Can we talk about the Sonic Social Media outlets for a moment...

[Badnik Mechanic]

Before you all go 'there's a topic on this' this is very different. 

That one has basically become a 'The Sonic twitter/Facebook page did this' *insert funny thing* I'd like this one to talk more about peoples thoughts on it.

For the last couple of months, Aaron Webber, better known as Ruby Eclipse was hired to run all of Sonic's social media outlets as well as be the main go to guy for community managers, I'm not 100% if he is the community manager for the NA side of Sega, but odds are his role isn't limited to just the social media stuff. 

And since then, the Sonic Social media outlet went from being a very inactive thing which would often say 'here is a new trailer' or 'look at this image we made which tells you about a thing' to a highly active thing which encourages interaction and engagement, it's even crossed several times into breaking the fourth wall and interacting with other franchises, even franchises like Deus Ex have even interacted with it, and just today Nintendo of America responded positively to it.

However, some people don't like it, some people see it as just turning Sonic into a joke, or a meme machine to appeal to a certain age group or fandom that they don't like. 

Others seem to love it. 

My thoughts on it are as follows...

Boom and to an extend Sonic Lost World didn't do much for Sonic's reputation, Boom effectively undid 3 years worth of work in building a franchises reputation, and with the delay in Boom 2 Fire/Ice, there is nothing to promote the brand as a game in a positive light. 

So what can you do? You have to embrace everything, even the bad. What has been a joke by the fans is now a joke by the brand, it's no longer a 'protective' thing which must not be officially commented on, instead of keeping fans at arms length and saying "You can have your fun, but... we can't join in" it's become "You guys look like you're having a lot of fun with our brand, can we come and play too?" 

I for one think this is great, whilst the quality of the games is still a big question mark which will be judged when the time comes, in terms of doing the brand favours, I personally think everything that Aaron has done so far has been right. If I look at all the social media stuff, there is not one thing which has been done which harms the brand, in fact he's single handily made Sonic relevant with these short term interactions with fans and non fans. Hell look how much Sonic's tweets have been retweeted and favourites following Webber's appointment, it's sky-rocketed and not for bad reasons. 

For those fans who don't like it, who think it's ruining the brand... frankly... I'm not angry at you for disliking something I like, I pity you, I feel sorry for you, you're so angry because the official twitter account is posting some genially funny stuff, which is interacting positively with other brands and even journalists, even Jim Sterling and IGN have said the Sonic twitter account burnt them good, it's giving so many people pleasure, laughter and joy, and you just feel hatred and disgust, how sorry for you, you don't get to feel that enjoyment which so many others are. 

Before Webber took over and started doing what he did, you never had people like Kel "Who loves orange Soda" Mitchell openly referencing the account 

Nor did you have the voice actors actively engaging with the fans and fansites in character. 

Embrace the lot I say, the brand is full of silly things even when it's doing stuff right all of the time. 

I say it should keep doing stuff like this.

Anyone else? If not... honestly why?

[Haalyle]

I love it! The only reason I really check Twitter these days is for Sonic's account (and I was laughing pretty hard this morning at the conversation between it and the Nintendo one).

I haven't really got much to say though, I love it for what it does.

[Ryannumber1gamer]

Being completely honest, Aaron is one of the best things to happen to Sonic. People don't seem to realize how much his interactivity with the community helps. Not only does it show that Sega are happy to interact with the community and have fun with the fans who have made Sonic the icon he is, but it also means that Sega can see their mistakes and have a bit of a laugh and have some fun with it. It shows they can laugh at themselves, rather than get defensive, or just keeping quiet.

Edited November 19, 2015 by Ryannumber1gamer

[Rey Skywalker-Ren]

I like the interactions with the fans. Let it stay.

[Forte-Metallix]

To me, Aaron is to Sonic's Twitter what Flynn and his crew are to Sonic's comics: They're not just people who happen to work with the franchise without putting any research or thought into it (looking at you, Pontac and Graff); they're fans, just like you and me. They know Sonic like the backs of their hands, and they're perfectly willing to give a nod to certain memes and cliche's of the fans.

So, I'm all for this! Sonic's Twitter account has gone from a bland promotional tool to a barrel of laughs on a constant basis! There's a reason Sonic's social media channel has been getting so much attention lately. There's nothing wrong with being a little silly and giving back to fans. And the way the games are going, we need all the fanservice we can get. 

