Strong Responses to #ImARepublican Hashtag

In late September, the #ImARepublican hashtag hit social media as a part of a campaign launched by Republicans Are People Too. Republicans Are People Too, and the subsequent ad shown above, were created to combat the belief that the Republican Party is comprised only of rich white men.

The ad makes its claim by showing the many "faces" of the Republican Party, with brief anecdotal captions on each photo shown such as "Republicans have tattoos and beards."

While the campaign may have been a well intended attempt to combat a huge stereotype of the Republican Party, it also overlooked many other accusations brought on by party opposers. Yes, it is argued that the party lacks diversity, but there are also questions of corruption, racism, and policy making among other things. The lack of address of these issues was brought into light once the hashtag hit social media. It received much more negative response than positive, with one tweet even reading:

Trying to find #IAmARepublican tweets that aren't jokes is quite difficult.
— Jesse Pound (@jesserpound) October 2, 2014

Aside from this, the campaign was also criticized for its use of stock photography in the advertisement. Generic photos of people engaged in various activities could easily mean that those photoed are neither Republican or even US Citizens connected to the cause. Once the use of stock photography surfaced, the hashtag #IAmiStock also began to circulate, referencing the popular stock photo website.

As a response to all of the negative backlash, Republicans Are People Too created a second ad, urging viewers to change their thinking and engage in a more productive dialouge. Still, the #ImARepublican hashtag continues to circulate with memes aiming in mock rather than support the campaign.

Do you think there is hope for this campaign? Is the campaign a fair representation of the Republic Party and its needs for understanding? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!

World Cup Update: No Belgium Waffles for Breakfast

Team USA continues to play game after game, and fans continue to post tweet after tweet. PRowl has already emphasized how social the World Cup is, and what more could us PR folk want other than to be trending worldwide! All of the games scheduled in the World Cup have found their own little corner of the internet with their own hashtag. The hashtags are composed of the 3 letters representing the country connected with "vs."

Today at 4:00pm, USA will play Belgium and millions of passionate fans will be using the hashtag #USAvsBEL. Many fans and organizations have already begun using the hashtag to express their interest and support in the games, but for some, the hashtag isn't even needed. Yesterday morning, the official Waffle House account tweeted:

 

Twitter users from all parts of the United States had this one tweet buzzing. Chances are you saw it on your own personal feed at least once, if not twice - thanks to the retweet of your World Cup-addicted peer. Waffle House continued to support the USA team on their Twitter by retweeting a bunch of replies from excited fans, claiming they are only eating American waffles on a day like today. 

Waffle House made the right move. They knew what their audience had been talking about for the last two weeks, and put themselves out there supporting the one thing we should all agree to support - our country! This morning, Waffle House posted more World Cup-themed content:

Additionally, many social media users have found a great use for the flag emojis hidden in the depths of the smartphone emoji collections. Waffle House, fans, and even sports publications have been posting content with the flag emojis of the teams playing. The images are an alternate way to update those looking to check the score and plays of the game quickly.

What do you think about what Waffle House has been posting? Do you think it's okay that they support USA by going against Belgium, or that we should be a big happy family on social media? Let us know!

A Look Back: Black Friday Fiasco

This year’s Black Friday tradition seemed to step on the toes of another popular tradition: Thanksgiving. Stores such as Wal-Mart, Kmart, Macy’s, Kohl’s, etc. opened on Thanksgiving evening starting as early as 5PM. It seems as though the majority of shoppers were not thrilled about Black Friday imposing on their holiday. See Below:

http://www.wisn.com/news/south-east-wisconsin/milwaukee/More-and-more-stores-say-they-will-open-on-Thanksgiving-night/-/10148890/22644502/-/bnhsxd/-/index.html

As you can see, consumers were going back and forth about the early door busters this year, but the numbers don’t lie. It turns out the stores that opened on Thanksgiving night sacrificed their sales on Friday. A survey conducted by The National Retail Federation estimated spending fell by 2.9% this year.

Besides the drop in profit, stores also have to worry more and more about mayhem in their stores. Every year there are stories about fights over the last inexpensive television set or iPad, but Black Thursday only increased the violence. Stores such as Wal-Mart acquired popular hashtags like #Walmartfights and #Brawlmart which had thousands of tags overnight. Police activity and security had to be increased this year more than ever.

So the question is, is all of this worth it for the retailers? Is it worth it for the consumers? We want to know your opinion, so comment below!

This guest blog post was written by PRowl Staff Member Nicole Leo.

#LeadThemOn with Leading Hashtags

Hashtags, or key phrases that identify a topic on social media, are incredibly popular on various platforms and sites. As PR professionals, we should be constantly thinking of new ways to revamp what's already out there to increase visibility and up engagement . We must find creative ways to give users something they can engage with, rather than just respond to. In a sense, you have to lead them to your brand or idea instead of just stating facts and hoping people got the message.

Leading hashtags, also called Mad Lib hashtags are ones placed at the beginning of a post to start a sentence that the user can finish. It gives them the chance to go beyond the message and truly engage your content. As with normal hashtags, leading hashtags should still be well thought out and catchy so that users remember to include them in their posts. Remember, instead of the user creating a post that includes your hasgtag, they now have to create a sentence that flows with it, using your hasgtag as a springboard of sorts. Because the user has to put a little more work in, you have to make it worth their while.

There are so many advantages to creating a leading hashtag for your next social media endeavor. Not only do leading hashtags introduce a topic, they start a conversation. Users have the chance to share their personality and opinions while engaging your content. Because the hashtag comes at the start of the post, it receives more visibility. Before you know it, you'll be trending!

While leading hashtags can be great conversation starters, it is up to you to keep the conversation going. As users participate, take feedback, analyze how your audience is responding, and decide the next topic of conversation from there.

Have you ever used or generated a leading hashtag? Share your experience with us!