Viral marketing and WOM

There's been a fair amount of hype around web marketing circles for years now about viral marketing. The term itself isn't exactly geared to inspire confidence in the uninitiated, sounding as it does like some malignant form of web marketing. This is in direct opposition to what viral marketing really is. Viral marketing is really just an internet form of word-of-mouth (WOM).

Marketers have always done their best to harness the power of word-of-mouth for their clients. Word-of-mouth marketing involves harvesting the good opinion of individual consumers to encourage them to spread positive things about a business. It can be achieved in a number of ways, but one of the swiftest ways is with a viral campaign.

Viral marketing campaigns are so tempting to internet marketing gurus because they present a sort of short-cut form of word-of-mouth web marketing. Usually, word-of-mouth requires a positive opinion of a product or service. With viral campaigns, all that is required is something individuals want to share with their friends, be it entertainment, a useful piece of software, or a simple picture. This cuts through the usually lengthy process of presenting a product and nurturing positive opinions to the point where they're spread.

This form of internet marketing is a tricky one, which is why internet marketers don't use it all the time. It doesn't always work. Big corporations have been known to invest thousands of dollars into campaigns they hoped would go viral, without the desired result. At the same time, sole operators have sketched up a simple viral campaign out of nothing and netted millions of dollars worth of market attention. Virals are a variable form of marketing, and nothing is certain.

Viral campaigns are certainly worth considering if you're looking for something different for your website marketing plan. It's a good idea to research the form before you plunge in. Talk to us at Click Consult.