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Sprint Introduces New Pitchman with #TheSwitchIsReal

Authors: Gabrielle Hughes Gabrielle Hughes
Posted Under: Social Media
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This Week in Realtime Media

Verizon Pitchman Switches to Sprint

Telecommunication companies are renowned for their endless wars against one another, but one wireless phone service carrier in particular has gained a new ally from one of its fiercest competitors.

Known for asking “Can you hear me now?” from various spots around the country, the glasses-wearing Verizon Guy (actor, Paul Marcarelli) has now teamed up with Sprint. His first new ad aired Monday night during the NBA Playoffs, sparking a firestorm of commentary on social media:

With Sprint having the top tweet around Marcarelli’s move, emoji usage within the discussion was very lively. As seen below, ? (in relation to Nielsen data) was at the center of the conversation…

…and the launch of #TheSwitchIsReal dominated among hashtags:

In looking at the response to the ads, the catchphrases (both new and old) were what had people talking. For Verizon, their signature “Can you hear me now?” generated the largest spikes in mention volume…


…but Sprint’s new “Can you hear that?” dominated the conversation for its respective carrier:

While this is seemingly big news within the world of telecommunications, it could not triumph by another wireless service provider in the space. In looking at mention volume from Monday night, it was T-Mobile that generated more noise than Verizon and Sprint combined:

What was the cause of this? Another “uncarrier” move by T-Mobile.

In what has been coined as “Stock Up,” T-Mobile customers are now receiving shares of the company. This new rewards program allows primary account holders to receive one share by referring friends, banking up to 100 shares in a year.

Considering that T-Mobile shares were trading at $43.62 (upon last save of this post) and the company has been exhibiting strong financial growth, it should be no surprise that this news was able to overpower Sprint’s brilliant marketing ploy.

California Primary

Tuesday was a turning point for the Democratic Party, as the nomination for the 2016 election was all but finally determined that evening.

After winning the California primary, Hillary Clinton had ultimately edged out Bernie Sanders in the race to the White House. As seen below, her victory also prompted a sweep in mentions, outnumbering even the likes of Donald Trump:

It has been a long time coming for the Clinton campaign, and in the months leading up to her securing the nomination, she has certainly accomplished one thing — the ability to maintain her own messaging.

As seen Tuesday night, and over the course of the last year, Clinton has consistently owned the top tweets within her own conversation:

As we get closer and closer to Election Day, it will be beyond interesting to watch the conversations, reports and discussion around Clinton.

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