ARRRGHHH! NOT WHAT I MEANT!

[SonicWind]

As long as the social media accounts stay as hilarious as they are and continue to portray the franchise in a positive light while also drumming up newcomers, I have zero complaints about how Aaron handles things.

The man has done a fantastic job.

[J&/MA/MC]

Interesting topic. I'd say that the Sonic twitter account have made the bold move from the marketing methods of the old to the new. SEGA couldn't be more on fleek with that decision. Social media craves attention, but is also very sceptical towards the obvious. The old ways of marketing is what we call "spam" nowadays. Millennials, raised by extreme marketing, sees brands as "persons" and assumes they act like one and that they're clear with their values. The Sonic twitter account have perfected that and it will be taught in schools eventually. It's that good.  

EDIT: Call in AAUK into the discussion. He knows more.

Edited November 18, 2015 by AC/H&M

[Tara]

I will never understand why of all the fucking social media accounts, Sonic is the only one that gets scrutiny or analysis for their use of memes and current events.  Like, it's fair enough if some people are not humored by it, but you'll be more hard-pressed to show me a social media account that doesn't use memes or current trends.  Social media is an outlet to connect with the fanbase, which helps advertising, but isn't a dedicated advertisement in and of itself.  It's like saying if I go to Denny's, I should expect the employers to give me a pancake made of construction paper simply because one of their social media outlets recently posted a gif of just that.

Anyway, I feel that Aaron Webber is doing a fine job connecting Sonic to not just his fans or to just the internet, but also to the gaming community as a whole.  This kind of interconnection with other franchises can lead to some more positive association with Sonic, and more positive association means not only do people see Sonic as an integral part of the community, but also means that they can form lasting relationships with other companies and developers that might be able to steer the franchise back on track.  Or at the very least, make it easier to get a detailed explanation when something goes terribly wrong.  Plus, he's just a really nice and friendly guy altogether, and that's always great.

So yeah, Aaron's done a great job for the community.  I don't think anyone is obligated to find his memes or jokes funny, but he's certainly not ruining the games or anything pertaining to them.

[Vertekins]

Even as someone who is inclined to feel that meme-citing for humor blew sarcasm clean out of the water for the title of "lowest form of wit" I have to say that the Sonic Twitter's use of them is hilarious.

I always love a good "Take that!" as well. I was so happy when Gametrailer got put right in their fucking places;

Rekd.

[Dr. Mechano]

Oh man, Eggman took over. Clearly giving the fans what we want.

I have to catch up on all these audio responses now.

[FantasticMrRobb]

 I was just thinking about this earlier today, and I agree that Aaron Webber is doing a terrific job running the Sonic accounts. I'm glad he's giving more personality to them and it's good to see that even people at SEGA can joke about their past mistakes and whatnot instead of just 'sweeping them under the rug'. It's wonderful to see how they have evolved since the beginning.

I always love a good "Take that!" as well. I was so happy when Gametrailer got put right in their fucking places;

I completely agree, this is certainly something that needed to be said. I'm sure Aaron was a little nervous about tweeting this response, because it seems kind of like a risky step directly pointing something like this out while representing all of Sonic. But it worked out great in the end, I think this was one of the first moments everyone realized that Aaron was going to do a great job running the social media accounts. c:

[Regen]

Aaron Webber is a great member of SEGA. He was brilliant at hyping up Generations and Lost World.

[FriendBot]

I really love the social media accounts, Aaron Webber has done a great job at entertaining many people, in and out of the Sonic community. He really gets how to interact with the community by posting some pretty dank memes cause who doesn't love dank memes? (I know I don't, I'm the latest meme in SSMB after all ) and doing playful jabs at some of SEGA's mistakes. 

I feel it's definitely important to have a sense of humility when it comes to be comedic (which is kind of why the Soni meme is doing well for some reason :P) so hey, atleast Aaron isn't afraid to point out the flaws and have fun with it. 

While of course, this kind of stuff isn't going to tickle everyone's fancy but the fact that many people are convinced that Aaron Webber is doing a major disservice and he should fired and all that stuff is just tragic, not for Aaron but for those people, like do they even have a sense of humor or join in on the fun? I really don't get why some people are so disgusted when it comes to these things.

But enough of that, Aaron is an awesome dude and does a great job bringing a community and interacting with many other accounts like who would've known that the Deus Ex twitter would be a huge bro to the Sonic twitter! It's kind of amazing, also love how Aaron pokes fun at IGN and Jim Sterling as well and those two play along with it as well, which is very good way to handle it (though I won't forgive IGN for giving Unleashed a worse score than 06).

