When finding inspiration for your Halloween costume this year, did you turn to TV commercial breaks (remember that stuff you fast forward through on your DVR)? If so, you might be one of many dressing as "Flo" for Halloween.

Flo, the face of Progressive Insurance, has garnered more than 209,000 Facebook fans, is the topic of multiple fan sites and forum chatter, and the cornerstone photo of the insurance company’s Twitter feed. The Facebook group, "I'm dressing up as Flo for Halloween," had more than 350 members at the time of this post.

Enter the spokesfriends

The advent of social media has enabled brand spokepersons to turn into what I call spokesfriends. By integrating inbound marketing techniques into traditional advertising campaigns, companies are creating personas that people connect with and trust.

While spokesfriends can’t define your product or service, or make it stand out in the market, they can give the personality and connection needed to create buzz.

Historically companies have found successful formulas to relate non-celebrity spokesmodels with audiences, such as the Dunkin’ Donuts Fred the Baker , the Marlboro Man, and the “Where’s the Beef” lady. Whether they are friendly, funny or downright odd, they somehow engage the masses, and likewise become celebrities in their own right.

In today’s social media world, it’s not enough to have a celebrity hype your brand, or leverage the power of a regular Joe, without adding that opportunity for customers to connect with them online.

Giving life to these characters through social networks adds the permission-based marketing element that can bring the brand closer to customers than ever before.

Some current spokesfriends and social media

Flo, the Progressive girl

The PR 20/20 office overlooks Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio, the home base of Progressive Insurance. Earlier this year Flo traveled to Cleveland to throw out a first pitch for a Cleveland Indians game and also made the local media circuit. On a radio interview, she shared that people frequently cite her as their reason for switching insurances, and are disappointed when their insurance policies don’t come in the boxes as shown in the fantasy retail shop of the commercials.

Flo is played LA-based actress Stephanie Courtney, who also has roles in TV and is in a comedy troupe, and shared this quote in an October Boston Herald article "Insurance pitchgirl a surprise TV hit," by writer Lauren Beckham Falcone: “I’m glad people aren’t mad at me for interrupting their programs,” she said. “It’s all a very pleasant surprise.”

TGI Friday's Woody

Woody was created as a social media experiment as detailed in the Adweek article "TGIF's Very Friendly Online Promotion" and MarketingTom.com post.

Through media support, Woody achieved a Facebook promotional goal of gaining 500,000 Facebook fans in exchange for a coupon for a free Jack Daniel's burger or chicken sandwich. What was expected over 30 days happened in six days, and TGIF had to quickly respond. The company rewrote the rules of the contest to accommodate for influx of online participants, extending to 1 million fans through page by end of September. There were issues with coupons and getting the free food, but the likable character combined with the offer helped to demonstrate the power of social media.

The Glade Lady 

Spokesfriends can sometimes become popular for their more deviant attributes, such as seen in the Glade Lady, a truly desperate housewife. There are several blog posts and social media groups dedicated to Glade Lady’s deceiving ways, tricking her family and friends that she is baking instead of burning scented candles. Take for instance, the 64-member Facebook group, "I think the lady on the Glade commercials is a pathological liar...” 

Spokesfriends of the pasts that would've been great in social media

• A Facebook fan page on the Country Crock family: I need to see the faces behind the hands that share the bread spread, and dig deeper into their carb obsession.
• How about a Taster’s Choice soap opera romance played out through Twitter?
• “Where’s the beef” blog tracks the quest of the lady to find a bigger burger, until she’s exposed to the cruelty of a mass production facility, fueling the goal to start her own free range farm. There's a "Where's the Beef" tribute page on Facebook with 175 fans. 

A matter of choice

While it’s not reasonable to assume that all companies or brands can employ a spokesfriend to tout their product or service, they serve as a testament that social media gives brands the opportunity to connect in a more meaningful and personal way. Check out Rohit Bargava’s post, “Do You Know Someone Who Loves Your Brand?” He discusses Honda’s "everyone knows someone who loves a Honda” campaign driving more than 133,000 people to access an application through Honda’s Facebook fan page.

We can learn from the extended reach of the spokesfriends to explore how social media, as part of an inbound marketing strategy, can change the way customers connect with your brand.

Do you think it’s better for brands to create spokesfriends and harness power of social media, or leverage the power of celebrities already engaged in social media for extended connection, or forget spokesmodels altogether and simply offer a unique product or servicea and participate in the social communities of your customers?

Capadona-Schmitz is an assistant vice president and consultant at PR 20/20, a Cleveland-based inbound marketing agency and PR firm. She can be found on Twitter @ChristinaCS. It's also worth noting that Halloween is her favorite holiday!