I am here at the New Communication Forum and plan to do some live blogging now that my session with Linda Zimmer about Second Life is over (thanks to Joe you can read about that session at his blog).
I am attending an interesting session on “Viral marketing: It’s the message, not the media” led by Susan Getgood, along with panelists Andy Abramson, Gary Goldhammer, and Chris Heuer.
Susan posited that there are five excellent ways to approach viral marketing:
5 Cs of Viral Marketing
- Community
- Compelling
- Comedy
- Charity
- Contests
Will It Blend made a series of viral videos that show the efficacy of its product, while managing to be really funny.
The panelists gave several case studies that embodied some of these qualities. Good stuff.
- Google
- Coca Cola & MentosXbox
- ColonyAXE
- GamekillersMillers
- Beer Cannon, a successful viral campaign (in terms of numbers that eatched it), but that didn't convert to sales, in fact market share dropped during/after the campaign
I think that understanding what makes something viral is just as important for public relations practitioners as it is for those in marketing. More important, is what qualities make viral campaigns actually work. Just because a campaign is popular doesn't translate to sales or enhanced credibility. Consider the light bright debacle in Boston where the viral devices were mistaken for bombs. I would say that was successfully viral, but not successful in the goal of promoting the show.
What are your favorite viral campaigns? What do you think makes a viral campaign work?
