: “Will it blend?” By Blendtec
VIDEO: Wednesday Chart by Lucidchart
BOOK: How Brands Grow: What Marketers Don't Know

Connect with Drew