ISIS’ Digital Strategy Can Put Advertising Gurus to Shame

From modding games to building apps to producing hi-end films, ISIS’s digital strategy can put Ad Gurus to shame.

Forty-six thousand twitter accounts, more than five slick and sophisticated production houses, a translation hub to produce content in all of the world’ s major languages  –including sign language – and social presence on any platform you can think of, jihadist group Islamic State (ISIS) has a digital footprint stronger than you can imagine.

From modding games and creating apps to using drones for filmmaking, ISIS’ hi-tech, hi-end digital strategy can put the most intuitive advertising gurus to shame.

With ISIS reaching out to more and more countries in the world, including India, The Quint tried to decode its digital strategy, with insights from Brand Expert Harish Bijoor.

“The world is really, really flat today. And what has flattened it in totality is the electronic, digital and social media. Terror and terror outfits today are more virtual than real. And the virtual is, omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient! The medium is really the message and ISIS seems to dominate the medium of the young.”

Young people today talk and think in hashtags. if you have the right hashtag populated and trended, you have arrived. The idea comes from the basics of multi-level marketing. There are brilliant tech-minds sitting somewhere among us, who are doing all this and no one knows whothey are. The digital battle of the ISIS is certainly world-class.

ISIS is a classic example of effective branding, dedicated to gain worldwide recognition. Their symbols are striking, consistent and stirring. Its is recognisable through white calligraphic Shahada, which means “there is only one god” in Arabic, against a black, haunting background. Brand ISIS struck a cord with young recruits through passion, ruthlessness, intense idealism and relentless pursuit of the great battles.

The ISIS brand of terror is for basic people with basic needs. The IQ being catered to is ‘basic’. The terror outfits know their key audience and their IQ level for sure. What is therefore offered is “in-the-face” and completely virulent and violent.

All army recruitment advertising across the world is motivational. “Uncle Sam wants you!” is a classic one for sure.  It is always accompanied by cause at hand, reason to join and drum-beat music that is totally motivational. In many ways Goebbels started it in Germany. It is totally one-sided in its want and in many ways washes the brain with just one dye, the dye you want to wash it with.