Last week I introduced the topic of viral marketing or advertising. Now it’s time to find out how to use it right. The beauty of viral marketing is that it’s all about what’s new. There are no rules except for one: make it fun.
Here’s an important checklist to bear in mind:
No advertising! One of the biggest mistakes is to treat your viral marketing like standard advertising, where you promote your product or service. Standard ads focus on the subject, showing how good it is.
But viral marketing is all about a story; it’s not about selling your product but about creating awareness and a ‘buzz’ around it. Some of the best viral ads do not even show the product!
Play with emotions. The trick is to awake viewers’ feelings, make them love or hate, happy or angry, compassionate or egotistic – it’s their adrenaline you’re after.
Where traditional marketing is neutral, trying to please all viewers, viral marketing is all about emotions. The more emotions you elicit, the more people will share your ad.
Be creative. In viral marketing there are no repeats. If you want people to notice your ad, come up with something different. And again, forget about your product and how great it is – every traditional ad does that – and create an unexpected, surprising story that will be remembered.
Don’t stop. Once your first viral ad becomes noticed, prepare the next one. In viral marketing it’s all about momentum. You can create similar movies, such as a ‘behind the scenes’ of your first ad and more – your imagination is the only limit.
Allow sharing. Make sharing of your ad as easy as possible, and do not restrict access. Your ad has to be free and easy to download, copy and publish – only this way can it become viral.
Marcin Kulik is the owner of MK Design Studio, a creative web design agency based in Malahide Co Dublin.
E-mail: m.kulik@mkdesign.ie Web: www.mkdesign.ie
