Spreading the Viral Marketing Fever

By Staff Writer

Viral marketing is a low-cost and energy-efficient addition to your current marketing channels.

Big promotions and creative marketing campaigns can be time-consuming and costly-especially for small businesses. The solution? Get your current customers to do some of the work for you. When they spread the word about your site to their friends, colleagues and family, you'll not only notice an increase in site traffic, but an increase in qualified visitors: people who intentionally come to you, based on a recommendation from someone they trust. Viral marketing is a low-cost and energy-efficient addition to your current marketing channels. But instead of sitting around waiting (and waiting, and waiting) for it to happen, take an active role in your word-of-mouth plan. Make it viral.


Why "Viral"?

True, it's a rather grim term, but the essence is on-target. When a virus spreads, its effects are wide reaching and can multiply exponentially as momentum builds-exactly how you want word of your business to spread. Even if one customer tells only two friends about your site, and those two friends each tell two more, the growth you'll see over time can be enormous-and can start with just one person.

Look at Hotmail for an example. When it launched in 1996, the e-mail service included a small advertisement with a clickable URL at the bottom of every message. Each email that was sent acted as a small, subtle sales pitch, and every recipient was getting a tacit recommendation from someone they knew. The effect was astounding. Hotmail subscribers went from zero to 12 million in eighteen months-the fastest growth of any company, in any media, ever. When their competitors were spending upwards of $20 million on marketing and seeing far fewer results, Hotmail spent a mere $50,000 and became the largest email provider in countries where it had done no marketing at all.

Although your customers do the bulk of the work, the success of your viral marketing campaign depends on you starting the charge. Here are some simple ways you can get started.

Steps to Spreading It

The easier it is for people to spread the word, the more likely they are to do it.

1. Share your Web site. With a few links and java script, you can encourage visitors to "Email this page to a friend." Include visible links on product pages as well as on informative articles or news stories. Remember: The easier it is for people to spread the word, the more likely they are to do it.

2. Include links in all emails. You probably won't see Hotmail-like results, but a link back to your site in every email is an easy way to drive traffic.

3. Offer incentives. Whether it’s a discount for emailing five friends or an extended subscription in reward for referrals, incentives provide a tangible encouragement for your customers spread the word.

4. Build up affiliates. Encourage other site owners to link to your products. Your affiliate program doesn’t have to be costly or complex to be extremely effective.

5. Send out content. Write articles about your particular area of expertise and send them out. Offer your expert content free to other sites with the stipulation that they link back to your site.

6. Encourage forwarding. If you send out direct email, include a brief reminder encouraging readers to forward the message to their friends. [Note: Do not consider the referral an opt-in to receive future emails. Unless the friend volunteers their information, contacting them could be considered spam.]

7. Get creative. Community chat rooms, message boards, and email greeting cards are just some of the ways you can get people to spread the word about your business.

Your word-of-mouth campaign won’t get off the ground unless you give people something they’ll want to tell their friends about!

Value Makes Viral Work
A valuable product is the crucial point on which viral marketing hinges. Your word-of-mouth campaign won't get off the ground unless you give people something they'll want to tell their friends about! Consider what customers will be likely to share-informative content, high-quality products-and take it from there. Then, offer them simple ways to share their find and the momentum will build, increasing your business buzz in no time.