22squared Employs Clickbait For Good, Driving Florida Men To Volunteer As Big Brothers

22squared, one of the leading national independent agencies,
is flipping the ‘Florida Man’ stereotype and using the humorous social media staple as clickbait to attract real Florida men who want to make a positive impact in their community, on the youth of today and the men of tomorrow. The program employs clickbait, which typically has a negative connotation, in a positive way to surprise people and grab attention. The provocative initiative is on behalf of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay, and the goal is to encourage more Florida men to step-up and volunteer as Big Brothers (Bigs), in the state. Florida is always in need of men to volunteer because there are so many young boys lacking that positive male role model in their lives.

Overview: The Florida Man Project

Clickbait has a negative association, tricking people into clicking on wild and crazy stories or images. In this unique campaign, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay is using it in a positive way to surprise people and grab their attention. The initiative enlists the help of the often ridiculed, wacko ‘Florida Man’ himself, by letting him do what he does best: bring the crazy. When eager users click, to have another laugh at the Florida Man’s expense, they are instead surprised with a rewarding mentorship experience. The initiative piggybacks on actual trending Florida Man headlines, to leak equally outrageous Florida Man headlines created by 22squared. The message is also being pushed out organically with replies in the comments of actual trending Florida Man stories across social media. 22squared is using donated native content to specifically geo-target Tampa area men.

“Unfortunately, the struggle to recruit male volunteers is one we know very well. Fun and creative initiatives like this are a great way to refresh our marketing. We’re always looking for outside of the box ways to recruit mentors, and this is a unique opportunity for that!” stated Claire Selius, Director of Marketing and Communications at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay.

The Florida Man Project theme line is simple: Be the man that makes Florida proud. Be a Big.
The program is the first time 22squared has been privileged to work with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay. Partners of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay - Busch Gardens, Tampa Bay Lightning and Tampa Bay YMCA, are in support of this initiative.

Matthew Zaifert, creative director, 22squared, stated, “The ‘Florida Man’ is a regular source of Internet humor. Outrageous ‘Florida Man’ headlines are a popular share on social media, regularly breaking on the evening news and often making their way into the late night talk show circuit. The laughable buffoon depicted in people’s social media feeds is not the real Florida man. The other is a Big Brother, the type of man that makes Florida proud. We are excited to reach real Florida men with this fun and compelling social campaign and welcome them to the rewarding Big Brothers Big Sisters experience”.

The spots were directed by Daniel Herman.