Colbert as Case Study

Colbert leverages UGC and other participatory aspects of Web 2.0 in compelling ways to solidify an organic network of loyal fans he lovingly refers to as his “Nation.” He recruits the Nation to be part of his jokes, which often include subversive online pranks that are right in line with his brand of satire.

For example, in 2006 the Ministry of Transport in Hungary held an online vote to name a bridge . Colbert rallied the Nation to vote to name the bridge after him and he won. In a similar online poll to name the Saginaw Spirit hockey team’s mascot, the Nation rallied together once again to name it “ Colbeagle ” the eagle.

During a rant on Wikipedia and its “ truthiness ,” Colbert encouraged the Nation to make the “fact” that African elephant populations had increased substantially a “ wikiality .” The Nation complied, posting erroneous info to various Wikipedia entries on elephants. With Colbert’s prompting, fans have also conducted “ googlebombing ” campaigns to put him at the top of search returns for “ giant brass balls ” and “ greatest living American .”

The Nation has its own online community at ColbertNation.com . The site features a blog, message boards, show info, etc. It purposely doesn’t look like a commercial media site, and that’s one reason it works. Colbert drives traffic to the site by incorporating it into jokes, including directing viewers there to buy his fictitious Stephen Colbert Formula 401 (frozen Colberts, if you will) or to submit UGC video for the “ Green Screen Challenge .”

What do marketers have to learn from Colbert’s successful tactics? In order to engage online networks, the users need to have a vested interest in the effort…to have something to tell their friends about…to feel part of something. The typical “film your own commercial,” “see what happens at [BLANK].com,” or ho-hum online sweepstakes just won’t cut it in the Web 2.0 world.