Viral is PAIN-ful

I think I am going to file this one under - just because you can does not me ya should.

You see, apparently the folks at Bayer after careful due diligence have decided that the best way to reach a younger crowd while increasing exposure and awareness for their new Aleve Liquid Gels product was to enter in the realm of viral and create an online reality game.

According to the article in the NY Times, the "premise of the game is that two characters named Al and Eve (he’s a scientist, she’s an investigative reporter) have identified an online conspiracy by an organization known as P.A.I.N. (People Against Internet Networking)."  "Engaged" readers will then travel from blogs to wikis to networking sites searching for clues.  In the end, the hope is that folks like you and me will become hooked and pass the good word on to friends, family and everybody else on the planet.

When you first visit the site - Aleviator - you are introduced to Dr. Albert Briggs who apparently is in a bit of crisis and needs or help.  At the end of the video, we discover that he has been captured by PAIN.

Before his capture he asks you to search out Evelyn Bloom, an investigative reporter committed to covering the news beyond the news and encouraging “citizen journalism”.

At the bottom of the first and only post you find a comment from Dr Briggs that points you here - a social network created on Ning.

This page also promotes Evelyn Bloom's blog.

So my question is - are you lost because I am. It appears that Bayer is chasing cool but what the outcome is is hokey.  Granted it could be that I am just still on vacation, but I am just not seeing the value in this.

Apparently at the end, Bayer will even make a $5 to $10 donation to the Conservation Fund, an environmental nonprofit group.  But they don't even come right out and say that.  Rather it is supposed to be a surprise.

I love experimentation, but this just seems disjointed.  What about you?

UPDATE: Interested in following the conversation regarding Bayer and their PAINful viral exercise.  check out:

Marketingblurb and Dim Bulb

Comments

[Susan Gunelius]

Matt, I completely agree with your take on this. I could see this working for another brand (i.e., a cool product or brand), but I'm not buying it for Aleve. I had to post about it on my other blog, MarketingBlurb.com. It looks like we're drumming up the buzz marketing Bayer wants, but I still don't think it will boost sales of Aleve Liquid Gels. It would be interesting to see the results down the road.

[Jonathan Salem Baskin]

There's no 'game' to the game, and even if there were, the prospect of wasting someone's time -- however entertainingly -- isn't really such smart marketing strategy, is it? Awareness is good, but it needs to lead into something engaging and meaningful. It's funny that the 'payoff' of the contribution and then the static Aleve ad screen has no 'next step.' So GAME OVER pretty quickly. I've written on this in more detail on http://dimbulb.typepad.com, and would appreciate your additional thoughts.

[Matt Haverkamp]

Thanks for the comments Susan and Jonathan -

Will have to check out Dim Bulb - great name.