Top 4+ key elements used in social media attacks

Greenpeace has an impressive track record on social media engagement

A new Arctic Ready website has been circulating around the internet highlighting Shell’s Arctic efforts. They have a section for kids – “Angry Bergs” – links to Facebook and Twitter, and even a crowdsourced ad contest. The problem is, Shell didn’t create it, Greenpeace did.

Greenpeace has an impressive track record on social media engagement. Which social media elements are they using?

Social media attack element #1 – Facebook

Of course there’s the obligatory Facebook page.

Social media attack element #2 – Twitter

They also created a fake Twitter feed, Shell Social Media team, @ShellisPrepared, to deliver 140 character barbs all supposedly in the name of the company.

This is by no means the first time a spoof account has been created on behalf of an oil company. The “BP Public Relations” (@BPGlobalPR) fake Twitter account that launched during the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill has more than 150,000 followers, more than three times more than the actual BP account.

Social media attack element #3 – Youtube

They also released a video on YouTube purportedly showing a real Shell press conference where a demonstration mini oil rig spews oily liquid. It’s pretty funny and has been viewed over 800,000 times.

Social media attack element #4 – Interactive “social media” component

It even included an interactive “social media” component – an “ad generator” allowing visitors to caption photos supposedly provided by Shell.

Since the launch, images like the ones above have spread throughout the web like a wildfire.

Short URL & title:
Top 4+ key elements used in social media attacks — http://www.torbenrick.eu/t/r/ejr

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