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An ever attractive form of creating awareness online is with the use of creating a viral campaign. That said, making something viral is not the goal.

It’s the same way an illness gets transmitted virally, when contact is made between one person and another. Proliferation happens when one person comes into contact with many, and so on.

One person passing something to 10 people multiplied just five times = 100,000 people.

That’s why creating a marketing message that becomes viral is so powerful, the key word being BECOMES.

As marketers we can not make something successful, in the same way that a musician can not guarantee a successful record.

What we can do is give people a reason to pass something on. When the initial product is good, the Internet and motivation to ‘tell our friends’ are the methods to pass that on.

So, work on the rule that there are really only two aspects of the technique that you can really control:

1. We can create the great product/marketing message in the first place. Something worthwhile, different and WORTH talking about.
2. We can start the ball rolling by initially talking to the right people. Tactics can be employed but they need to be appropriate.

Two Books these points remind me of:

1. Seth Godin - Purple Cow. A book about being remarkable, ie. something worth remarking on to someone else. (Wikipedia Ref.)
2. Malcolm Gladwell - Tipping Point. Learn why it’s important who you tell and the way you tell them if you want something to catch on. (Wikipedia ref.)

Examples

I was discussing this with Lorraine and Sarah-Anne over at Wildfire PR this morning and Lorraine sent this great example - Free Rice. If you like word play, you’ll love it.

The point is this. When it’s done right, it works. People can;t wait to tell their friends.

But, I can imagine there are a hell of a lot of micro sites and ‘viral’ campaigns out there with no-one watching. One, because they are force-fed to the audience rather than allowed to become viral. And two, because the concept is not that remarkable in the first place.