Goodbye viral marketing, hello social marketing

The term “viral marketing” contains the word “viral”, which is derived from the word “virus”. Dictionary.com describes the word “virus” as “infectious agent that replicates only within the cells of living hosts” as well as “a segment of self-replicating code planted illegally in a computer program, often to damage or shut down a system or network”.

None of these definitions convey the impression that a virus moves around with its host's permission. In fact, in most cases, a virus host has no idea that it is actually spreading the virus in the first place.

So why then do marketers bandy around the term “viral marketing” like it's a good thing?

The term viral marketing was coined to describe the Hotmail phenomenon where every user of the service became an unwilling advocate. Every email sent from Hotmail contained a short advert at the bottom that told the recipient about the free email service. The sender never had an opportunity to switch this facility off, and by merely using the service, they helped to spread its message.

Conversely, a site like Facebook requires each participant to willingly invite friends in order to grow their own network, and that of their friends. The size of both Hotmail and Facebook's audience indicates that both methods are successful, but which one has emerged to be more popular in the long run?

It is therefore important to understand the difference between a viral marketing campaign, where the message is spread involuntarily, and a social marketing campaign, where participants are both willing and eager to participate.

The clear difference between viral marketing and social marketing is the consent of the participant. Typically, social marketing is more difficult to execute. To begin with, it requires the permission of the participant; and for maximum effectiveness, it would require the participant to make a conscientious choice to get involved and spread the word.

Traditionally, marketers have used incentives as a means of gaining the minimum level of permission required to move the message around. But with each promotion, the need to offer bigger, better and more original incentives drives the costs of such campaigns higher and higher, while the returns from each campaign continue to decrease. Is an incentive therefore the best way to perpetuate a marketing message?

With viral marketing, it is. With social networking, it's not.

The reason for this is due to the key difference between the two marketing methods. Viral marketing involves unwilling participants who would prefer not to pass on your message, but may if the benefit is suitable. On the other hand, social marketing involves a willingness of participants to pass along the message, and therefore less physical or monetary incentive should be required.

Let's look at it another way. In social marketing, the social aspect of the campaign IS the incentive. By tapping into society's inherent need for social acceptance, marketers can leverage unique personality types and traits in order to have their message spread around without too much effort.

There are numerous personality types to consider when designing a social marketing campaign. Some examples include:

1. The first to introduce a new idea; participants want to be seen as an innovator and market leader, and want to be the first to introduce friends and colleagues to new and exciting ideas.
2. The first to send on something funny; participants want to be known for their sense of humour, and for being the one who brightens up their friends days.
3. The first to warn of impending danger; participants want to be known as someone who cares for the well being and safety of their friends.
4. The first to support a good cause; participants want to be known as someone who cares for their environment.

When comparing this to a viral marketing concept, offering a financial or personal reward for involvement in social marketing could actually cause the participant to feel guilty about their participation. The thought of passing on a commercial message to someone where the recipient stands no immediate benefit (unless they themselves pass the message on) would make many people think twice before sharing the message, and they would likely only send the message to their closest friends and colleagues who would be less likely to judge them.

By tapping into the social needs of your target audience, and by targeting your campaign around social rewards rather than physical rewards, you may find your marketing campaign spreads more naturally and with a significantly lower cost than through using the conventional, safe and unrewarding techniques that viral marketing has become.