April Fools Gone Wrong!
This isn’t that weird…
Except that this picture/caption came first…
And then this one…
And this one…
Before Jessica Lowndes finally revealed this…
“I love a good prank so happy early April Fools!”
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While the Easter weekend prank was meant to be a light-hearted joke on her Instagram fans, things didn’t go quite as planned. Fans reacted angrily and snarkily about the age disparity between she and her supposed fiance (27 and 58 respectively), and when let in on the joke, none seemed to even find it funny. Moreover, the promotional stunt was used to promote her music video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KAy7E9dnLZs), in which she simulates performing oral sex on Lovitz, which only annoyed/disgusted fans further. Overall, most of her followers and the mainstream media found the entire campaign in poor taste.
If I had been the social media manager for Lowndes, I would deem the series of posts, as well as the music video, a failure. As an up-and-coming artist (both as an actor and singer), these photos and their captions seem to undermine her objective of being taken seriously. Clearly the campaign received widespread attention, but at what cost? The promotion is perfect for Lovitz, a standup comedian whose fame and appeal are due to his willingness to make inappropriate statements. But for Lowndes, the messaging does not match her brand nor her business objectives.
If I had to report on the relative success of this campaign to a group of executives, perhaps at her agency or at the network for one of her TV shows, I would likely be reporting on the negative press she received. I would also be reporting on our crisis management strategy to revive public support for friendship with Lovitz (since the two co-star on Hawaii Five–O). In no way would I be proud of the marginal awareness (reach) or engagement (followers) that she gained from the hoax, since the content and messaging did not match the career goals or objectives for the actress. If anything, this April Fools joke went terribly wrong, and underscores the need for coherent and well-managed social media strategies that align with business objectives and whose success is both measurable and predictable.
