effort at online exposure, period. It's akin to a TV show becoming a hit, or
a movie raking in blockbuster gross sales. It can even be compared to a toy
or item of clothing becoming the "hot" thing for the season.
So are these all comparable, or really just the same thing?
What exactly is something that's "gone viral" and why do some things "go
viral" while others don't? Can this be predicted, or is it completely up to
a whim or some ethereal "x factor" that some things have and others just don't?
The Facts of ( Viral ) Life
So what does viral mean? Viral refers to something that self-propagates, or
in the marketing sense, something that spreads by word-of-mouth,
peer-to-peer, as opposed to strictly from an official advertisement.
Going viral is valuable because the intended audience does all the heavy
advertising work for you, ideally at an exponential rate. This saves money
and resources in advertising costs and usually means more potent audience
penetration; people are more apt to believe their peers than an
advertisement.
People like to hear themselves talk, not be talked at. So when someone with
similar interests whose opinion you hold in high regard recommends
something, you are more likely to follow up on that suggestion than if you
received that same call-to-action from some generic public advertisement.
Viral advertising or marketing is any specific advertisement or campaign
that is ultimately intended to go viral. Usually these campaigns need to be
highly unorthodox or creatively unusual in order for them to virally spread.
In fact, many campaigns even appear as "real" or non-commercial in order to
gain more viral effect.
Viral engagement is a more accurate term and perspective towards viral
marketing. Because viral campaigns depend on an intimately enraptured
audience for their exposure, this type of marketing isn't just a typical
"advertise once, then done." It's more of a continuous dialog, and as such,
the nature of the campaign in progress may even evolve or radically change
in order to retain its audience and/or attract more. It is less of a
campaign towards a target and more of a dialog.
If traditional marketing is a lecture, then viral engagement is a keenly
interesting conversation. There's contribution, reaction, and progress from
both parties, not just the initial speaker.
So the next question is what makes something viral? The better question is:
what makes something worth sharing? And the most key question of them all
is, why would you, yes you, share something?
Going viral is most known on the Web, but really it applies everywhere. What
is it about a movie that compels you to recommend it to a friend? Or for
that matter, not to recommend it? Or a book, or a restaurant? Is it because
that TV show or hotel was fairly good? Or was it simply because you were
asked about your experiences with it?
Why would you pass on some piece of content to a friend? Is it because it
made you laugh? Made you cry? Made you emotional? Was it scandalous? Did it
make your curious? Was it greatly informative, perhaps on a topic you had no
prior interest in or even knew existed? Did this content stump you, surprise
you, or shock you? Or was it crafted so beautifully and in itself such a
thing of beauty and art, that you had to share it with others? Or maybe, you
simply wanted someone else to experience what you just experienced to feel
like you did.
Maybe you are trying to initiate an empathic session, so that you can bond
together afterwards by benefit of the mutual experience.
my motto is "Keep it simple" and "don't leave anything for tomorrow that can
be done today."
If you have any questions or comments please contact me.
Regards Gerald
Website: http://www.webcraft.ws
E-mail: gerald@webcraft.ws
Twitter: WebcraftGuru
Facebook: Webcraft Guru
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