Laughing All the Way

Joke A Day's Traffic Jam

More of this Feature • Part 1: From Joke to Full-Blown Publicity Stunt • Part 3: AOL Aspect • Part 4: AOL Virus Hoax Copy    Join the Discussion "What do you think of Mr. Owens' joke that turned into a publicity stunt?" In the Advertising Forum     Related Resources • When Advertising Works Too Well • Snapple Gets Sexy • Sizzle & Stirring It Up • Better Pizza? Bigger Lawsuit. • Offline Ads for an Online Presence • Public Relations Resources    From Other Guides • AOL.EXE Joke/Hoax • Urban Legends    Elsewhere on the Web • JokeADay.com • AOL.EXE Virus Coverage

Close to 30 million people subscribe to AOL. The company holds the number one Internet Service Provider position and even Mr. Owens recognizes AOL's power online.

"I've always known (and maintained) that AOL itself is a terrific idea. Their marketing prowess is second to none. I've also always said there's plenty of intelligent people who use AOL for whatever reason. (Lack of available service in some areas, for instance)," he said.

JokeADay.com receives about 80,000 visitors each day. Initially, the site experienced a 10 to 15 percent spike in traffic the week media coverage broke the story. Subscriptions to the JokeADay.com mailing list also increased. The number of paid subscriptions as well as subscriptions to the Joke A Day premium Web site also increased about 10 to 15 percent.

The week after the intense media exposure, though, Mr. Owens noticed Web traffic actually declined just as much. "So, for the first time in the history of Joke A Day, the number of visitors took a noticeable dive," he said.

Mr. Owens tapped into a unique marketing concept. He admits he had no idea his joke would turn into an outright publicity stunt.

"I thought it was kind of cute," he said. "My regular readers know of my disdain for all things AOL. So who could have possibly predicted it'd go as crazy as it did?"

That doesn't mean that every Web site owner should begin producing virus hoaxes. Mr. Owens is in a unique situation. His site is completely joke-related and his concept, although risque in some aspects, was completely original. Any copycats trying to capitalize on this type of publicity stunt simply won't receive the same media attention.

One of the major factors to consider with any type of publicity you receive is that even negative press is good. You're still raising awareness of your company and its products/services. Mr. Owens found that out as several negative reports were published regarding the hoax.

But when asked if he'd do it all again, Mr. Owens simply replied, "In a heartbeat."

Next page > The AOL Aspect > Page 1, 2, 3, 4

  

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