The Best and Worst of Celebrity Endorsements in Healthcare Social Media Marketing

by Jennifer Redmond

Only in this day and age would a high school student’s tweets garner the attention of  White House staffers and earn a spot in national headlines. But that’s exactly what happened as the hashtag #ThanksMichelleObama made its way up the trending charts in mid-November 2014. Accompanying the sardonic hashtag were unappealing photos of school lunches. One particularly amorphous entrée received special attention. Here was an example of the incredible power of the Internet and how it can quickly backfire on marketing campaigns—especially ones featuring famous faces.

“Social media is unfiltered, and therefore provides a higher risk in terms of managing the public conversation and the celebrity interaction,” says Kassy Perry, President and CEO of the Perry Communications Group. “There is significant room for a face-plant.”

Michelle Obama has championed the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act since it was passed in Congress a few years back. She’s actively used her platform to promote healthy diet and exercise habits and has specifically helped promote healthier lunches in public schools.

But even the First Lady cannot rein in the ever-volatile and capricious tides of social media. Much like the Wild, Wild West of lore, today’s modern social media platforms have few rules—the best hashtag wins the day and movements can galvanize within a few keystrokes. As the face of the healthy initiative, Obama was the easy target of harsh and rapid criticism from students dissatisfied with their lunch options.

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