Viral marketing on social networks. Viral marketing in social networks

With the help of viral advertising, you can easily promote your products and services on the Internet, demonstrate presentation films, and videos. Many companies specially produce short funny films, flash cartoons, and create games that help familiarize a large audience with the material. Sometimes viral advertising is spread using a collection of interesting photos, reports on past promotional exhibitions, events, fashion shows, product demonstrations or food and beverage tastings.

Viral advertising has nothing to do with the spread of viruses that disrupt the operation of computers or cause illness. It is called so because it spreads at the speed of a viral infection. It’s enough to make interesting, original and unlike anything else material, and users of social networks begin to view it, passing on the information to their many friends and acquaintances.

Examples of successful viral video advertising

Here is a selection of the five most popular videos on the Internet:

Psychology of viral advertising

Talentedly created videos attract the attention of millions of users, literally encouraging them to share them with each other. The essence comes down to arousing genuine interest, surprising, and shocking users in some way. Word of mouth can work better than the most expensive advertising campaigns. Information literally reaches the most passive users in a matter of hours, and even the most distrustful and doubtful tend to believe it - after all, it comes from acquaintances and friends, from those people whom they are accustomed to trust.

Reasons for the popularity of viral marketing

Sell ​​products, inform target audience about the opening of a particular store, about the arrival of a new product on the market, it is very convenient with the help of viral marketing. Its advantage is that the degree of trust in conventional advertising has decreased quite significantly. People need to get information from people who are not interested in increasing sales. It is beneficial not to buy a new product yourself, but to first get feedback from those who have already done it. Therefore, those sites where reviews are posted are also very popular. Many forums have been created precisely for this purpose.

Competent marketers, when creating online stores, initially include the functionality to leave reviews for each product. Sometimes owners hire special staff to write these reviews, making them extremely reliable.

An example is the following facts: if on a forum someone advises you to buy this or that washing machine, says that it works reliably, washes perfectly and is silent, then most likely there will be a demand for this particular model in the store. If the same information is in an advertisement, it will simply be ignored.

The same can be observed in everyday life. If a neighbor or friend tells you that this cheese is delicious, then you are more likely to try it. But if the same cheese appears on posters, most people will not believe it. After all, many of us have become convinced of the possibilities of high-quality digital printing and the ability of advertisers to take beautiful pictures, but advertising tricks do not always correspond to reality.

High-quality viral advertising

Unfortunately, the success of viral advertising is impossible to calculate. You just have to hope for good result complying with the above requirements. Sometimes the most insignificant story becomes extremely popular, while others, in which a lot of money has been invested, remain unknown to anyone. It's worth remembering high competition on the Internet, that in addition to creating a video, you will also need to optimize your profile, select the right tags, and pay attention to the video from famous bloggers, members of forums and social networks.

Many people have heard about the term “viral marketing”, but not everyone knows what “viral marketing” is and how to use it, so today’s post is dedicated to this term, as it is very effective in use for .

What is viral marketing

Many Internet users do not trust various advertisements on websites and ignore it, so the goal of viral marketing is to arouse a person’s interest in information and gain his trust. For example, if a user sees an image of a product with advertising text on a social network, he or she will ignore it, but will listen or read it with interest positive feedback a living person about the purchased product and, most likely, he will have an interest in purchasing this highly praised product. And the living person who gives a positive review should under no circumstances be involved in any way with the company that sells this product.

This method of advertising distribution has a biological term in its name for a reason. Viral marketing is really similar to the biological process of spreading a virus; a person becomes so imbued with viral information that he begins to share it with friends and acquaintances. Basically, the spread of this type of virus is facilitated; the spread process occurs very quickly and, if the information is really interesting and is in demand among Internet users, then this process becomes difficult to stop.

The term “viral marketing” was first published in the article “The Virus of marketing”, it was 1996, the author of the article is Jeffrey Rayport. But I just can’t find this article on the Internet, at least I couldn’t find a Russian translation, but oh well, that’s not what it’s about.

