People can talk about a lot of stuff that affects the bottom line of a business, some more and some less. I believe there are four different topic areas that could and should be considered when trying to create more word of mouth for a brand:

1. The brand values – what the brand believes in and stands for.
2. The offer – the actual product or service offered.
3. The customer care – how the customer is treated in contact with the company after the sale.
4. The advertising – what is portrayed in the brand’s communication.

I believe the first three of them are more important than the fourth. Advertising needs the other ones to be working on a longer term, but the other three can create word of mouth that leads to a prosperous business on a long term all on their own. That said, to create a really strong brand, it needs to help individuals or groups build identity. The brand needs to satisfy higher level needs, so it needs to stand for something, and the brand values should be part of the equation.

And as always, what needs to be achieved for all four is something that is “remarkable” – something worth making a remark about.

Some brands always recruit from within. Others recruit from the outside. No doubt there are different advantages to both of these approaches, like experience with the product and corporate culture or bringing in new perspectives and experiences.

But, what about passion? What kind of passion for Opel does a marketing manager who previously worked for Peugeot and Seat (article in Swedish) bring to Opel’s marketing department? Sure, he worked for almost two years as a consultant since he left Peugeot, so he has some new perspectives. But, what does this say about the brands? Do they have personality? Do they stand for something different? Do they inspire passion? Do we want to talk about them as something entirely different?

Or are they entirely exchangeable? I believe not, just like Branding Strategy Insider writes in The Seven Markers of Passion:

“Hire Passionistas as Brand Stewards
Nothing brings a brand down more quickly than an interchangeable parts philosophy in the recruitment, hiring, and rewarding of the people behind it. Careerists who jump from one company or industry to another on their way to ever more senior posts may be building their own brand, but they will neither feel nor fuel the passion.”

The irony of the story is that just last autumn Peugeot recruited their new marketing manager… … from Opel!

Disclaimer: This post is NOT about the knowledge or professional skills of the respective marketing manager. I know neither of them nor have heard anything about their current or previous work!

BlendTec has had some tremendous successes with their viral clips on the theme Will it blend? Among them the iPad, the iPhone and (imitation) Diamonds.

Here is the BlendTec predecessor it seems. And really, this Machine Destroys everything!

This is really, really well made!

Very impressive execution! Very nice integration of other brands, which did it for free in exchange for the free attention.

Of course you can challenge a friend via Facebook or email, or share your results on Facebook or Twitter. Great concept and brilliant execution! According to Dagens Media, the site got 50 000 visitors last night, from all, over, the, world, and they spent on average 8 minutes on the site. The creative was made by Lowe Brindfors, production by B-Reel and sound & music by Plan 8.

Love it!

It is finally ready! Download by clicking the image or link below.

Viral Thinking – a “Viral Marketing Toolkit” is my ebook about how to maximize the potential for viral spread. Creating something that is viral is sometimes the goal, but it is not easy. In this ebook I have tried to cover the areas you can work with to improve the odds.

You could call it a “viral marketing toolkit”. However, just increasing the spread improves the ROI, even if it doesn’t go viral. So, my hope and belief is that it is helpful for anyone who works within marketing, PR or communications, whether online or offline.

I would like to thank the people who have generously helped me with feedback on this text and made it a lot better.

In alphabetical order: Valerio Franco (doublebblog.it), Anton Johansson (antonjohansson.com), Henrik Johansson (theviralcompany.com), Daniel Mencák (danielmencak.se), Patrick Möller (flavors.me/patrickmoeller), Cédric Rainotte (bwat.be), Niclas Strandh (digitalpr.se) Pere Tufet (tonterias.com) and Emmanuel Vivier (emmanuelvivier.com).

And of course, if you have feedback to give, do not hesitate to send me an email on kristofermencak[at]gmail[dot]com.

I hope you enjoy it!

And feel free to pass it on!

Not all companies can build their business on viral successes like the ones BlendTec has experienced with Will It Blend. Believing you can create something viral is pretty optimistic. However, I do believe there are tools you can use to make it more possible. I do think you can optimize for it, and that’s why I write posts like 12 viral content triggers, Some help with the viral loop and Network effects, game mechanics and stickiness.

But, something that might be even more important is how to use this thinking in the shift that is taking place today, where marketers have to fight for attention in a fragmented media landscape, on the user’s terms. Optimizing for spread becomes more and more important. I agree to what Niclas Strand writes in All marknadskommunikation är viral (in Swedish). Today, whether the goal is to create something viral or not, marketers need to understand a new way to work – and that is to participate and create content that is worthy of conversations. Content needs to involve and engage the consumers. And it must be easy to pass it on.

I believe “viral thinking” is important for any marketing efforts, in an online world as well as offline, through word of mouth. Creating and participating in conversations is fundamental for brands and businesses today. And that is why we need to optimize campaigns and use the same tools we use when trying to create something viral.

To illustrate why, let’s look at some numbers:

Say you manage to reach 100 000 people with a campaign that no one passes on.

What happens if the content actually makes people pass it on? Say someone who receives it passes it on to, on average 0.25 new people – that is, a basic reproductive number of 0.25. If this spread goes on, we multiply the previous number of people in the loop by the basic reproductive number, like so:

100 000 (first paid 100 000 people reached)
100 000 * 0.25 = 25 000
25 000 * 0.25 = 6 500
6 500 * 0.25 = 1 563
1563 * 0.25 = 391
391 * 0.25 = 98
98 * 0.25 = 24
24 * 0.25 = 6
6 * 0.25 = 1.5

As you can see, with every loop, the returns are decreasing. Adding it all up, we end up at 133 333 – a nice increase in effect by 33.3 %!

