Viral Marketing
Viral Marketing
But, what does that mean for your small business? Have you ever thought about how you could use this method of marketing to your advantage and what it could do for you? Hotmail is not the only company that has been able to ride its own coattails. With the proper strategy in place, so you could too.
At the very heart of this method lies the idea of offering incentives. What better way to motivate somebody to work for you than offering them something for that work. So, whether you use focus groups, online surveys or other means of market research, what you really need to do is figure out what those incentives would be.
The trick to viral marketing, however, is not just in offering cash incentives, but in really figuring out what your users’ needs are. For instance, in one classic case of viral marketing gone wrong, Sony began a college promotion whereby it offered thousands of dollars worth of its products to college freshmen. After receiving a poor response, it began to focus not just on cash, but on figuring out exactly what the students would want. Soon, Sony switched its gears and instead of just offering cash, offered a dorm room full of their electronic products. Although the value of the second offer was far less than the first, it proved to be much more successful.
The advantage of using this type of marketing is that it doesn’t have to cost entrepreneurs an arm and a leg to perform, and the results can be huge. While not all companies have had the success of Hotmail, or even “The Blair Witch Project,” the possibilities for profits are still there for the rest of us. As long as you can successfully identify what it is that would trigger your existing customers into advocating to others, the formula for success is not that hard.
Viral marketing is likely to become a more important means for companies to promote themselves in the future, especially as more and more people begin to use the Internet. Email has already become a regular part of everyday life for most, and the volume sent increases by the day. Although it is difficult to measure and track, it is likely that greater numbers of marketing agencies will become experts in this field, and thus develop increasingly sophisticated analyzing techniques. Then, we will all be able to quantify and see more clearly the results that the likes of Hotmail have been claiming all these years.
Viral Marketing - To learn more about this author, visit Robin Smyth's Website.
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We’ve all heard about – and, most likely, seen firsthand – the successful effects of the viral marketing campaigns engaged in by the likes of Hotmail. At the end of each and every single one of its free web-based emails that gets sent out on a daily basis, Hotmail has its logo and tagline sitting there. One wonders how many new customers it signs up on a daily basis thanks to all of those millions of emails that get sent out every day.
But, what does that mean for your small business? Have you ever thought about how you could use this method of marketing to your advantage and what it could do for you? Hotmail is not the only company that has been able to ride its own coattails. With the proper strategy in place, so you could too.
At the very heart of this method lies the idea of offering incentives. What better way to motivate somebody to work for you than offering them something for that work. So, whether you use focus groups, online surveys or other means of market research, what you really need to do is figure out what those incentives would be.
The trick to viral marketing, however, is not just in offering cash incentives, but in really figuring out what your users’ needs are. For instance, in one classic case of viral marketing gone wrong, Sony began a college promotion whereby it offered thousands of dollars worth of its products to college freshmen. After receiving a poor response, it began to focus not just on cash, but on figuring out exactly what the students would want. Soon, Sony switched its gears and instead of just offering cash, offered a dorm room full of their electronic products. Although the value of the second offer was far less than the first, it proved to be much more successful.
The advantage of using this type of marketing is that it doesn’t have to cost entrepreneurs an arm and a leg to perform, and the results can be huge. While not all companies have had the success of Hotmail, or even “The Blair Witch Project,” the possibilities for profits are still there for the rest of us. As long as you can successfully identify what it is that would trigger your existing customers into advocating to others, the formula for success is not that hard.
Viral marketing is likely to become a more important means for companies to promote themselves in the future, especially as more and more people begin to use the Internet. Email has already become a regular part of everyday life for most, and the volume sent increases by the day. Although it is difficult to measure and track, it is likely that greater numbers of marketing agencies will become experts in this field, and thus develop increasingly sophisticated analyzing techniques. Then, we will all be able to quantify and see more clearly the results that the likes of Hotmail have been claiming all these years.
Viral Marketing - To learn more about this author, visit Robin Smyth's Website.
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 Make your offer viral
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 Viral marketing is not an objective: It's an integral park of a campaign strategy that is used to achieve objectives. |
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Factors to Consider in a Viral Marketing Campaign
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Is Viral marketing a bug you want to catch?
