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Every Day Will Be Taco Tuesday for One Lucky Social Media Pro

This week in content marketing: McCormick spices up the job market. Vidyard treats influencers to a movie-premiere experience. What does it all mean for content marketing? And Ben & Jerry’s ends its Twitter deep freeze.

Let’s dig in.

McCormick creates appetizing new job for one seasoned taco lover

McCormick Spices took to Twitter to seek candidates for a new job opening. “Are you passionate about tacos, finding the latest trends & creating engaging taco content for social media? We’re searching for our first-ever Director of Taco Relations to be McCormick’s resident consulting taco expert.”

It sounds like an awesome gig:

As the Director of Taco Relations, you will be McCormick’s resident consulting taco expert. You will be our official eyes and ears for all things tacos. You’ll have the opportunity to work with the McCormick Kitchens team to develop innovative and delish taco recipes, travel across the country in search of the latest taco trends, dialogue with other like-minded taco connoisseurs across social media, and be in on the latest Street Taco seasoning mixes developed by the McCormick innovation lab.

The pay? Up to $25,000 a month for 20 hours a week between September and December 2021. (Sorry, job hunters: the application deadline was earlier this week.)

.@McCormickSpices launched its search for a seasoned (ahem) taco expert on #Twitter. @CMIContent predicts delicious #ContentMarketing results. #WeeklyWrap Click To Tweet

WHY IT MATTERS: McCormick’s approach to combining HR and content marketing – using an innovative tactic and title to attract top talent – caught our eye. And then we got to the “salary” for a part-time gig and realized it was a content play.

Still, we’re intrigued by the responsibilities for the temporary role of director of taco relations – in-person experiences, content (and food) creations, and social media promotion. And it’s all focused on a single product line from McCormick’s. By advertising the role, the spice brand earns attention from those who took the time to create videos (future user-generated content, anyone?) along with the casual observers BEFORE the taco relations director is ever hired.

While this gig may be short-lived and intended for a person who already has a great following, it is food for thought on how HR and content marketing can work together – to be creative, to stand out in the crowded marketplace, and to get more (and more qualified) candidates to apply for positions.

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: 3 Ways to Know Your Audience: Hire Them, Talk to Them, or Tease Them

Vidyard rolls out the virtual red carpet for documentary and influencers

B2B video platform company Vidyard debuted its new movie with a virtual premiere. The event was a resounding success – 20% of the 500 people invited showed up to the event.

The story may be familiar if you read Ann Handley’s Total Annarchy newsletter. Ann attended the live event and later talked with Vidyard’s Tyler Lessard.

“In over 16 minutes, re:connection tells stories of how real people connect with others in a remote world – and what it all means for the future of business as the world becomes less remote again,” Ann writes.

To attract invitees, Vidyard sent personal invites offering popcorn, candy, and swag in advance. To promote attendance gathering and watching together, Vidyard made it a private screening, which included a live Q&A with the movie’s stars.

WHY IT MATTERS: B2B content shouldn’t be boring – and neither should the promotion of that content. Vidyard hit it out of the park on so many levels. It developed a video that tells the story of people, not their business, created a live event that felt exclusive and interesting enough to earn a 20% response rate, and marketed it so well that others (Ann Handley and now CMI) told their communities about it. As always, Ann’s writing perfectly captures the impact:

I’m telling you about it because of the way Tyler & team launched and marketed the marketing — turning a new program release into an “event,” and then seamlessly linking live/virtual components to make it a party. Even while the US/Canadian border is sealed tight; even while the pandemic is still making a lot of us think twice about attending a party.

Read about how @Vidyard marketed its new documentary with a hybrid on-demand/live virtual premiere that earned buckets of digital ink from @AnnHandley, @CMIContent, and others. #WeeklyWrap Click To Tweet

Ben & Jerry’s thaws Twitter account after two months in deep freeze

A week ago, the Boston Globe ran an article questioning why ice cream brand Ben and Jerry’s hadn’t tweeted since May 18. Its last tweet? “Any mint lovers out there?”

It seemed unusual that a major newspaper would write about a brand’s tweeting frequency until readers consumed the full article. Ben & Jerry’s tweet about ice cream flavors happened the same day the Israeli government launched airstrikes in the Gaza Strip, and Hamas and other militant groups fired rockets into Israel. Though it often takes on social causes, the brand stayed silent on this issue, prompting an outcry in the replies to the mint tweet. Ben & Jerry’s did respond to some replies related to the flavor question, further indicating it had seen the other replies but deliberately ignored them. Original commentary on the platform also arose to criticize Ben and Jerry’s for its business dealings in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

On Monday, Ben and Jerry’s ended its two-month Twitter silence with a proclamation: “Ben & Jerry’s will end sales of our ice cream in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.”

WHY IT MATTERS: Looking at the content approach to this situation, Ben & Jerry’s made some interesting decisions. As company leadership took time to figure out the business response to the criticism, the social media team stayed silent (though they should have been completely silent and not responded to any tweet replies.) Sometimes, silence is the better choice. Otherwise, every post (no matter how seemingly innocuous) opens the door to criticism you can’t yet answer. Early reaction to the decision was mixed in the Ben & Jerry’s Twitter feed.

What #content lessons to learn from @benandjerrys two-month Twitter hiatus and other #ContentMarketing stories of the week via @CMIContent. #WeeklyWrap Click To Tweet
Intrigued, puzzled, or surprised by an example, news, or something else in content marketing? Share it with us by completing this form. Your submission may be featured in an upcoming Weekly Wrap.

Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing Institute

Content Marketing Institute Team

Content Marketing Institute Team

The Content Marketing Institute team byline indicates this article reflects the collective work of the CMI team. CMI is a global marketing education and training organization dedicated to advancing the practice of content marketing. We create and curate content experiences that teach marketers and creators from enterprise brands, small businesses, and agencies how to attract and retain customers through compelling, multichannel storytelling. Global brands turn to CMI for strategic consultation, research, and training and certification, and send teams to Content Marketing World, the largest content marketing-focused event, the Marketing Analytics & Data Science (MADS) conference, and CMI digital events every year. Follow @CMIContent on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram, and use the hashtag #CMWorld.