‘Ted’ scores big with its simple (and vulgar) social media efforts

If “Ted” doesn’t win an Oscar, it can celebrate its box-office success. During its opening weekend, the raunchy comedy raked in $54.1 million. “Ted” became the third-best debut for an R-rated film ever. (And it even beat out the even buzzier male stripper movie “Magic Mike.”)

The movie also deserves kudos for its incredibly clever social media marketing approach. On first look, it may seem overly simplistic, but then again, the simple stuff is usually the most brilliant.

(Warning: This post contains some colorful language and images. )

Listen, plan, engage

All solid social media marketing campaigns are built on understanding how people behave. This is often referred to as the “listening” phase. Whoever is pulling the strings behind the social media activity of “Ted” clearly pays attention to how people behave on Facebook. Let me explain: How many times have you seen images like these pop up in your Facebook feed:

And how many times have you given that image a “like”? It’s OK; you can admit it, because they epitomize the increasingly powerful image-powered Web.