viral

The notion that an idea can become contagious, in precisely the same way that a virus does, is at once common-sensical and deeply counter-intuitive. So writes Malcolm Gladwell in his introduction to Seth Godin's revolutionary book Unleashing The Ideavirus.

Thinkers such as Godin and Gladwell have changed the way people think about marketing. Instead of yelling at full volume to get attention, successful businesses, artists and publishers are telling stories that people want to spread.

While advertising agencies work round the clock to create viral campaigns for their clients, the new marketers insist that real glory is reserved for those who build viral into the product, rather than try to add a viral component to the marketing. In other words, viral marketing is not a marketing strategy.

But don't be discouraged if your products don't fit the viral model, because you can still create an excellent word of mouth campaign. Just remember that stories spread only because people want to spread them. So create stuff worth caring about and find the best tools for spreading your content and you're in with a chance.

by Simon Synett Are you a writer, passionate about this or any other topic? Join Blogcritics!

Original Technorati articles tagged “viral”

• in Videos
  Viral Video Contest: What's Your Fix?
  Make a viral video for a chance to win a trip for two to the red carpet premiere of Fix in New York.
  by bryanmckay / on Oct 23, 2009
• in Videos
  Sarah Silverman Plans to End World Hunger
  Sell The Vatican, Feed The World.
  by bryanmckay / on Oct 13, 2009

Latest blogosphere posts tagged “viral”

• Popular Viral Marketing Techniques

  
  WordPress Rocket — Authority: 143
  Viral Marketing is all about giving away your own free product or service along with your ad copy (contact information, link, email, etc.). In turn, recipients of your free product are allowed to pass it along to their own clients, prospects, visitors and others as a freebie. This is a quick way to multiple your ...
  6 hours ago

• Creepy Kris Kringles - Sketchy Santas Showcases the Unsightly Side of Christmas (GALLERY)

  
  TrendHunter.com - Marketing Strategy — Authority: 682
  (TrendHunter.com) Sometimes a coworker uncovers something so magical, so special, that it requires the entire office to stop and marvel in awe of its viral glory. This year, we have Sketchy Santas. Featuring sauced up…
  6 hours ago

• Grindcore Baby

  
  Knifefightingjesus.com — Authority: 132
  Metal Larry?
  7 hours ago

• Misplaced Media Anger - Speedskater Shani Davis Calls Stephen Colbert a Jerk for Bashing Canada (GALLERY)

  
  TrendHunter.com - Marketing Strategy — Authority: 682
  (TrendHunter.com) Looks like U.S. speedskater Shani Davis may need an explanation of the phenomenon known as ‘sarcasm.’ Stephen Colbert, who has been sponsoring the U.S. Olympic Speedskating team for the Winter Olympics,…
  7 hours ago

• Video of Lorn live at Viral Radio

  
  Viral Radio — Authority: 107
  
  7 hours ago

• Pink Glove Dance

  
  AdPharm Blog — Authority: 153
  200-plus doctors, nurses and Providence St. Vincent Center hospital staffers joined together to create this video that went viral on Youtube to raise breast cancer awareness. From the YouTube page: Our employees put together this video to generate breast cancer awareness throughout our hospital system. We had a ...
  9 hours ago

• Top 10 Virals In November

  
  buZzhunt.co.uk — Authority: 129
  The list is compiled by video distribution agency goviral, pimped by Kuaga. 1. Cullman Liquidation – Mobile Homes. Two enthusiasts launched an online initiative “I Love Commercials”. The website offers internet users to nominate their favorite local business for a free video commercial. One of the lucky ...
  11 hours ago

• Hepatitis C Could Be Next ‘Big Virus’

  
  Stupidica — Authority: 177
  LAS VEGAS — Amid the alphabet soup of hepatitis virus types, the one that should most concern physicians these days is hepatitis C. “This is going to be the big virus in the next 20 years in the U.S.,” Dr. Marsha H. Kay predicted at a meeting sponsored by the American Academy of Pediatrics. In fact, at a recent ...
  14 hours ago

• Where Santa Claus Comes From

  
  YesButNoButYes Reader Comments — Authority: 640
  Maybe you heard the story of Santa Claus arrived in America from the Dutch legend of Sinter Klaas in the 17th century. Or that Santa comes from the story of an old Turkish monk named St. Nicholas. Or hes a jolly old Eastern European chap named Kris Kringle.Well, you might be wrong. If you live in Rovaniemi, Lapland ...
  14 hours ago

