I’m pals with Michael Werner, CEO of InfoSource, Inc. (ISI), a developer and custom solution provider of Web-based, computer-based and instructor-led training, and for as long as I’ve known him, he’s been fascinated with the concept of viral marketing.
Can’t really hold that against him. As Wikipedia explains, “[v]iral marketing is a marketing phenomenon that facilitates and encourages people to pass along a marketing message voluntarily” through established social networks, with “voluntarily” (TRANSLATION: extraordinarily cheap, extensive and fast) being key.
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It’s the Internet age’s word-of-mouth, and the prospect of it is orgasmic stuff for any marketer.
Michael and his ISI gang sure have tried to get some VM-action going through the years. I dimly remember, for example, previewing some humor vidclips (I repeat, dimly, which tells you how well they worked). They had other gimmicky attempts too besides the vids, none of which I recall, even dimly. I guess it’s safe to describe ISI’s marketing then as virus-free.
A couple of weeks ago, Michael asked me to design an HTML-formatted email for him, to be sent out to their education market contacts announcing a new absolutely free service ISI put together called Simple Assessment. In short, SA’s an online tool to help educators easily assess their students’ technological proficiency. Again, absolutely free. And again, that was about two weeks ago.
At the end of last week, Michael reported SA had already generated more business leads than they could keep up with. The email was being passed around and forwarded. The service and URL announced and published in newsletters, blogs, state education discussion boards and other communiques. And traffic to the site had exploded.
Simple Assessment had gone viral. In a week.
According to Michael, with ‘08 being the company’s 25th anniversary, SA was put together to give something back to the educational community, the “very group of people who’d been religious users of our products over the years and has helped us grow.” So they gave them SA, something they can actually use (and something they actually need and want, right now), at no cost.
No gimmicks. Unlike every single of their previous attempts at going viral. They weren’t even trying this time around.
I don’t think you need me to explain the “secret” here any further. — EES
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August 19th, 2008 at 11:35 am
Nope, no secret — viral marketing works the absolute best when it concerns 2 things–1)a very useful product that is 2) FREE. While that seems to negate a really good marketing plan what makes it great is the possibility of bring an entirely new audience to your website because of the ‘gimme’.
August 19th, 2008 at 2:29 pm
Tami:
a. Didn’t you wonder why the word “secret” was in quotes?
b. You missed a very critical third element. Useful and free aren’t enough to go viral. It’s in the piece. Of course, I’m going to have fun and not make it too easy for you guys, and will let you figure it out from the piece.
:)
ees
August 19th, 2008 at 2:35 pm
Yes, lol I did, I didn’t mean to imply you thought it was some sort of big secret… and the ‘big easy’ is obviously part of it as well… oh, by the way, (not that I really needed the email sub since I check here all the time anyway) I subbed and got those two free ebooks — pretty awesome stuff, thanks! (hey, lookie there, free, easy, and cool info) It’ll get you a few shout outs on a couple of my blogs too when I get around to it today.