Ted Williams, a homeless man with a "golden voice," has become an Internet sensation By Clark Powell, Vice President Just imagine what Ted Williams is going through. In just a 24-hour span he went from standing at the corner of Hudson Street and I-71, homeless and begging for money in Columbus, Ohio, to being featured on the TODAY Show, CNN, the CBS Early Show and garnering millions of hits on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites. More importantly, Mr. Wiliams has been offered everything from trips to jobs to his own home. (A deal is currently pending with the Cleveland Cavaliers and Quicken Loans to furnish him with a job and a home.) By now you’ve probably not only heard Mr. Williams’ story, but his voice. It is his voice, after all, that made millions stop and listen. He is a former radio announcer with a rich, smooth baritone who, until this week, would say phrases to passersby just for spare change. Now, it seems, his entire life is about to change. As remarkable as Mr. Williams’ story is, stop for a moment and think about the way it spread. Doral Chenoweth III, a 20-year veteran photograher for The Columbus Dispatch, just happened to be at Interstate exit ramp where Mr. Williams was making his pitch for spare change. He took out a camera, shot an interview and posted it on the newspaper’s website. What happened next is a testament to the world in which we live. A Dispatch reader reposted the video to YouTube, others saw it, tweeted about it and shared it on social media pages. Local radio station WNCI put him on the air and instantly - and quite literally - Mr. Williams’ story spread around the world. Why? Because it has everything every good story needs. When we’re crafting messages for our clients, we look for the same components: -It’s Compelling: You don’t hear about things like this every day. -It’s Human: You can relate to and sympathize with Mr. Williams. And most importantly... -It’s Told Effectively: Kudos to Doral Chenoweth III of the Dispatch. It may seem raw and simple, but finding the story, recognizing its appeal and crafting it so the story tells itself is truly an art. All of those elements combined to make this video a viral hit. We’re often asked by clients to “produce” a viral video. The simple truth is, you can’t make a viral video. It either becomes viral, or it doesn’t. You simply can’t control that. You can, however, cultivate the same elements to sell your brand: find compelling stories that relate to people, and tell those stories in a way tha leaves consumers not only satisfied, but wanting more. This is a case study of the power of multimedia in 2011. A newspaper reporter posted a video story on the internet that caught the attention of radio shows and ended up on national television. What an incredible example of the confluence of mediums. It's further proof that when good stories are told well, they have no limits. Have you seen the video of Ted Williams' "Golden Voice"? What is the single biggest factor, to you, in this story spreading like wildfire all over the Internet?
Ted Williams, a homeless man with a "golden voice," has become an Internet sensation
By Clark Powell, Vice President Just imagine what Ted Williams is going through. In just a 24-hour span he went from standing at the corner of Hudson Street and I-71, homeless and begging for money in Columbus, Ohio, to being featured on the TODAY Show, CNN, the CBS Early Show and garnering millions of hits on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites. More importantly, Mr. Wiliams has been offered everything from trips to jobs to his own home. (A deal is currently pending with the Cleveland Cavaliers and Quicken Loans to furnish him with a job and a home.) By now you’ve probably not only heard Mr. Williams’ story, but his voice. It is his voice, after all, that made millions stop and listen. He is a former radio announcer with a rich, smooth baritone who, until this week, would say phrases to passersby just for spare change. Now, it seems, his entire life is about to change. As remarkable as Mr. Williams’ story is, stop for a moment and think about the way it spread. Doral Chenoweth III, a 20-year veteran photograher for The Columbus Dispatch, just happened to be at Interstate exit ramp where Mr. Williams was making his pitch for spare change. He took out a camera, shot an interview and posted it on the newspaper’s website. What happened next is a testament to the world in which we live. A Dispatch reader reposted the video to YouTube, others saw it, tweeted about it and shared it on social media pages. Local radio station WNCI put him on the air and instantly - and quite literally - Mr. Williams’ story spread around the world.
Why? Because it has everything every good story needs. When we’re crafting messages for our clients, we look for the same components: -It’s Compelling: You don’t hear about things like this every day. -It’s Human: You can relate to and sympathize with Mr. Williams.
And most importantly... -It’s Told Effectively: Kudos to Doral Chenoweth III of the Dispatch. It may seem raw and simple, but finding the story, recognizing its appeal and crafting it so the story tells itself is truly an art. All of those elements combined to make this video a viral hit. We’re often asked by clients to “produce” a viral video. The simple truth is, you can’t make a viral video. It either becomes viral, or it doesn’t. You simply can’t control that.
You can, however, cultivate the same elements to sell your brand: find compelling stories that relate to people, and tell those stories in a way tha leaves consumers not only satisfied, but wanting more. This is a case study of the power of multimedia in 2011. A newspaper reporter posted a video story on the internet that caught the attention of radio shows and ended up on national television.
What an incredible example of the confluence of mediums. It's further proof that when good stories are told well, they have no limits. Have you seen the video of Ted Williams' "Golden Voice"? What is the single biggest factor, to you, in this story spreading like wildfire all over the Internet?