Marketing strategies have shifted, grown, and developed greatly over the course of history. From DeBeer’s age old “Diamonds are Forever” campaign in the early 1900’s and the Lucky Strike ads which had everyone picking up a bad habit in the 60’s, to the modern day “Just Do It” Slogan that defines Nike, we’ve seen a lot over the years. The channels of communication for marketers has changed over time as well. The game changed for marketers again and again, challenging them to come up with new and innovative ways to promote their products and services as the technologies and trends changed over time. In today’s world the internet reigns supreme, and marketers have quickly adopted web advertising as a part of any self-respecting ad campaign. Social Media is the most important aspect of this. A campaign that doesn’t have a #hashtag, YouTube video, or searchable Facebook content, may as well not exist at all. The companies that are realizing, embracing, and integrating social media into their campaigns are the ones who are seeing the most success. Many modern brands are doing a great job of combining social media with their marketing strategies, but one in particular really stands out.

In search of a product strategy as its stock plummets, GoPro’s CEO keeps a shaky but steady hand at the helm. Wall street analysts are gleefully beating up on the young company because they dared to shatter the image that GoPro is/was the next Apple (as soon as a company is likened to Apple it becomes a target for haters). I have to admit that I have a soft spot for underdogs and for early stage companies that have customers that adore them. Exacerbating my GoPro Problem is that I use the company’s products, I love them and I regularly fan-girl the GoPro stars on YouTube.

The manufacturer of un-smashable, un-drownable wearable action cameras seems to believe strongly in the old saying that a picture is worth a 1,000 words, as it actively encourages and shares user-generated content. Go Pro has essentially mastered the content marketing game: The California-based camera manufacturer keeps its 2.3 million-strong audience entertained and informed primarily through its YouTube channel while hyper-engaging on Instagram and keeping busy on Facebook. GoPro enables the company’s fans to evangelize on its behalf. All GoPro needs to do is provide the camera.