Nerdherd and Nerds Unite!

Technology and social media are making most every industry rethink their marketing, their market, and their fans/consumers. How do they reach them? How do they gauge them? And how do they ENgage them? …Not sure? Napster is a great example. Connecting millions of music lovers so they could share music has changed the way the recording industry has to approach the business of music sales now. 

Here is another really great example…the NBC show Chuck. Personally, I love this show. It is the perfect combination of Maxwell Smart and James Bond with a little inspector gadget, Bill Gates, and Steve Jobs sprinkled in. Two years ago, fans were able to make a huge statement during the finale with their Finale and Footlong campaign. They spread the word through social media apps, bought $5 footlongs from Subway, and left notes in the suggestion box telling the stores why they were there that particular night. That played a big part in getting Chuck a season 3. 

Now fans are at it again…and I’m rooting for them (us). During the last few weeks of this season, they are trying to melt down Twitter during live airings of Chuck. Noting that they are not Nielsen Families but are watching and can vote with their wallets; they are mentioning sponsors during the show. The live tweeting events take place when the show airs both at the Eastern/Central times and the West Coast time. Go to Twitter and search for #NotANielsenFamily; you’ll see tons of tweets about Chuck and the show’s sponsors. Messages range from simple thank yous for sponsoring to mentioning their personal consumption of the sponsor’s products and services.

Actors from the show get involved in the conversations – Zachary Levi (@ZacharyLevi), Joshua Gomez (@JoshuaEGomez), Adam Baldwin (@adamsbaldwin), and Yvonne Strahovski (@Y_Strahovski). One of their biggest fans is a 10-year old who goes by @LittleChuckFan. She has over 3,600 followers and is both adored and heard by her favorite actors from the show as well as other fans who follow the Chuck conversation. There is also a great blog called We Give A Chuck that keeps viewers updated on what’s happening on the show and with the Save Chuck campgain. Here is a video being used to spread the word, too -

It will be very interesting to see how this plays out. Watch Chuck on Mondays on NBC to find out, and watch and tweet during the finale on Monday, May 16 at 7 p.m. Central time. #Shamelessplugforoneofmyfavoriteshows.