I can’t stop being in awe of TOMS Shoes and its founder, Blake Mycoskie. I have written before of my admiration for this company here and here. Mr. Mycoskie spoke in Little Rock at the Clinton School of Public Service several weeks ago; you can view video of his presentation on the Clinton School Speaker Series site.
On Sunday, the LA Times wrote about the successful business model developed by Mr. Mycoskie, the one-for-one purchase: for every pair of shoes purchased by you, the consumer, TOMS gives one pair of shoes away. Knowing this, it is hard not to buy one in every color (I have purchased four pairs so far, but then again, I do have a shoe obsession). My friend Blake’s Think Tank is a big TOMS fan too:
AT&T premiered a new commercial during the Masters coverage this weekend; it featured TOMS founder Blake Mycoski. I have written about TOMS before in this space. The company gives shoes to children in need around the world. They are able to do this with a business model based on an one-for-one purchase: for every pair of shoes purchased by you, the consumer, TOMS gives one pair of shoes away. On the company’s blog, Mr. Mycoski writes:
“Two months ago AT&T approached us wanting to feature TOMS in an ad campaign. We could not have been more excited and grateful, but to find out weeks later that the ad would premiere as part of the Masters telecast was truly an honor.”
And, through Twitter, TOMS tells us that the commercial is doing the company some good:
“since the #TOMSatt commercial started airing last Thurs, thousands of children will receive a pair of shoes thanks to you!! One for One”
AT&T should receive big kudos for using their media power to promote companies like TOMS.
This is how a brand should use social media. Zappos, known for their vast shoe catalog, taps into the news of President Bush ducking shoes thrown at him in Iraq and creates their own video. And, they post it immediately to make it relevant.
