Skyy Vodka tags John Cena in social photo-sharing campaign for July 4

Brief:

Skyy Vodka is featuring WWE star and actor John Cena in a photo-sharing campaign on social media to promote diversity and inclusion as Americans celebrate the Fourth of July. Skyy's #SparkChange push urges Instagram, Facebook and Twitter users to post "imperfect" pictures of fireworks — which are notoriously difficult to photograph — with a #SKYYVodka hashtag to participate.
Skyy will donate $5 for every tagged photo to the National Diversity Council, a nonprofit that promotes multiculturalism among U.S. businesses, for a total of up to $100,000. The promotion is part of Skyy's "Proudly American" campaign that features celebrities Trixie Mattel from "Ru Paul's Drag Race" and activist Amara La Negra.
Cena kicked off Skyy's #SparkChange promotion on July 1 with a humorous video posted to his social media channels. The video had 2.26 million views on Twitter as of press time.

Insight:

Skyy Vodka's #SparkChange effort appears to be off to a strong start, if the views of a 45-second video posted to Cena's social channels are any indication. Blurry photos of fireworks fit in with humorous "fail" videos that make up a popular genre of viral sharing on social platforms, but Skyy Vodka's charitable donations to the National Diversity Council also give people another reason to participate in the social campaign. Cause-driven efforts are generally well-received by younger consumers, providing an emotional bond that can help to drive longer-term loyalty and distinguish brands from competitors.

By partnering with a celebrity and influencer like Cena, who has distinguished himself with charity work as the most prolific celebrity in Make-A-Wish Foundation history, Skyy could reach a broad audience of his social media followers around the Fourth of July holiday. Marketer spending on social influencer campaigns is set to grow this year as brands seek audiences that have shifted their media consumption to mobile devices and social platforms. More than half (60%) of marketers said they plan to increase their social influencer budgets this year, while 30% plan to maintain them and 2.5% will cut back, according to a survey by marketing platform SocialPubli.com.

As liquor brands like Skyy seek to reach young adults who are more likely to consume media on smartphones, social campaigns have become a key marketing strategy in the past few years. Pernod Ricard's Malibu, Shackleton Whiskey, Jägermeister and Three Olives Vodka, among others, also have developed mobile campaigns aimed at prolonging brand exposure among on-the-go consumers.

The Fourth of July push is Skyy's latest use of Cena in the "Proudly American" campaign. Previously, Cena narrated a humorous take on the Pledge of Allegiance that celebrates inclusivity.