You may have heard about "viral marketing," but perhaps you
are not sure exactly what it is. Viral marketing simply means
using a marketing strategy that is designed to encourage people
to pass along your marketing message.
Many Web marketers are using games or short Flash movies
to encourage people to visit their Web sites and tell all
their friends to come, too. During the 2004 U.S. Presidential
election, the clever animation of Bush and Kerry singing "This
Land is Your Land" drew massive numbers of visitors to http://www.jibjab.com/
Some book publishers have started offering online trailers,
with a preview of the book, at their Web sites. For an example,
see http://www.smalldogspress.com/ Book trailers are usually
Flash movies that may combine author comments with visuals
and music. They are often similar to the movie trailers you
see for coming attractions.
Viral marketing is usually spread via email, and it may
be contained in an email. For example, a clever "Top Ten" list,
a touching story or a funny photo will be forwarded from
person to person.
How can you put this to work for you? Look for something
you can offer that people will pass along to their friends.
It should not be a purely commercial message, it must also
include utility, information or entertainment to interest
people enough to forward it to their friends.
Send your viral message to your mailing list, and encourage
them to pass it along to the people they know.
Copyright Cathy Stucker. As the IdeaLady, Cathy Stucker
helps authors, entrepreneurs and professionals attract customers
and make themselves famous. See the viral
marketing tools Cathy uses and download your free desktop
calendar at http://www.IdeaLady.com/
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