7 Entrepreneurs Who Took the #ALSIceBucketChallenge Head On!

By Janil Jean , Aug 28 2014
ALSIceBucketChallenge

Featured Image: YouTube

Witness tech titans taking the plunge!

You must be living under a rock if you aren’t aware of the massive frenzy around the ALS ice bucket challenge.  The challenge is sensational (gone viral real fast); its timing is impeccable (mid-summer) and its noble cause achieved (charity for the research of amyotropic lateral sclerosis). The idea caught fire and received maximum applause when entrepreneurs representing renowned brands doused themselves with buckets of ice cold water captured on video were posted on social media platforms. The way those videos went viral is a living proof of how leaders’ involvement can influence branding on a global scale.

When entrepreneurs vouch for a cause, everybody become motivated to join in. As a result, ALS Association raised nearly 16 million US dollars in the past few weeks. Unlike the past celebrity-fueled campaigns, this one attracted notably a greater number of CEOs – and particularly tech CEOs. So let’s see which of these tech titans have taken the plunge, how they took their brands to new heights with this challenge.

1. Dick Costolo (twitter CEO)

The CEO of Twitter took the plunge and dared Carl Quintanilla, CNBC anchor and Spencer Rascoff, CEO of Zillow to do the same. The video went viral instantly and the brand message was communicated far and wide through the video. While taking the challenge, he wore a t-shirt with the brand logo. The blue bird is famous universally and is enough to bolster the brand identity. Twitter’s CEO has demonstrated that to be in the fast paced tech industry you have to be aware of what goes on and what can be capitalized for brand promotion. Hence, ALS campaign became a huge success financially and helped in marketing various brands.

2.Larry Page and Sergey Brin (Google co-founders)

Google’s leaders responded to the challenge when Larry Page and Sergey Brin got iced but they didn’t nominate anyone. However, their act caught attention and the video got a good number of social shares. By taking part in this unique form of charity awareness, Google has been able to splash its brand image on various social platforms.

3. Jeff Bezos (Amazon CEO)

Jeff Bezos took the challenge like it was a light spring rain. Initially, he tried to challenge Queen Elizabeth and Pope Francis but then ended up nominating his favorite childhood actors from star Trek including Patrick Stewart, William Shatner and George Takei. Jeff has been unconventional and relentless in his attempt to create awareness for the noble cause and at the same time branded the challenge with his own flavor.

4. Marissa Mayer (Yahoo CEO)

Marissa took the opportunity to promote her brand when she was challenged by a board member. She accomplished the task with hundreds of her employees who were all wearing t-shirts with the company logo. Marissa certainly knows how to use a simple activity for brand promotion. She then challenged three other amazing entrepreneurs: Jack Dosey of Twitter, David Karp of Tumblr and Travis Kalanick of Uber to join the bandwagon. It seemed like all entrepreneurs were determined to challenge each other so that no one is left out.

5. Bill Gates (Microsoft Co-founder)

Bill gates like other tech luminaries takes up the challenge to get drenched, but unlike other entrepreneurs he added a little twist by making a contraption with pull-strings to maneuver the bucket. The adventurous fellow has invited to join the cause by Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook. Not that Microsoft needs any introduction but Gates has been a great sport and impressed upon the masses that Microsoft is a brand and its leaders does not shy away from a good marketing opportunity.

6.Tim Cook (Apple CEO)

Apple CEO, Cook was high-spirited to accept the challenge in public where the paparazzi captured the act when musician Michael Franti poured water over him. His nominees were the Disney’s CEO Bob Iger, Dr. Dre a new Apple employee and Michael Franti who undertook the challenge right there. By staging this challenge, Cook wins gloriously in terms of marketing and promotion of his brand Apple. The video was liked and shared on various social media platforms in thousands.

7. Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook CEO)

Facebook’s founder, Mark was invited to join the challenge by Chris Christie, New Jersey’s governor and he nominated Microsoft chairman Bill Gates, Netflix’s CEO Reed Hastings and Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg. He was one of the first tech leaders to make a video appearance for this challenge. Though Zuckerberg and his brand doesn’t need any introduction, his enthusiastic participation in the challenge proves that even a leader of a successful company  needs viral brand promotion to maintain uniqueness.


If every brand could have one wish, it will be for a campaign to go viral. The ALS campaign just sets a classic example of how simple brand promotion strategies can be a hit especially if the company leaders themselves were on the frontline in involving the brand with the audience. What has started by ALS Association with the help of several buckets of ice water has become a contagious following and a brilliant brand promotion strategy. Never before have we seen an example like this. After the involvement of entrepreneurs, the results of the ALS ice bucket campaign is unparalleled and it is still going strong.

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Janil Jean is an idealist blogger and social media addict who loves conversations related to branding, storytelling, startups and small business technology and design.

 

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