Thought it would be nice if Aaron could promote more of the stuff the series is showing off, I love how Aaron promoted the season finale of Boom during the Eggman takeover but I wish he could've done that a lot more. He done so for Lost Steam and Dash 2, if I recall properly. But yeah, outside of that, he's done a great job and I have no qualms with his work.

[Ming Ming Hatsune]

Shots fired! XD

But here Mario has the better 'stache, sorry Eggy!

Edited November 19, 2015 by Ming Ming Yuigahama

[Tani Coyote]

Regarding the ambiguity of the community manager role; from what I could glean from those who have spoken with the SEGA staff, he is in fact the community manager for all things Sonic, while all things community that are non-Sonic are managed by Sam Mullen.

Anyway: I think Aaron's done a phenomenal job since his taking over from Kellie. I told myself he had some big shoes to fill given SEGA's friendliness towards its community... he's filled them to the point of bursting.

I guess Kellie had a more... businesslike way to running things? She was good at answering questions, organizing events, etc., but the social media was never on fire like this before. She was certainly very for fan engagement from all I could see, of course, but in a different manner.

Aaron's professional as well, but he embodies the more lighthearted nature of the video gaming industry, I think. He's willing to answer the serious questions but all for playing around as well. It's honestly refreshing when there are still quite a few companies who have a more cold, serious demeanor to their public relations.

I think his real test will come when he has to organize his first Sonic Boom event as a full community manager. If he can both pull that off AND maintain excellent social media shenanigans, well, I don't think we could really do any better for a social media/community manager.

 

[FantasticMrRobb]

But here Mario has the better 'stache, sorry Eggy!

Ming Ming, no! :c

Anyway: I think Aaron's done a phenomenal job since his taking over from Kellie. I told myself he had some big shoes to fill given SEGA's friendliness towards its community... he's filled them to the point of bursting.

I guess Kellie had a more... businesslike way to running things? She was good at answering questions, organizing events, etc., but the social media was never on fire like this before. She was certainly very for fan engagement from all I could see, of course, but in a different manner.

Aaron's professional as well, but he embodies the more lighthearted nature of the video gaming industry, I think. He's willing to answer the serious questions but all for playing around as well. It's honestly refreshing when there are still quite a few companies who have a more cold, serious demeanor to their public relations.

I think his real test will come when he has to organize his first Sonic Boom event as a full community manager. If he can both pull that off AND maintain excellent social media shenanigans, well, I don't think we could really do any better for a social media/community manager.

I couldn't agree more, Noelgilvie. c:

[Wittymations]

While I never cared much for the memes and interaction with Twitter and Facebook, I'll say I'm glad others are liking it.

Though I did like the Eggman take over bit, that was great.

[NoirSuede]

You know, back in 2011 Aaron is nowhere as cheeky as he is now, why is it so ? (If only Aaron was this cheecky when he marketed Binary Domain....).

[Tani Coyote]

You know, back in 2011 Aaron is nowhere as cheeky as he is now, why is it so ? (If only Aaron was this cheecky when he marketed Binary Domain....).

Well, he wasn't in control of things back then is probably a big reason.

I think when he became the head of community operations, he had to make the decision any manager does: how am I going to run things? During a RadioSEGA show, he said that he made the decision early on that rather than just be a PR outlet for Sonic titles, he'd try to liven things up and have some fun with it.

My guess is that he didn't really think about being super playful in demeanor until he was in the senior management position and had to decide the social media's direction. That's not to say he wasn't playful at all beforehand, of course, but I imagine there was more seriousness demanded of the brand manager position than the community manager position. One handles products, one handles the fans. Even if from what I know, the brand and community manager roles did tend to bleed into each other somewhat during Aaron's tenure, most likely as a result of his having been an assistant community manager beforehand.

Edited November 19, 2015 by Noelgilvie

[NoirSuede]

My favorite thing about this whole thing is how at Sega Of America Aaron Webber's treated as a living legend amongst other PR guys like Sam Mullen :

 

https://youtu.be/syFymcDAJ-s?t=9m24s

 

 

[Roger_van_der_weide]

I'm conflicted.
It reminds me of Capcom with Megaman, when they made American Cover megaman a bonus character in a fighting game right after cancelling all games and essentially killing him.
On one hand, that joke is hilarious and in every other situation I'd have a hearty laugh, on the other hand, will geez. Feels like someone shot your dog and then follows it up with a Bond one liner. Funny or not, that's a punch to the soul.

