| Viral marketing has an array of possibilities | | | | The study generated some interesting results |
| and ways to achieve your overall goals. | | | | regarding the type of content that is most |
| However, just like everything else, | | | | often forwarded, as well. The most popular |
| preplanning and the right setup to create | | | | content is humorous material. |
| success are the things you will need to make | | | | |
| it work for you and your e-business. | | | | The second most popular category is news, |
| | | | followed by healthcare and medical |
| The first thing you want to be sure you don't | | | | information, religious and spiritual |
| do is get over-zealous. The one thing you | | | | material, games, business and personal |
| need to avoid at all costs is spamming. | | | | finance information and sports/hobbies in |
| Spamming is still used widely, but with the | | | | that order. So it is easy to see that humor |
| government establishing more restrictions and | | | | is the best content for your viral e-mail |
| fines you don't want this to be a problem for | | | | campaign. |
| you. The professional image of your site will | | | | |
| also suffer if you send mail blatantly. | | | | Cartoons, jokes and funny video clips are |
| | | | among the things that can be added to an |
| Spamming requires a database that contains a | | | | e-mail to insure that it will go viral. |
| huge list of e-mail addresses set up so that | | | | People will want to pass along something that |
| the message can be delivered with one click. | | | | makes them laugh. |
| The problem with it (aside from the | | | | |
| governmental restrictions and associated | | | | They are a lot more likely to hit the forward |
| fines) is that it irritates the recipients | | | | button and send your email to their friends |
| and kills the validity of your campaign, | | | | and relatives if it is an "advertainment" |
| which in turn kills the factors that would | | | | rather than an advertisement. |
| motivate someone to refer your site. | | | | |
| | | | Not along ago, about 35 million people got an |
| You need to personalize by creating your | | | | e-mail containing a picture taken in |
| website with personal appeal. You must see to | | | | Disneyland. It took a minute to see it but |
| it that your website makes your customers | | | | there was Donald Duck lying prone in front of |
| feel safe, secure and cared for. E-mail is | | | | the famous Cinderella Castle. The title of |
| important, because it is going to be one of | | | | the picture was "Bird Flu has hit |
| the most affordable ways to keep in touch | | | | Disneyland". It was a viral e-mail |
| with your customers. | | | | advertising Disneyland and used the edgy |
| | | | strategy of making light of what's serious |
| The proper way to handle email permission is | | | | and it works. |
| to first let your customer know that you will | | | | |
| not transmit their e-mail addresses to third | | | | I'd guess that most people who own a computer |
| party companies. The next thing to do is to | | | | have seen that picture and thus the |
| attach the need for their e-mail addresses to | | | | advertisement for Disneyland. The bird flu |
| benefits they can receive. | | | | epidemic is newsworthy and has the potential |
| | | | to attract an enormous amount of attention to |
| For example: Coupons or discounts that are | | | | any brand that might, for whatever reason, |
| only available to members who receive e-mail | | | | associate itself with it. |
| notifications. With each e-mail you send the | | | | |
| viral marketing effect takes place. | | | | Remember that people are much more likely to |
| | | | share a joke or a funny picture than anything |
| A study by Sharpe Partners, an interactive | | | | else so you would be well advised to include |
| marketing agency, revealed that 89% of adult | | | | humor in your e-mail campaign. |
| Internet users in America share content with | | | | |
| others via e-mail. This is excellent news for | | | | So there you go! Those are the sneaky ways |
| those companies who use self-propelling | | | | you can apply to your subscriber's email |
| word-of-mouth e-mail techniques to sell their | | | | addresses and thus, increase your viral |
| products. | | | | marketing potential. |
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