UFCW Social Media and Mott’s

1. UFCW Social Media and Mott’s A Case Study in Successful Social Media Use in Engaging Members and the Public in a Worker Campaign

2. Primed and Ready • Mott’s strategy didn’t fall out of the sky • Members and activists primed and ready for years • Groundwork of UFCW and other unions in social media and member outreach

3. Experimenting: What Didn’t Work? • Email not being primary means of communication & advocacy • Blogs and new websites alone • What did we get for all that work?

5. Revelation • Think about how our organizers engage workers.

6. Experimenting: What Worked? • Go to where our members are. • Where are members? Where everyone else is: Facebook, Twitter, MySpace (then), bigger blogs like Huffington Post and Daily Kos

7. A Starting Place, an Opportunity • A place where members are comfortable and connected—where the public and company are, too • Companies are new to social media and therefore potentially vulnerable

8. A Roomful of Activists, Primed and Ready

9. Background • 300 workers and members of UFCW* Local 220 forced on strike at the Mott’s plant in Williamson, NY • Company slashed wages by $1.50 an hour for each employee, and was trying to take away the workers’ pension plan • DPS’s stock was skyrocketing and outperforming others in the industry

10. How can we use new media to shed light on a company’s actions? How can we use new media to support actions on the ground?

11. Strategy • Activate potential supporters within our existing social networks • Target branding online • Design actions that fit various levels of engagement and can be done by any supporter • Ensure the “visibility” of each action

12. Elements of the online campaign • Facebook • asks targeted the Mott’s fan page • upload “Respect” badge, change status updates, post messages of support

13. Labels • encouraged supporters to print out and tape strips of paper to Mott’s products on the shelves

14. Twitter • #justiceatmotts • Flyers • for leafleting actions at stores • Website • hub for downloading materials and documenting actions

15. Making actions visible to the public • Documented Mott’s defensive actions on our blog and used them as examples of success • Photos • Video • Added facts about the strike to the Mott’s Wikipedia page

16. Success! • Supporters flooded Mott’s fan page • Over 700 photos of actions submitted • Used as a case study on how social media can be used to damage a company’s brand

17. “The Mott’s Strike – a social media campaign case study Much of this activity will include some elements of social media. The recent Mott’s strike included a highly successful social media campaign aimed at Doctor Pepper Snapple that was inexpensive to create, achieved a level of viral spread, and has been credited with helping to bring the strike to an end due. The campaign was so successful, despite being enjoined in court following a filing by DPS for trademark infringement, that the campaign will be featured as part of a panel on social media at the upcoming International Labor Communications Association’s (ILCA’s) annual conference, to be held in Washing ton D.C, on November 19, 2010. This conference is a gathering of labor press from around the country, featuring an opportunity to share best practices, and learn about new ways to deliver the message of organized labor.” - Michael VanDervort , HR consultant