Using viral marketing when working with affiliate programs

I will give an example from my practice. When I sold talking hamsters, I included advertising text a video about this hamster, this video amused people well and lifted their spirits, so my advertising post in Odnoklassniki spread across the social network at the speed of light.

When traditional online promotion methods don't work, it's time to look for a different, more creative approach to the problem. This could be viral advertising on the Internet. Viral advertising is one of the most effective ways business promotion. That is why such large brands as Samsung, Nintendo, Volkswagen and hundreds of others regularly use it in their advertising campaigns.

What is viral advertising and how does it work?

Viral advertising is any advertising on the network that is voluntarily distributed by users themselves. A sort of " word of mouth» XXI century. The fact is that trust in commercial advertising is now at a low level. Company promotion is not always led by a professional marketer. Therefore, the intrusiveness, irritability and uniformity of frankly bad advertising did their job - it became invisible to Internet users.

Viral advertising, unlike classic advertising, works on a different principle. Trust in it is due to the fact that it comes not from the company itself, but from acquaintances, friends, and relatives. Is there any reason for a person not to trust the opinions of loved ones? Definitely not. Everyone listens to advice and feedback real people much more than empty advertising promises. Therefore, when using viral advertising, it can give impressive results. But only if you approach its creation correctly.

History of Viral Marketing

The history of viral marketing begins with a 1996 article written by the founder and chairman of the division largest company for strategic consulting 'Marketspace LLC' - Jeffrey Rayport. In his article he also introduced concepts such as " psychological advertising", "socio-organic advertising" and "self-valued advertising".

According to the expert, the classic 20-30 second commercials between television programs are gradually becoming obsolete. Therefore, there is a need to organically fit advertising into the lives of consumers.

“Most marketers know that penetrating the consumer's mind is the most difficult task; the usual answer is to simply turn up the volume. Viruses are smarter: they find their way into consciousness under the guise of other, unrelated activities.” (excerpt from article)

In addition, Jeffrey Rayport has developed 6 rules for successful viral marketing. And, despite the fact that the article was written 20 years ago, these rules are still relevant.

Rules for successful viral marketing:

• Cunning is the essence of entering the market correctly.
• Give the client something for free - the profit will come later.
• Advertising must convey a message to the target audience.
• Advertising should look like an organism, not a virus.
• Harness the power of weak ties.
• Invest to reach the tipping point.

According to the expert, viral marketing can revolutionize the idea of ​​promotion. And, despite the fact that the effect is not immediately visible, the results can grow exponentially. Therefore, positive dynamics are a sure sign that viral marketing has worked.

Reasons for the popularity of viral marketing: pros and cons

IN Lately There is a lot of noise around viral marketing. Some argue that this method of promotion fits perfectly with modern consumer, others are ardent adherents traditional marketing doubt its effectiveness. Therefore, you need to consider the pros and cons of viral advertising.

• Cheap distribution. Promotion commercial it is carried out by the users themselves, so the costs of its distribution are significantly lower than classical promotion.
• Increased user confidence. Most often, viral advertising comes from people you know, which increases its credibility.
• Lack of intrusiveness. The user has the right to independently choose whether to open the link or not.
• Easy targeting. Channels for seeding are determined by the advertiser at its own discretion, taking into account the parameters of the target audience and the format of future advertising.
• No censorship. Using viral marketing, the advertiser receives complete freedom, or almost complete (videos of a pornographic, violent, etc. nature are prohibited).
• No time restrictions. If you compare viral videos with television advertising, there are no such restrictions as when using airtime.
• Large audience reach. When used correctly, advertising spreads like a virus, reaching audiences of millions.

• Difficulty in predicting the outcome. Viral advertising is unpredictable. You can hire a team of marketers and order a high-quality video that will only get a couple of thousand reposts. Then, an amateur video shot on a regular smartphone will easily cross the 1,000,000 mark.
• High cost of implementing the idea. The idea is the basis of viral marketing. And sometimes the budget for its implementation reaches six figures.
• Limited target audience. This type of marketing can only exist within the Internet space. It is impossible to implement it offline.