• The Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad, Fear Mongering, Profiling, Flight 297 Viral E-Mail

  
  Broadway Carl's Blog-O-Mania — Authority: 139
  I received a forwarded e-mail (the worst kind) today from a friends mother who usually sends me these kinds of e-mails in order to debunk them. Being as shes a reasonably liberal older person in a conservative town, shes more often than not a target for such fear mongering, smear e-mails. This one was a great read, ...
  16 hours ago

• Car Flipped By Wrecking Ball, Real or Fake? [Viral Videos]

  
  Mashable! — Authority: 860
  A recent video on YouTube, which shows a car hit by a large wrecking ball, is fast approaching viral status on the site. The video description attempts to paint the incident as real and claims that a, “Dodge minivan that entered a closed construction zone in Manhattan was accidentally hit and flipped over by the ...
  16 hours ago

• Slingers Teaser Via Mike Sizemore

  
  Out On The Stoop — Authority: 121
  The people that I meet online lead me to other people I should know. Some days I drop into another world . It is a intro for a potential new show, not clear if it is traditional television or perhaps a new web serial. Works for me either way.
  18 hours ago

• ‘Pink Glove Video’ Takes Over the Net

  
  Blippitt.com — Authority: 553
  The Pink Glove Video has exploded across the internet. It was filmed at the Providence St. Vincent Medical Center in Oregon and depicts the staff dancing while donning pink latex gloves. Set to Jay Sean ’s “Down,” the video has logged over 3 million views on YouTube to raise breast cancer awareness. The clip ...
  21 hours ago

• Preposterous Pet Pictures - Glamourpuss, the Enchanting World of Kitty Wigs (VIDEO)

  
  TrendHunter.com - Marketing Strategy — Authority: 682
  (TrendHunter.com) The people of Glamourpuss have lost their cat-loving minds. Maybe theyve been smoking the catnip, or maybe they were born crazy--whatever the reason, the new book Glamourpuss: The Enchanting World of…
  21 hours ago

• Pink Glove Dance Video Goes Viral

  
  Understanding Marketing — Authority: 430
  Have you seen the pink glove dance video making it’s way around the Internet? We’re posting the pink glove dance video here for two reasons: 1. It’s another great example of guerrilla marketing at its finest and an example of how a video can go viral. 2. We’re always big proponents to talk about raising ...
  23 hours ago

• Cops: Gangster Rapper Edition (MySpace Exclusive)

  
  ValleyPop | Published News — Authority: 177
  22 Vote(s)
  1 day ago

• How we learn the jargon

  
  WoW.com — Authority: 654
  We get a lot of requests here on the site from researchers trying to study you World of Warcraft players. Everybody with a research grant, apparently, wants to study you -- your psychology , your interaction , and the relationship you have with your avatar . We get so many requests, actually, that we usually have ...
  1 day ago

• GirlInYourShirt Has Big Plans For 2010

  
  THE Tech Scoop — Authority: 122
  She gets  paid to wear your company t-shirt and talk about you on her internet news show. That’s been at the core of the marketing service that Jenaé Plymale has been providing her clients since she began her GirlInYourShirt company back in 2008. Brilliant !!Interestingly enough, I pitched her services to my ...
  1 day ago

• AvantTrash 12 Days of Xmas: Day 12 – Ding! Fries Are Done!

  
  AvantTrash — Authority: 118
  According to Wikipedia, the 12 days of Christmas are supposed to be from Christmas Day to “The Epiphany” and not the 12 days leading up to the Holiday, but I’m pretty sure they made it all up anyway . So here at AvantTrash we are going to instead countdown our 12 favorite Holiday Memes and Videos! Day 12 = ...
  1 day ago

• Singing Cat iPhone Apps - Cat Chorus Lets You Wish Friends a "Meowy Christmas" Keyboard Cat-Style (VIDEO)

  
  TrendHunter.com - Marketing Strategy — Authority: 682
  (TrendHunter.com) What better way than to wish a kitty Meowy Christmas than with this new iPhone app? See Here Studios LLC, an animation company in the San Francisco Bay area, has just released two iPhone apps in time for…
  1 day ago

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