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The Ways of Viral Marketing
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| Have you tried viral marketing? It is the Web’s version of word-of-mouth marketing – one of the easiest and most effective ways to market. Read how to start your campaign. |
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Ten Viral Marketing Best Practices
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| If you're plotting the next Subservient Chicken, here are 10 best practices to keep in mind. |
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John PowerJohn Power, founder of Biltmore Franchise Consulting, has extensive experience developing and marketing franchises and business opportunities. He has been in and around franchising for over twenty years. From 1980 through 1990 he conceptualized, organized, and developed the American Video Association. He grew AVA to 2,000 national members, before selling the company it 1990. It was later merged into another home video marketing company. From 2000 to 2005 he worked as a contract marketing and human resources consultant to several local and national companies. In 2005 Mr. Power began working as a franchise development consultant on a full-time basis. Since that time he has helped more than three dozen companies initiate and develop their franchising program. He notes that there are many companies interested in developing a franchise program, and who need his specialized assistance. Mr. Power is a “hands-on” franchise consultant. He said, “I am the ‘nuts and bolts’ person who tends to the details for my clients.” Mr. Power holds a B.S. degree with a major in Marketing. See: www.biltmorefranchise.com You may contact Mr. Power at: jpower@biltmorefranchise.co - Visit John Power's Website |
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Joe Dager is President of Business901, a progressive coaching company providing no-nonsense direction in areas such as Lean marketing and organized referral marketing. What others say: In the past 20 years, Joe and I have collaborated on many difficult issues. Joe’s ability to combine his expertise with “out of the box” thinking is unsurpassed. He has always delivered quickly, cost effectively and with ingenuity. A brilliant mind that is always a pleasure to work with.” - James R. If you want to learn more about Business901, start a conversation with us. We can be found @ Web/Blog: http://www.business901.com Web/Blog: http://www.FundingYourNonprofit.com http://www.linkedin.com/in/business901 – Linked In http://www.twitter.com/business901 – Twitter - Visit Joe Dager's Website |
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Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
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Jay Kubassek(Jay's Full Bio: EvanCarmichael.com/jaykubassek) Jay Kubassek is a Canadian born entrepreneur, internet marketing genius, professional speaker, international real estate developer/investor, executive film producer, extreme sport enthusiast and a passionate supporter of several charities worldwide. In 2007, Jay's vision and dedication to help other entrepreneurs and business owners duplicate his marketing success led to the creation of his fourth company CarbonCopyPRO, an internet marketing firm already worth over 15 million dollars that has over 20 employees and contract workers with clients is 12 different countries. Jay resides in NYC with his girlfriend Jamie, three year old son Milo and dog Cooper. As executive producer he recently premiered his first film in the 2008 Cannes Film Festival. As an adventurist he is racing the 2008 Baja 1000 off-road race and is a member of the 2008 U.S. National Elephant Polo Team, The New York Blue who will be representing the US in the 2008 World Championships in Nepal. Visit Jay's Blog: www.JayKubassek.com - Visit Jay Kubassek's Website |
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Michel NerayMichel Neray has over 25 years of experience as an award-winning copywriter, an Internet pioneer, a tradeshow pitchman and a senior sales and marketing executive. An online pioneer, he was one of the first marketing professionals to embrace the Internet by building websites as early as 1993. In 1994, Michel co-authored a book entitled "The Great Crossover: Personal Confidence in the Age of the Microchip", which made it to Jack Canfield's Achiever's Recommended Reading List. Michel founded Portfolios.com in 1995, the world's first online source directory for creative professionals and one of the first websites based on community generated content. Since creating The Essential Message in 2003, Michel has helped thousands of independent professionals and entrepreneurs as well as growing corporations find a better way to differentiate, position and brand themselves. In 2005, his chapter "Everything Starts With A Conversation" was selected as the lead for the book, "Sales Gurus Speak Out" and re-published in 2008 for 'Awakening The Workplace Volume 3'. He is also a co-author of "In the Company of Leaders" (2008) with 40 top North American leadership experts. - Visit Michel Neray's Website |
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Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
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