Examples of viral online advertising

To fully understand the essence of this marketing tool, you need to break it down into specific examples. There are thousands of them on the Internet, in particular on the popular video hosting site YouTube. Moreover, among them there are both brilliant ideas, not really.

• Photo.
• Video.
• By text.
• Application.

As examples, we need to consider all 4 types of viral advertising, which worked equally well.

• Viral photo from Nikon.

According to the marketing planners, it is immediately clear that the advertising is aimed primarily at a male audience. And on a budget advertising campaign the brand saved a lot without compromising the effectiveness of the viral photo.

• Viral video from the John Lewis chain of foreign department stores

The number of views of this video is simply off the charts - 26,630,934. Viral promotion of the video on YouTube also turned out to be very productive - almost 2 million reposts. His secret is simple - the video made the audience laugh sincerely. Of course, judging by the quality of the video, a lot of money was spent on implementing the author’s idea, but the result clearly paid for all the costs.

• Viral article on the Huffington Post website

• Promoting the Lipton brand through a viral application

The “Favorite Farm” application is widely known among users of the social networks vkontakte.ru, odnoklassniki.ru and mail.ru. The company, having integrated its brand into this application, attracted 1.3 million new users within one month.

There are many successful examples of successful viral marketing. But to launch required format advertising, you must first analyze the target audience and then determine distribution channels. Since the advertising format mainly depends on the platform where it is placed.

How to make viral advertising?

Inspired by the examples, you can start planning an advertising campaign own business. But the question immediately arises - where to start? And you need to start with the basics of viral advertising on the Internet.

Today there is no special technology for success in creating viral advertising. But according to the observations of marketers, there are standard techniques that increase the likelihood of its rapid spread. Users are most loyal to advertising that contains:

• Children.
• Animals.
• Stunts and special effects.
• Girls of model appearance (only for male audience).

But sometimes the psychology of viral advertising turns out to be much more complex. And materials that seem guaranteed to bring success remain unnoticed. In this case, we can only hope that next try will turn out to be more successful.

Viral advertising on VKontakte

Social networks are an excellent platform for spreading viral advertising. Users of social networks, in particular VKontakte, without any coercion, like, comment on posts, and repost content that interests them.

When viral advertising is ready for seeding, you need to immediately determine the channels for its promotion. If, at first glance, it seems that it is enough to throw it on your VK page and then it will promote itself, then this is not so. To spread a virus across a social network you need to:

• Select groups where concentrated greatest number target audience.
• Agree with the owner about publication.
• Track all events related to the advertising campaign.
• Prepare an escape route if viral advertising has the opposite effect.

It is worth noting that viral advertising does not always work as it should. Sometimes a provocative video becomes a reason for condemnation and a lot of negativity towards the company. To preserve the brand’s reputation, you need to immediately think of an option that could smooth out this situation.

An example is a video advertising the game Word of Tanks. There, Vadim Galygin, in the role of a father, locks his supposed son in a closet and nails him with boards in order to play the above-mentioned game. This story caused a lot of negativity and reproaches. The company was also accused of child abuse. Therefore, the company representative had to state that this video was not an official advertisement produced by their company.

Viral advertising on Instagram

Viral advertising on Instagram is most often presented in photo format. Text is not suitable, since users often do not read what is written under the photo. And YouTube is intended for viral video promotion; Instagram is used only as an additional channel for seeding.

