Ian and Irene: proof that social media is great for small business

Wedding Republic is a wedding registry with a difference. It ‘an online cash wedding registry where couples can post their ideal wedding gifts and guests contribute to make their dreams come true’. Now I don’t know how big the brand is but I assume it is likely to be a small business, at least qualify as one. And its definitely a new brand. Even a decade ago breaking through the media clutter for such a brand would mean an expensive media budget combined with some truly path breaking advertising.

In today’s world, social media used cleverly propel such brands into the public eye. In this case, just a couple of videos posted on YouTube and smart use of Facebook, company blog and Twitter seems to have given the brand some traction. Watch the first of the videos:

Here’s the second video, ‘Ian & Irene’s Ski Weekend‘ (caution – mildly NSFW).

The campaign’s not raked up views in the millions and gone hugely viral yet but the brand is being talked about at least among the ad blogs. In India we’ve had brands like Ching’s Secret and Flipkart use Facebook well to create buzz. Beyond buzz, reports indicate that social media helps increase sales for small business.

I think apart from using social media tools wisely, if the business category is one which calls for great involvement then chances of engaging with your audience is high. And wedding being such an intensely high involvement cateogry time spent on the content will be high. And the Ian and Irene YouTube videos have great pass-along value too. What say?