The SOPA/PIPA protest: One kick-ass Internet marketing campaign

Notice anything different about the Internet last Wednesday? No? What rock have you been living under?

That day, January 18, Wikipedia blacked out, Reddit went offline, and Google censored its own logo. These tech giants, along with thousands of others, participated in an Internet-wide marketing campaign that was as creative as it was meaningful.

Stop SOPA & PIPA

The campaign was in protest of a pair of bills–the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) in the US House and the Protect IP Act (PIPA) in the Senate–that were well on their way to becoming law. The stated goal of the two bills was to stop the theft of US intellectual property (music, movies, TV shows) by overseas websites.

But according to people who understand the inner workings of the Internet far better than I do, these bills would have opened the door to a host of unintended consequences including government censorship and a breakdown of Internet security.

Why am I covering the SOPA/PIPA issue?

Besides directly impacting my industry, this campaign piqued my interest because it was awesome. Amazing. Fantastic. A true display of the power of the Internet to communicate with a vast audience–and get them to act.

Before the protest, SOPA and PIPA seemed like foregone conclusions: they had the backing of powerful interests in the entertainment industry, they sounded righteous enough, and they were sailing through Congress with widespread support.

Then, as one journalist put it, the entire Internet got angry, and Congress took notice.

Why did the entire Internet get angry? Because the message that we, the people, should be angry was plastered across the websites we’ve come to rely on in our day-to-day lives.

How did they get Congress to take notice? With the hallmark of any good Internet marketing campaign: a strong call to action.

Why the SOPA blackout worked

The websites that participated in the protest didn’t just explain why they opposed SOPA and PIPA, they asked us to do something about it.

And do something we did. In droves.

With 4.5 million signatures on Google’s petition alone, and enough angry emails flowing in to Congress to slow servers and crash websites, the politicians in Washington couldn’t backpedal fast enough. Eighteen US senators withdrew their support for PIPA and the House has tabled SOPA (at least in its current form).

What can a mere mortal learn from this example?

Your website may never reach 162 million people in a single day the way Wikipedia did on Wednesday, but you, too, can use the Internet to get your message out.

A well planned and executed integrated marketing campaign–one that uses both traditional and Web 2.0 marketing methods–is the best way to reach your target audience no matter who they are (with the possible exception of people who live under rocks. Then again, they did manage to reach Congress, so…)

My job is to help you learn how to use the World Wide Web to market your business and champion your cause. Let’s work together to plan your next campaign.

PS For much more information about the SOPA blackout click here.