How Netflix overlooked Twitter marketing with dire consequences

When competition is stiff and businesses need to differentiate their services or hike their prices, social media comes into its own. It’s vital to keep the channels of communication with customers open, and how better than via Twitter marketing? It’s just a shame that nobody told online movie streaming service Netflix.

Netflix made the no doubt troublesome decision to put up its prices and change its name to Qwikster – instantly making itself vulnerable to a stream of jokes concerning the company’s literacy skills.

Questionable spelling aside, where the brand really slipped up was in forgetting to trademark the name and failing to check whether the relevant Twitter handle was available.

The oversight was nothing but disastrous. It appears that the existing Qwikster on Twitter is a student named Jason Costillo, who tweets primarily on the pleasures of recreational drug-taking, sex, computer games and music. All well and good for a student whose Twitter avatar was, up until recently, a spliff-smoking Elmo. Not so relevant for Twitter users wanting to know more about movie streaming or DVD rentals (another of Netflix – sorry, Qwikster’s services).

With the oversight of trademarking the name, there is nothing that Qwikster can do to make Costillo close or relinquish his Twitter account. Anyone who works in digital knows that on the web, no misfortune goes unnoticed, so there is clearly a lesson to learn from this mistake. Social media marketing cannot be treated as an afterthought or a bolt-on to a traditional marketing strategy.

Our advice? Treat all the key social channels as necessary means of communication, incorporated into the heart of your marketing plan. Open, frank dialogue will nurture trust and respect amongst customers, ensuring that they are on side when times get tough. And potentially avoiding any red-faced moments concerning weed-smoking cartoon characters.