HARDEST GEEZER: THE MAN RUNNING THE ENTIRE LENGTH OF AFRICA

Morning!

There is a man out there right now that I literally can’t stop watching.

And neither can the 500k+ other people who follow him.

In just the last few months he’s:

- Had 1M+ tune into his daily updates
- Amassed over half a million followers online
- Has been featured in all the major publications

Oh, and he’s done it all while running the entire length of Africa.

This is how the ‘Hardest Geezer’ has grown viral:

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Breaking Down The Strategy

Meet Russ Cook (AKA “Hardest Geezer”) - the man who is currently running the entire length of Africa.

I have written about many impressive people over the last 18+ months, yet not one of them is quite as impressive as this ginger bloke who has set out on what seems like an impossible challenge - running the entire length of Africa.

The challenge itself is, of course, crazily impressive. Yet, what’s equally impressive to me is how Russ has been able to get such a massive audience following along with the challenge.

Many people do crazy challenges.

But very very few (if any) are able to draw people’s attention to the challenge like Russ has.

Every day 1M+ people tune into his updates across his social channels.

In May alone Russ gained:

+166k Instagram followers (489% increase)
+113k Twitter followers (350% increase)
+52.6k YouTube subscribers (337%+ increase)

He’s gone from unknown to a global superstar - all in the last couple of months.

And I wanted to figure out how.

So, I spent 15+ hours over the last week stalking all of his channels and broke down how he’s managed to do it.

Turns out he’s using a pretty nifty formula that comes down to 3 key things:

1) A Narrative

A key difference between most people attempting challenges and Russ is the narrative he has threaded through every day of his challenge.

He’s not just a crazy guy running across Africa - he’s an amazing storyteller.

• He checks in every day to update people on his journey

• He gives detailed updates on how everything is going

• He documents the lows as well as the ups

• He allows people to see the behind-the-scenes of the challenge.

Every day people can tune in and follow along as the story unfolds.

And due to how tough the challenge is, every day there are twists and turns.

One day he falls ill, the next he nearly gets robbed, and then he’s peeing blood.

It’s a magical story and Russ is doing an amazing job of threading that narrative throughout all of his content.

But that threading of a narrative all starts with his hook…

2) A hook

Every day Russ posts an update video across his social media, and he starts them with the same phrase every single time.

“Day XX running the entire length of Africa.“

At first, it may seem like it’s just him checking in and letting people know where he’s up to (which it is) but there are a couple of reasons why this has been so instrumental to the growth of his online audience:

1. It’s an amazing hook - If a man stating that he’s running the entire length of Africa doesn’t grab your attention I’m not sure what will. You’re instantly curious about if the challenge is legitimate. Why he’s doing it? How he’s doing it? Then you have to watch on to find out.

2. Signpost for the story - In the first 2-3 seconds of each video you have a signpost (learn more on those here) that tells you exactly where you are in Russ’ story. When he says “Day 25” you know he’s nearly a month into running it. So if you miss a couple of days you can skip back to where you left off OR understand exactly where he’s at.

I think we’ll see more people using this for their viral ideas/challenges in the future.

It’s so easy to replicate: “Day XX of [Crazy challenge]”.

3) A relatable personality

An underrated aspect of this whole thing is just how relatable Russ is as a person.

Russ is far from perfect and that’s why people love him.

He seems like just another English bloke. He doesn’t have a posh accent, he jokes about getting beers with his friends, and he adds humour to everything he does….

Prime example, this little bit of football banter on his Twitter:

This may seem like nothing to you, but this reliability is a HUGE reason Russ has become so popular.

People can relate to him. They don’t see him as any different from them.

So Russ doing this challenge makes them feel like they can do it too.

That reliability leads to an exponentially deeper connection between Russ and his fans.

If I could use one phrase to articulate Russ’ seemingly innate ability to get people behind him, it would be…

Inclusive storytelling

Because more than anything else, Russ does an amazingly good job at making everyone feel a part of his journey across Africa.

It feels like one big team all supporting him, all part of the story.

• They can follow it on the map.

• They can check in every day.

• They can send him messages of support.

• They know exactly how he’s feeling.

• They know exactly what he’s doing.

• They know when things go wrong.

• They know when things go right.

They’re on the journey with him, they’re invested, and they want everyone to support him just like they do.

I’m one of those people.

In just the last week I’ve told 3 people about Russ and his journey (and another 2300+ with this email).

I’m out here marketing for him and so are his other 500k+ die-hard fans.

All because of how well he’s managed to include everyone in this feat.

Running the length of Africa is very impressive.

But running it while building a 500k+ audience of die-hard fans… well it’s somehow even more impressive.

The scary part is Russ still has 10 months of this journey to go, and my guess is that with every 1 & 2 he lays down and with every month that passes:

• His fanbase will grow

• His following will grow

• And his support will grow

Before, he was just a man running the entire length of Africa.
Today, he’s a viral sensation with millions of die-hard fans.

A pretty crazy story and I cannot wait to see how it continues to unfold.

And THAT is how the ‘Hardest Geezer’ grew viral.

God, that was a good one to write, hope you enjoyed it too!

Time for me to get the running shoes on I suppose.

Until next Sunday,

— Niall

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This has been a breakdown of the Hardest Geezer’s marketing strategy. I hope you have learned something and can implement a similar strategy in your business!

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