Performing the same calculation with a basic reproductive number of 0.5, with our example we would reach 200 000 – an extra 100 000. We get an increase in effect by 100 % – doubling the value of our money spent!

And, with a basic reproductive number of 0.75, we reach out to 400 000 people – an increase in effect by 300 %!

Yes, these numbers are hypothetical in the sense that there will be some saturation as the loop goes on.

And as Seth Godin writes:

The more people you reach the more likely it is that you’re reaching the wrong people.

So, there will be some saturation, you will reach some people who might not be interested (although I could argue that the ones who receive it from a friend might be even better targets), and it is not viral. But, looking at these numbers, the money is still much better spent!.That is why it is important to think about what can be done to incentivize people to pass the content on and make it really easy to do so, even if the result is not truly viral.

We already know it – everything communicates. But, it is great to see that businesses probably soon will start realizing this for real. One step towards this might be the “death of the brand manager“, leaving room for a “conversation manager”. Just like Tim writes, I don’t think job titles mean much either. But, I think the focus is shifting now, and changing titles might be one of the signs of this. Businesses start to realize that they have to know what conversations are going on, follow them and take part.

And I believe a next step in this would be looking after what conversations the company is actually creating. It is not only the press officer or CEO who “communicates”. Businesses need to think about what their “welcome letters” to new customers communicate? What does the returns policy communicate? What do their contact page on the site communicate?

Everything communicates, and there are so many different touch points to work with. Touch points that can be made into conversations, customer satisfaction and positive word of mouth. And one of the most important touch points is every person that is in contact with customers. So, there is a very good reason to make sure they all have authority and can take own actions which communicate what you want the company to communicate. In addition, it gives the company a conscience.

I believe that word of mouth has evolutionary origins. Put simply, the human race benefited from telling family and friends about where the best roots and berries could be found, where the year round waterhole was, or where the best hunting grounds were. In a way, something that goes viral can be seen as digital word of mouth. And thanks to the network effects of the Internet, the power of it is manifold. It can spread to in-numerous people in the blink of an eye, and all across the world. It has been freed from time and space.

Today, we don’t only share vital information about where to find resources, but also information that connects us to others. In a world where we don’t have time to keep up with all our “connections”, the act of passing something on is a very easy way to reconnect. It is a way to show that they are present in our minds. That is why we pass funny clips along, that’s why we update our status on Facebook or Twitter, and that’s maybe even why we press that little “like” button on Facebook. It’s a way to reconnect. It’s an act of recognition. It’s to say “I notice you”.

I noticed this video through Viral Friday. It is Google Mobile showing their new feature My Location. Usually, Google Mobile seems to get between 15 000 and 20 000 views on their videos, but they seem to have gotten something right with this one, since traffic is more than 10 times that.

So, what did they do right and what did they do wrong?
In a traditional sense, it seems they definitely broke some “rules”. The video is very long for being a viral – more than 10 minutes. And almost nothing happens in it. In retrospect however, maybe these “wrongs” turned into a right. You must admit there is a certain humor in it – it is kind of fun. But, it’s not hilarious in any way. Rather, it is a bit strange. Another thing is it is kind of a cliffhanger. Will something else ever happen? And finally, it can be used as a “revenge”. If you got fooled to watch it, you can get back. But, you can’t get back on the one who sent it to you, he/she already knows. Rather, you have to get back on someone else. So, you pass it on.

But, that is not all there is to it at all. What might have made this clip tip could be that it has some easter eggs in it. If you want to discover them yourself, stop reading now. Or, check them out below:

Click on:
The basketball at 0:42
The word “azzip” at 1:23 (yes, the clip is then played backwards)
The fire at 1:47
The weights at 3:29
The word “Florida” at 4:39
The horse at 5:49
The dinosaur at 6:36
Santa at 7:58
The toast at 9:06

I had heard about it and had pretty high expectations. Would Prufrock Coffee in Shoreditch in London deliver? It wasn’t the typical combination; a clothes and accessories store, combined with a coffee shop featuring two world class baristas. The coffee was great – I had a cappuccino. But, it’s hard to judge whether it was the best in the world, even though the 2009 UK and World Champion Barista, Gwilym Davies made it.

However, something that intrigued me was that they had a “dis-loyalty card“. That is not very common. Usually, businesses try to keep customers to themselves, viewing others offering the same product or service as bitter enemies. So, what’s the deal then? Well, this is what the card says: “Complete this tour of East London’s emerging coffee scene to claim a free coffee from the World Barista Champion Gwilym Davies @ Prufrock.”

I have been thinking a bit about the logic with this card, and the obvious is that what Prufrock gains is a return visit. But, they also potentially lose out on eight other visits?! It is not obvious that it is to their advantage. So, what else? Well, they are of course growing the pie instead of trying to get a bigger slice of a smaller pie. Also, it is a sign of greatness to dare refer customers to competitors.

And, it seems this disloyalty card, has gotten quite some attention in around the net. Steve Sack for example, gives us one of the better analyses and I agree completely:

“Great idea and a simple twist on a trusted marketing standard. Actually encourage your customers to experiment, to sample the competitor, to explore the industry landscape – and trust them to form their own educated opinion. Raise the bar for quality, show implicit confidence in your product, and display transparency. ‘My product is so good that I trust you will remain loyal even after having sampled the competition.’ And best of all, the idea is being discussed, blogged, tweeted and debated – which is all good for business.”

Just as Marty Neumeier writes in Zag: “When others zig, zag”. It no doubt creates word of mouth, and the idea has already spread to Seattle and Toronto.

Here are some links to what others have written.