• Unobtrusiveness. The words “Promotion”, “Sale”, “New” and other advertising cliches should not be mentioned in the photo and in the description below it.
• Humor or cuteness. Funny and touching photos are best promoted on Instagram. And there is a reason for this. According to statistics, the majority of the active audience on this social network are girls between 20 and 30 years old.
• Relevance. The message that the photo carries must correspond to current trends. In order not to make a mistake, you should conduct an analysis and study the interests of the target audience before creating advertising.
• Discussions. It’s good when advertising not only evokes positive emotions, but also provokes users to enter into a discussion. Therefore, the idea of ​​​​the plot must be controversial so that a person has a desire to express his point of view.
• Advertising message. In all circumstances, one must not forget to establish a connection with the brand. This could be a barely noticeable logo or the use of a unique product in the story, the sight of which makes it immediately clear who it belongs to. For example, black pumps with red soles are immediately associated with famous brand Christian Louboutin.

Popular public pages or accounts of opinion leaders are selected for distribution. The last option is the most effective. Because Instagram users watch the lives and publications of their idols with great interest.

How to create viral advertising in Odnoklassniki?

Odnoklassniki is a social network for a more mature generation of users. The main advantage of this social network is that “class” is both a like and a repost. Therefore, it is enough to make a post that users will simply like.

Most often, viral posts on Odnoklassniki are those with the caption “Do you remember this?”, “Have you had this happen too?” And so on. Therefore, when creating advertising in Odnoklassniki, it is best to “press” on nostalgia. The 40+ generation remembers their early years with pleasure.

To distribute viral advertising, as in other cases, you should select groups with big amount target audience. Promotion in Odnoklassniki occurs much faster than in other social networks. Because, by putting “class”, the user, without realizing it, promotes viral advertising among his friends.

Calculating the success of viral advertising

A sad fact that all marketers know is that the success of viral advertising cannot be calculated in advance. Therefore, no one can guarantee a positive result of an advertising campaign. If a “specialist” promises quick creation and distribution of a video, you should not order or trust him with business promotion. Conscious concealment of possible risks is not professional behavior of a marketer.

The success of viral advertising can be determined after 3 days from the date of its launch. This period marks the peak of its distribution after sowing. As research by Unruly Media shows, if an advertisement has not gained popularity within this period, we can consider that the advertising campaign has failed. Although in some cases life cycle Viral advertising can last up to 3 years.

Examples of viral advertising

Not really

Have you often come across the question: “What is viral marketing in in social networks? If you are promoting products and services through social platforms, the answer is most likely yes.

So, it is customary to call viral marketing methods of promoting advertising messages, where the recipients themselves act as the distributor of information (it is possible that in the era of the absence of the Internet this phenomenon was called much more simply - “word of mouth”). That is, the “needed” information is distributed without the participation of the person interested in it, in a progression close to geometric.

The effect of using such a tool can be either immediate (increase in the number of subscribers, likes, etc.) or slightly delayed in time, but constant and long-lasting. Perhaps, as often happens, having launched a “social virus”, you will receive “social dividends” for a year, or even more.

The channels used by viral social marketing are often difficult to access, unlike other methods of distributing advertising information.

Why is this effective?

Due to the decrease in user trust in various types of advertising messages, viral social marketing offers an alternative - “packaging” the main advertising message in the form of an information message from an uninterested person.

Let's look at several techniques for attracting users on social networks through the use of viral marketing tools.

No. 1. Social buttons

Simple and enough effective method, which involves placing social buttons that link to pages on social networks. So, if a person likes the material on your resource, he clicks on the button, displaying this action on his profile page. As a result, friends will see his like and, perhaps, will also be interested in the company’s services.

To increase the clickability of social buttons on the site, you can motivate users with gifts and other various incentives (even special services have been developed for this).

No. 2. We are writing a book

Creating your own e-book to go viral is also in a good way deliver your advertising message to your desired audience.

So, you present information on your topic, formatting it in e-book, and periodically link to your subscription page. After creating such a book, you try to distribute it on the Internet in all available ways.

No. 3. Making a video

Viral videos are often humorous sketches, similar in script to comedy films. People are much more willing to like a video and share it with others, creating a boom effect.

