5 Social Media Lessons You Can Learn from Kim vs Taylor Snapchat-gate
Kim Kardashian West: reality TV star, entrepreneur, mother, social media master
“If I had a great voice or was a great actress, that would be amazing. But I’m realistic: my skill and my talent is marketing.” — Kimberly Kardashian West
The day has come. The day where I surrender and admit that Kim Kardashian is a marketing and publicity genius with killer instinct for stirring pop culture hysteria, has finally arrived.
Kim Kardashian has created so many attempts to “break the internet”. Nude selfies, controversial magazine covers, drama-fueled Twitwar with other celebrities, you name it. All of these efforts have gained her the much-needed publicity, but none of them really broke the internet the way that Snapchat video which she uploaded on July 17th did.
Kim created a worldwide frenzy with a 30 second Snapchat video showing Taylor Swift giving Kanye West blessing to name-check her in his latest song ‘Famous’. The video came down as a complete shocker because Taylor has stated in various media outlets that she never gave the permission for Kanye to mention her name as she found the line in the song to be both “offensive” and “misogynistic”. That Snapchat video sparked major controversy shifting public perception of Taylor in this case, from being a victim to a liar. In just matter of hours after its release, the hashtag #KimExposedTaylorParty began to trend.
#KimExposedTaylorParty is arguably one of the biggest pop culture scandals this year. I can tell you right now that this Snapchat-gate will be referred to for a really long time, just like that VMA ‘Imma let you finish’ incident that started it all. #KimExposedTaylorParty furthermore proves that social media is Kim Kardashian’s world and we’re just living in it. Kim is a savvy social media user that knows how to play the game to her advantage. In #KimExposedTaylorParty particularly, there are 5 key lessons I’ve learned from Kim regarding how she uses social media to keep winning the game:
1. Know your audience
‘Drama’ has been continuously associated with the Kardashian-Jenner family. It has become their signature brand. Creating drama and controversy has become their path to be in front of the cover of numerous magazines.
Most of Kim’s fanbase consist of people who watch the show ‘Keeping Up with Kardashians’ religiously. Her sex tape with Ray J made her an overnight tabloid sensation, but it was this reality show that gained her fans for life. If you’ve watched at least 1 episode of this E! hit-show, you’ll know that the premise of this “reality show” is basically to just follow around the lives of the Kardashian/Jenner clan. It’s an 1 hour show packed with constant family-drama. The show has been around for 12 years now. ‘Keeping Up with The Kardashians’ is such a big hit, E! has produced many spinoffs based on this show, e.g. Khloe and Kim Take ‘Insert-American-City-Of-Your-Choice’. Moreover, it has inspired the rise of E!’s reality TV franchises all around the globe including Philippines’ It Takes Gutz to be A Gutierrez and Malaysia’s Facing Up to Fazura.
Kim knows her brand. She knows her audience so well. She knows that serving up good drama would make her audience love her even for more. Kim has been known to be unapologetic when it comes to posting controversial social media content, including this Snapchat video. Why? Simple, it’s because she knows that it will resonate with her fans. Whether you are #TeamKim or #TeamTaylor, one thing is for certain, a lot of people are thanking Kim for giving them something juicy to talk about over lunch with their workmates, and this point brings me to the next lessons I’ve learned about social media usage from #KimTaylorExposedParty….
2. Constantly acknowledge opportunities to create social media content
The long running beef between Kanye vs Taylor has been going on since 2009. It remains one of the most talked about celebrity beefs that still garner attention until now. So, why not insert yourself to one of the most iconic drama and make it all about you? Kim basically stole the spotlight to her social media advantage. She transformed her husband’s beef into one of the biggest event in her social media calendar. It’s Kim vs Taylor in the boxing ring now.
Recording the video between Taylor and Kanye is equivalent to when you’re taking a photo-op at a restaurant with a cool decoration. You’re basically documenting and stocking up potential social media content. Over-documenting could be a good thing if you’re really into curating your social media account. The key is to be aware of things that happening surrounds you, capture them, and cherry-pick the good one that you believe will make a fantastic social media content (even though there’s still a debate over potential legal consequence that Kim and Kanye have to face after recording the call and posting the footage on Snapchat).
