My last post on Viral Marketing was pretty well received so I thought I would follow it up.

You hear quite a bit about viral marketing in my business these days. Like the old shampoo commercial it used to be that “they told two friends and they told two friends and so on…”

What has happened lately is that the two friends that you told may be able to tell two thousand “friends” and so on…

Mass communication has never been easier. I read on a Search Engine Guide Blog post recently that of all online users

• 89% share by email
• 24% share business or personal finance info
• 63% share content at least once a week
• 25% share daily
• Only 5% won’t share at all

I’m not sure where these numbers came from, but if they are true it seems to me that if you can create something that people like that they will pass it around. Once that starts it can just keep getting bigger by leaps and bounds.

The big trick is to find something that speaks well about your brand that people will want to pass along. Have a look at your own inbox. Does anyone ever pass along a something that is obviously just an ad for a business? It rarely happens and when it does it is usually a funny video that can be enjoyed by someone who is not interested in what they have to offer.

Here’s what I have found to be the things that get passed around the most:

• Funny and entertaining – You need to be sure that any joke is at your expense. If you make fun of someone else (even a competitor) it will come back to haunt you.
• Educational – There are probably plenty of things that you can teach. Some free advice that can benefit most anyone.
• Warnings – These can be true or not. I would stay away from this one unless you relate it to the Educational type above. For example if home burglaries are on the rise and you offer an alarm system or some other deterrent. Be careful if you do this because an untrue warning or an extreme alarm could again be harmful to your campaign.

You want your company to be seen in a positive light without being too self promoting and that’s a fine line to walk.
To find out more about this see this article on the Search Engine Guide Blog by Diane Aull

Read – Unleashed Viral Marketing Workshop

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