Of course the Sonic situation isn't THAT grim...And neither Is megaman perhaps considering the movie rumor, but.
There isn't much of an alternative to internet meme Sonic is there? Sonic Boom's one big joke, Sonic runners is so much a joke it has the Death Egg zone and the astract concept of invincibility as Sonic's buddies, Sonic Lost world's attempts at story got buried under the jokes.

There's funny jokes, definitly. Webber got IGN good, having Death Egg zone being Sonic's buddy could comes straight out of a stupid cartoon I made.
But I can't ignore there's a bittersweetness to it all.
This is it, huh? Shadow is "Ow the edge".
Eggman is"get a LOAD of this"
Amy is "Insert comical internet meme".

Sonic Boom Rise of Lyric and a handful of inconsequential scenes from Lost world being the only moments treating the cast not as meaningless punchline and nostalgia generators for over half a decade isn't giving me much hope outside the gameplay.

There's something about this situation makes me feel very old and melancholy.
Sonic 2016 better have some amazing gameplay, because it has a big void to fill.
Because keep in mind, this isn't JUST about the PR. This is an ongoing shift in focus in the fans, th staff and the cast itself that's been going on for almost a decade, it just keeps getting more and more intense and transparent.

And the fact it's winning and a great succes makes fighting against it hopeless.
Which means people unhappy about the change will only get more and more vicious, bitter and desperate. Or just feel old and tired.
Poor fans... Maybe you should tell us a few jokes to make us happy again.
 

Edited November 20, 2015 by Roger_van_der_weide

[Badnik Mechanic]

Post

So do you like the social media stuff or not? 

[Tailikku]

So yesterday was marked as Sonic CD's 22nd Anniversary and the image that was put up was:

followed up by Aaron-as-Sonic posting a clip from the OVA to explain the reference

 

[Ming Ming Hatsune]

I'm conflicted.
It reminds me of Capcom with Megaman, when they made American Cover megaman a bonus character in a fighting game right after cancelling all games and essentially killing him.
On one hand, that joke is hilarious and in every other situation I'd have a hearty laugh, on the other hand, will geez. Feels like someone shot your dog and then follows it up with a Bond one liner. Funny or not, that's a punch to the soul.

Of course the Sonic situation isn't THAT grim...And neither Is megaman perhaps considerin the movie rumor, but.
There isn't much of an alternative to internet meme Sonic is there? Sonic Boom's one big joke, Sonic runners is so much a joke it has the Death Egg zone and the astract concept of invincibility as Sonic's buddies, Sonic Lost world's attempts at story got buried under the jokes.

There's funny jokes, definitly. Webber got IGN good, having Death Egg zone being Sonic's buddy could comse straight out of a stupid cartoon I made.
But I can't ignore there's a bittersweetness to it all.
This is it, huh? Shadow is "Ow the edge".
Eggman is"get a LOAD of this"
Amy is "Insert comical internet meme".

Sonic Boom Rise of Lyric and a handful of inconsequential scenes from Lost world being the only moments treating the cast not as meaningless punchline and nostalgia generators for over half a decade isn't giving me much hope outside the gameplay.

There's something about this situation makes me feel very old and melancholy.
Sonic 2016 better have some amazing gameplay, because it has a big void to fill.
Because keep in mind, this isn't JUST about the PR. This is an ongoing shift in focus in the fans, th staff and the cast itself that's been going on for almost a decade, it just keeps getting more and more intense and transparent.

And the fact it's winning and a great succes makes fighting against it hopeless.
Which means people unhappy about the change will only get more and more vicious, bitter and desperate. Or just feel old and tired.
Poor fans... Maybe you should tell us a few jokes to make us happy again.
 

Not to sound like a meanie or anything but you lost me. Like, where's the point of your post and how does this relate to this thread?

[FriendBot]

So yesterday was marked as Sonic CD's 22nd Anniversary and the image that was put up was:

followed up by Aaron-as-Sonic posting a clip from the OVA to explain the reference

 

Wrong topic, kiddo. 

http://board.sonicstadium.org/topic/19857-tumblrtwitter-sonics-latest-exploits-thread/?page=25#comment-989287