ATT and Lil Wayne Team Up
Among recent partnerships with entertainment companies and artists, AT&T has teamed-up with Cash Money Records rapper Lil’ Wayne. Through social media, which integrates technology, telecommunications and social networking, AT&T has been able to interact with a younger demographic. AT&T’s partnership with Lil’ Wayne utilized Facebook, a popular social networking website, to stream the premier performance of his latest single, “Prom Queen.”
“The youth segment is a really key segment, and we want to reach as much of that audience as possible,” Director of Music and Video Production for AT&T, Mark Nagel said. “[Social media] is really the perfect match to reach those customers in a place that is really relevant.”
Prior to the performance, Cash Money Records and AT&T promoted the campaign via e-mail and text message. Lil’ Wayne fan websites were also used to promote the event. AT&T’s decision to collaborate with Lil’ Wayne wasn’t arbitrary. According to Hitwise, “Lil’ Wayne” was YouTube’s most keyed-in search term in December. In addition to his dominant YouTube presence, AT&T customers downloaded Lil’ Wayne’s ringtones more than those of any other artist in 2008.
Facebook is quickly becoming a mainstream communications tool. “It’s a way for AT&T to differentiate and connect with different customers,” Nagel said in regards to AT&T’s goals in using social media. Lil Wayne’s performance of “Prom Queen” on January 27 was exclusively released on AT&T’s Freedom of Choice and Mobile Music Facebook pages, potentially reaching 1.3 million fans.
According to the Director of National Marketing for AT&T, Mimi Chan, AT&T was “able to drive a large number of customers to gain awareness of the campaign” through Facebook. “[We want to] engage younger customers to find relevance with our brand,” she said. “We want to resonate with them, so they know we have the best music, texting.”