3. Practice cross-media teasing for maximum advantage
Prior to the Snapchat-gate, whether you realize it or not, Kim has teased us with many clues that something big is coming.
It all started with a high profile interview with GQ magazine, where Kim finally talked about her frustration over how Kanye was always painted as the bad guy and how Taylor always play the victim. Not long after that, teaser promotion about ‘Keeping Up with the Kardashians’ episode where Kanye’s feud with Taylor received a major highlight was aired. Few days after that teaser was aired, Kim took to Twitter and sent a super coy tweet stating that people should follow her on Snapchat.
And then that Snap was sent, and everybody lost their mind
Kim combined various communication channels to amplify her agenda. Another smart move she took: rather than bombarding various media on time, she unfold her stories over some periods of time. In this particular case, Kim used magazine, TV, Twitter, and Snapchat to build the hype and enhance the narrative that she wanted to create on different time, keeping her relevant on the newsroom for a longer period of time. She really took it to next level when orchestrating the cross-media teasing process, leading to that big Snapchat reveal.
“The expert teasing didn’t just create some pretty compelling television — it also ensured that when Kardashian took to her Snapchat, the whole world would be ready and eager for her revelation. All in all, it’s a brilliant attempt to control the narrative, at a time when the Taytay tide is clearly turning” — Amy Zimmerman, The Daily Beast
4. Pick the best social media platform to post your content
Now that Kim got the goods, she has got to strategize to pick the best social media to post it, right? As we all know, picking the right media channel to deliver whatever message you want to send is an integral part to any communication strategy. Kim chose Snapchat, and it was a perfect decision for various reasons.
a. Snapchat is currently one of the fastest growing social media platform with the ‘cool factor’ stamp all over it.
b. The Kardashian-Jenner clan also has an overwhelmingly strong presence in the platform and Taylor Swift, on the other hand, doesn’t have any presence in Snapchat.
c. Kim uses different social media platforms for different purposes. She claimed to use Instagram as a ‘self-expression’ platform, Twitter is the place where she can ‘interact and have conversations’ with her fans, and Snapchat is the one platform where she can freely shows her ‘silly sarcastic alter ego’. Another reason why it’s perfect to post the video to Snapchat because the content really matches the platform’s purpose.
d. Kim also has the potential to gain significant number of Snapchat followers by releasing the video exclusively on Snapchat. She’s the most followed Kardashian-Jenner clan on Instagram, and now she’s on her way to dethrone Kylie Jenner as the Kardashian-Jenner with most followers on Snapchat. It looks like she was trying to reach more younger demographic with the release of the video on Snapchat.
In summary, it was a smart move to post the video on Snapchat!
5. Posting time is crucial
Kim must have gotten the video early this year at the latest. She could have posted the video the first time after Taylor claimed that she has never heard the ‘Famous’ line and Kanye never asked for her permission, right? Or she could have posted that video after that infamous Grammy speech Taylor gave when she threw a shade at Kanye. But nope, she patiently waits until the she finds that perfect posting moment that fits her project timeline.
People started to wonder why Kim decided to all of a sudden, chime in on Kanye vs Taylor feud and post the proof just now? The answer is because in the bigger picture, that Snapchat video is another big puzzle chunk of ‘Keeping Up with the Kardashians’ story arc this season. Kim released the video just days before the episode where the story about Kanye vs Taylor swift feud will be highlighted. The Snapchat video is the big teaser of what is about to go down on the next episode of Keeping Up with the Kardashians. You can bet that those executives at E! will grin ear-to-ear when they see the rating report from that episode.
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In the end, Kim keeps slaying the social media game because she’s committed to employ a well-engineered, well-orchestrated and well-integrated strategy. She fully understands things that matter in owning the social media game: her audience, her platform,and ultimately, her own brand. Despite all the drama that Kim created, it is with no doubt that we can learn a thing or two about using social media from her.
Author: Ayip Fahmi
Editor: Desy Bachir & Shula Arto
