The ALS #IceBucketChallenge has grown beyond a national campaign into a worldwide phenomenon. Here’s how it works: People who accept the challenge make a donation and dump a bucket of ice water over their head, which gives them the right to challenge another individual. The person receiving the challenge must comply within 24 hours or make a minimum donation of $100.
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), often referred to as “Lou Gehrig’s Disease,” is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. The disease disrupts muscle control, causing paralysis and eventually death. Annually, about 6,000 Americans are diagnosed with ALS. There is no cure and no known cause to date.
The challenge has included participants ranging from Bill Gates to Kim Kardashian, and it has spread like wildfire via social media. Suffice to say, there are a few things to learn from the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.
Social media works.
Everyone with a Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube account has no doubt watched a few of these challenges but also used one of these platforms to challenge a friend or family member. Social media has been a major contributor to the unprecedented amount of donations the association has received. To date, the ALS Association has and continues to raise millions of dollars from the Ice Bucket Challenge.
Going “viral” isn’t a bad thing.
Social media has not only been a tool to help the challenge go viral, but it has also been vital in raising awareness of ALS. According to Mashable, the English ALS Wikipedia page was viewed 163,000 times per month between January 2013 and July 2014. In August, the page was viewed 2.89 million times, marking an 18-fold increase.
Big brands drive small brands.
It didn’t hurt the cause that celebrities, athletes and influencers took the challenge along with everyone else. The outpour of support undoubtedly stimulated the challenge’s viral success.
Hashtags turn brands into a searchable index.
Search Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram with the search term #IceBucketChallenge, and you will see an endless list of results. The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge is a great example of why and how hashtags can boost a social media campaign. It engages the audience and makes it easy to find a topic.
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