Lego's clever tweet drafts off Tesla Cybertruck buzz
Cancel culture. Twitter trolls. Companies putting one another on blast. We’re not really down with it. Usually.
Overall, brand social channels have become an interesting place in 2019. It seemed simpler only a few years back. Just start chirping. Ideally, tie yourself to something going on and ride the earned media tide on the other end of your brilliance. Occasionally, you can hope for the holy trinity of culture, conversation and comedy that comes together in something like the legendary Arby’s Pharrell Grammys tweet.
However, I think the pendulum is starting to swing back a bit. Meaning, most of the time, consumers now expect brand channels to be speaking about something at least remotely connected to their brand. Sure, there are some outliers (I see you @Wendys and @Steak_umm), but even those are starting to evolve.
Which brings us all the way back around to LEGO and their short, simple tweet from last Wednesday. A tasty pre-Thanksgiving treat for those looking for how to do it right today.
Via @LEGO_Group
Now, if you’ve been following the news at all, it’s not difficult to decipher the simple brilliance of this tweet from LEGO. But, since we’re a teaching website, we’ll briefly recap and break it down.
Just before Thanksgiving, Elon Musk did his Elon Musk thing. This time it was the announcement of the Tesla electric pickup, aptly named the Cybertruck. It followed the Tesla playbook in terms of tons of hype, a dramatic unveil and an insanely talk-able product. The truck itself generated all sorts of natural headlines given its unique design, and the wittier of the Twitterverse had a field day with some genuine spit-your-coffee-out takes.
Beyond its design, though, the second wave of news came after Musk tested the vehicle’s “bulletproof” glass by tossing a metal ball at the windows live on stage. They shattered. Yes, this deserves more discussion. Like maybe how, if I was part of the PR team, we may have run this demo a few times with an AK-47 or a small grenade — and, ummm, definitely a small metal ball about a thousand times — to make sure that maybe such a thing didn’t occur. But that’s neither here nor there.
Getty Images
So, then, enter LEGO with its tweet. Simple. Short. Imminently understandable. The direct mention of Tesla not even required. I also love it, because it actually did make sense coming from LEGO. Regardless of your thoughts on the Cybertruck itself, Tesla and Musk are visionaries, creatives, the ultimate imagineers. Tesla buyers also tend to be wealthier adults. Parents maybe?
LEGO made its comeback as a brand by reimagining itself. Tapping into its DNA but doing so with new modern relevance, forged through licensing deals and other strategic partnerships that tapped into superheroes, movie franchises and other icons and forces of pop culture. This tweet brings that spirit together in beautiful harmony.
The tweet itself has garnered 106K likes and been retweeted more than 28K times, extending its reach far beyond LEGO’s 600K+ following. It’s also garnered its own headlines from the likes of the Washington Post and Car & Driver to name only a few (more qualified LEGO prospects). LEGO was also included in several articles that spoke to brands “trolling” Tesla. I’m not sure I’d compare them to Denny’s or Pepsi in that sense.
The engagement on the LEGO tweet is for a reason. Everything was done well. Smart copy. Subtle “production.” Quick and timely execution. Brand relevance and direct product connection. Score one for LEGO.
And don’t feel too badly for Tesla either. I’m not a betting man, but given the respective brands’ trajectories, marketing strategies and audiences, it wouldn’t surprise me one bit to see a Tesla/LEGO collaboration in the future. It would check a lot of marks. If it does happen, I just want to make sure the royalties come my way from both companies mmm-kay?