Lessons in the Power of Social Media from Two Nations Under Threat of War
NOWRUZ MOBARAK (Happy Persian New Year)!! Nowruz, literally translated means ‘new day’ so in the spirit of a new day, the harbinger of spring, today we’re offering a fun and inspiring read on the power of social media.
With the controversial KONY 2012 campaign receiving millions of views within a matter of days, Arab Spring revolutions organized via Facebook and Twitter, and the Occupy Wall Street movement gathering traction through major cities around the World, the world is waking up to the power of social media to inspire social change, spread ideas and connect people and cultures. Just this month, a new campaign has attracted international attention for bridging the communication gap between the people of two nations under threat of war: Israel and Iran.
Just before Nowruz (Persian New Year), an Israeli graphic designer named Ronny Edry launched a colourful poster campaign called ‘Israel Loves Iran’. Hundreds of posters have been created and shared via Facebook, Twitter and YouTube and the story has also been picked up by many news sites with the following message: ‘Iranians We Love You, We Will Never Bomb Your Country’. The campaign has reached global status and has begun a dialogue between the people of these 2 nations that aren’t even able to phone each other. That’s right, you can’t phone Israel from Iran because their governments won’t allow it. But you can chat on Facebook and send photos and post inspirational poems and YouTube videos of your favourite Persian singer. And you can vow online, with a global audience as your witness, that you will never participate in a war that you don’t believe in.
Israeli Peace Activists Create Viral Campaign
The ‘Israel Loves Iran’ official Facebook page has gained over 50,000 likes, the campaign is getting press and attention from all over the world. Poster memes are popping up & Iranians are posting their responses with “Iran loves Israel” posters.
Why are we telling you this? Sometimes we like to be a bit more Zen than Media. Why? Because that’s who we are. We get juiced up by the possibility that Israel and Iran may find peace because one guy published a pink and green poster on his Facebook wall.
We are passionate about communication and we are passionate about helping visionaries like you find success by sharing your vision with a potentially global audience. We call it authentic marketing.
So get personal, get passionate! Social media is about connecting on a human level, so let your brand show off your glorious personality! A campaign goes viral because it does more than just offer value to a given audience, it usually goes a little extra mile to tickle a funny bone, take a stance or inspire. When starting any social media or viral campaign, think about what will ignite the passion of your audience and inspire them to share your message with the world.
And ya, we know we’re a week late wishing you a Happy Persian New Year, but Shireen (our Operations Manager) is only half-Persian so you can’t really blame ‘er, LOL!
Do you have an inspiring social media campaign you’d like to share? Or a personal story to tell? Share it in the comments!
About Shireen Nabatian
As Operations Manager at ZenHouse Media since 2008, Shireen handles project management, copy writing, account management and public relations for ZenHouse Media. Shireen’s work experience also includes tour guiding in the Rockies, property management and market research. Shireen is trilingual in English, French and Spanish and speaks a smattering of Farsi.
