Clorox is scrubbing up its social media presence by introducing a predictive cold-and-flu conversation tracker that analyzes millions of tweets to uncover commonly discussed topics, flu activity trends and tips related to combating winter illnesses.

Clorox aims to socially predict important information regarding the virality of one of the most common seasonal sicknesses plaguing consumers by dusting off the correlation between online flu conversations and actual cases. The consumer packaged goods marketer will aggregate tweets to #stopthespread of germs on a dedicated microsite, proving its dedication to cracking down on the upcoming flu season and therefore creating enhanced brand awareness among social media users.

?Clorox will be helping to #stopthespread by sharing prevention tips through tweets and other social media posts, and of course, through the tracker,? said David Kellis, director of public relations and social media at The Clorox Company, Oakland, CA. ?We are using promoted tweets, as we like to say, to help spread the word, not the flu.

?Our Clorox Cold and Flu Pulse, created by Critical Mass with Bottlenose technology, provides updates on the current virality of flu in online conversation. Our tracker also provides prevention tips related to the current virality of the flu, such as getting a flu shot and disinfecting germ hot spots with Clorox Disinfecting Wipes.?

Spotlighting useful tips
Clorox rolled out the social media tracker following the release of a study last year that pinpointed the correlation between actual flu cases and conversations held on Twitter. The Clorox Cold and Flu Pulse will sift through millions of conversations to discover what specific topics consumers are discussing, which cities the flu appears to be most prevalent in and tips regarding the current virality of spreading illnesses.

?People tweet about the flu before they treat the flu, so Clorox is injecting itself into the conversation by being the facilitator and not conversation itself,? said Dennis O'Malley, co-founder and CEO of ReadyPulse, San Carlos, CA. ?And it is a conversation that affects up to 20 percent of the population every year.  

?Being a helping hand strengthens the Clorox brand through great word-of-mouth.?

The consumer packaged goods brand is tapping the Bottlenose Stream Intelligence tool to locate related words, hashtags and topics that will result in a trend and will help measure discussion volume. Users will be able to view these aggregated tidbits by visiting FluPulse.com on their mobile devices.

The microsite currently offers a countdown of approximately 30 days until peak flu season begins, and taps Washington, D.C., Chicago and New York as the nation?s top flu spots.

Clorox also showcases its own products that can be used to conquer the onslaught of germs, including disinfectant wipes.

Consumers are encouraged to share their own tips for fighting the cold and flu via #stopthespread.

Meanwhile, Clorox has also been capitalizing on current media trends to promote its products. This week, the brand tweeted an image advertising its wipes alongside the phrase ?Survive the zombie flu? in a bid to connect with fans of AMC's The Walking Dead.

This strategy gained the marketer a slew of supportive tweets from users, who were already scouring Twitter to discuss the latest shocking episode.

?Clorox should do exactly what it already does on its cold and flu pages: give advice and soft sell the idea that cold and flu prevention is about controlling the germs during the season,? Mr. O?Malley said. ?It leads the consumers to a conclusion subconsciously, which positions Clorox as a friend in need.

?As an extension of that, Clorox could offer coupons for the most highly effective responses, for most engaged in the audience, or for the most highly impacted geographic locals.?

Viral prevention
Clorox has been able to uncover strong trends related to cold and flu prevention or treatment, thanks to Cold and Flu Pulse. It found that consumers did gravitate toward home remedies such as tea and chicken soup when flu cases experienced an uptick, opening a potential window of opportunity for food and beverage marketers during this season.

Additionally, every 200 flu cases last year resulted in one tweet about binge-watching television programs.

The company has been engaging in a serious push toward mobile as of late, proving that social media and mobile Web are optimal channels for CPG marketers to leverage.

Recently, Clorox funneled more of its marketing budget toward Google to add shine to its strategy on mobile, where more than 50 percent of the brand?s media currently is, and respond to consumers in a faster, more personalized way (see story).

Earlier this year, a Clorox campaign that let consumers enter a $1,000 monthly sweepstakes by submitting product purchase receipts leveraged a retail-agnostic strategy to drive sales and enhance customer relationships with the consumer packaged goods brand (see story).

?By working within the frameworks of social media, which keeps growing at amazing rates worldwide, it will identify the trends in flu, and Clorox will be seen as helping,? Mr. O?Malley said. ?To bring even greater authenticity to the effort, Clorox can use the user-generated images, and perhaps mix in its own.

?All it is really doing is reflecting the predictors of increased flu activity that the consumers themselves are putting out. Its hashtag is #stopthespread, which itself seems to be beneficial for consumers and not necessarily for Clorox products.?

Final Take
Alex Samuely, staff writer on Mobile Marketer, New York