No. 4. We hold competitions and promotions

You have probably observed this phenomenon, the essence of which is the organization of an action or competition, where for certain actions readers receive some kind of gift, prize, monetary reward, etc.

Also an option effective promotion advertising in social media can become a viral marketing exchange. This phenomenon is relatively recent and not yet widespread (there are several such exchanges, for example Sarafanka.com, Plibber, etc.).

More details about efficient work in the social media space, as well as details about how to organize and launch your own virus that will bring new visitors and subscribers, you can find out by visiting the SNCE (Social Networking Congress & Expo) exhibition and conference, which will be held in March in Moscow.

SNCE annually becomes a place where the social media community gathers to find new partners and clients, as well as receive up-to-date information about the latest trends and technologies.

Regular advertising on the Internet does not provide the desired conversion? No wonder. Internet users are so tired of annoying advertising messages, videos, banners and other things that on a subconscious level they try to avoid them. What to do in this case? Stop advertising? Of course not! It is possible and necessary to advertise a product and/or company, it just needs to be done more competently, unobtrusively, interestingly, and originally. Content must be presented in such a way that users themselves want to not only perceive, but also disseminate information. We are talking, as you understand, about viral advertising.

Viral advertising got its name because it literally “infects” the audience with its idea and spreads like a real virus. Thanks to its originality, it is well remembered and quickly transferred from user to user. But such success is possible provided that advertising helps solve consumer problems and can reach the maximum audience. The easiest way for viral advertising to spread is through social networks, forums, Email, i.e. through the capabilities of the Internet.

Advantages of viral advertising

• Benefit. Creating and distributing a “virus” is much cheaper than launching a traditional advertising campaign, since in this case you only spend money on creating a video, and distributing it is completely free, while for each impression traditional advertising you have to pay.
• Scale. If viral advertising is successful, the reach of the target audience will be simply enormous and the cost of 1 contact with a consumer will be minimal.
• Freedom from censorship. Of course, everything should be adequate. However, viral advertising is not subject to advertising law.

So, we come to the most important questions. How to create viral advertising? What viral marketing methods exist? We have to disappoint you: there is no universal algorithm of actions or uniform recommendations. Each company, each product has its own individual characteristics, its own target audience, so viral advertising should be different, unique, aimed specifically at the interests and needs of potential customers. However, we will highlight the key points used when creating any viral advertising.

Stages of developing viral advertising on the Internet

1. Unobtrusiveness. Advertising should not be intrusive; the key message should be clear, but not “shout” to the viewer: “Buy me!”
2. Humor . Note that the most popular viral videos are usually humorous. Although this is not a panacea. Your idea may not be compatible with laughter and evoke completely different emotions.
3. Relevance . It is important that your idea corresponds to current events in the world, people's mentalities, and pressing problems of society.
4. Positive emotions. We talked about how viral advertising should evoke emotions. Disgust, anger, contempt are also emotions, but you should not evoke negative feelings in people, otherwise they will be associated with your product/service and the company as a whole.
5. Novelty. The idea must be unique, one that no one has used before.
6. Discussions. Your advertising should provoke people to discuss and express their opinions. Only then will they begin to broadcast this on their pages on social networks and forums.
7. Advertising message. In pursuit of originality and creativity, do not forget about the message you want to convey to your target audience.

Thus, in the first 3 days after the launch of a viral advertising campaign, you can immediately determine its success in the future.

Examples of cool viral advertising for inspiration

Disney Characters Surprise Shoppers video - shared 3,757,909 times.

Video Love Has No Labels - shared 2,741,138 times.

Budweiser USA video: #BestBuds - shared 2,511,546 times.

Video “The first day of your new life” - 1,919,525 views.

Video “You have something to be proud of” - 8,235,902 views.

The animated video “Stupid Ways to Die” has received more than 30 million views.

Video “The end of the world during an interview.”

Check out these examples of viral marketing and get inspired! And also stay tuned for updates to our articles and learn new useful information to develop your business and increase your sales.