Marketing on the web has some unique attributes that other types of marketing cannot necessarily enjoy. Something called viral marketing, which can refer to anything from branding to backend sales to word of mouth advertising, is prevalent on the internet. Viral marketing can be incredibly lucrative.
The value of viral marketing is of such import that examples abound everywhere on the internet.
Viral marketing, or can be called viral advertising, or marketing buzz, are buzzwords referring to marketing techniques that use the existing social networks and websites to produce increases of brand awareness or to achieve other marketing objectives such as product sales through self-replicating viral processes. It can be delivered by word of mouth or enhanced by the network effects of the internet.
One of the greatest ways to build confidence in a product or service is through word-of-mouth advertising. Most people believe that this is only possible in real, live, face-to-face conversations, but that is just not true. With the prevalence of text messaging, blogs, instant messages, and emails, word of mouth advertising can actually be achieved via the internet.
After all, the bulk of communication, particularly for younger people, has moved online. This is but one example of the value of viral marketing. Advertisers are getting into this vast network of potential customers can make their way to success.
One of the ways in which you accomplish viral marketing is through entertainment on video clips, interactive games, advergames, ebooks, brandable software, images, text messages, etc., that are being shared with millions of users. Often those have advertising attached. Therefore, the value of viral marketing can be recognized by those who know that literally millions of people are being reached by this form of publicity.
Consider also the exponential effects of passing along an email to everyone in an inbox. If one person sends a message to ten, and of those, five pass it along to another ten, and so forth, then, in a matter of days, an immeasurable number of people will have received advertisements from people they know. Therein lies the value of viral marketing.
Similarly, backend sales are a great way to realize the value of viral marketing. Backend sales refer to sales to existing customers. In essence, once you have established a good relationship with a satisfied customer, they are likely to be willing to purchase more from you as their trusted source. Likewise, branding is another great example of this type of marketing.
Once a consumer recognizes a brand that can be trusted and relied upon, they are more likely to come back for more. They are also more likely in both of these instances to tell their friends how much they enjoy your products - which, of course, is word-of-mouth advertising or viral marketing.
This has become a lot easier since social media is popular for viral marketing
Whether it is through word of mouth, backend sales, or branding, the value of viral marketing cannot be discounted.