Top Viral Marketing Strategies

If you are like other motivated entrepreneurs, viral marketing plays an important role in your marketing strategy. Viral marketing, when successful, has the ability to skyrocket awareness and profits.

What Is Viral Marketing?

Viral marketing is content that has captured the attention of the mainstream consumer. It is content that people bookmark, forward, post on social networking sites and link to. Viral content has the ability to spread from one corner of the globe to the other. It spreads like a virus and can change a business overnight.

9 Top Viral Marketing Tactics

First, let us be clear. Viral marketing is content marketing. However, when you are creating your content, your goal broadens. You want to offer value to your prospects and customers. However, you also want to go beyond offering basic value. You want the content to be so compelling that it goes viral. There are several types of content that can help you reach your viral marketing goals.

#1 Lists

People love lists. In fact there are many popular books that are nothing more than a long list. For example 101 Uses for a Dead Cat. This book was a big seller and was nothing more than a long, and perhaps humorous, list. Lists are easily downloaded and shared, and they are often linked to. They make great viral content. Think about your audience and the value they are seeking. What lists can you provide that might go viral?

#2 Quizzes

Ever notice that just about every magazine has some sort of quiz inside? That is because people like their content to be interactive. Quizzes offer the opportunity to learn something about yourself or reinforce something you know about yourself. They also allow you to interact. Quizzes, like lists, can be funny, interesting and informative for the user or interesting and informative for you. You can use a quiz to learn more about your prospects and customers.

#3 Tools

Tools are things people can use. One great example of a tool might be an iPod application or a downloadable worksheet. A tool is also something that makes your prospect's life easier. It offers value.

#4 Video

Video may be the most popular type of viral content. Most often the videos that go viral are funny, but they can also be informative or heart wrenching. Randy Pausch's Last Lecture is an example of a viral video that is heart breaking and inspirational at the same time. Explore your audience's needs and preferences and then brainstorm ideas for a video.

#5 Images

Photos and cartoons are common viral images. They can capture an idea, make people laugh, or inspire them to take action.

#6 'How to' Content

When it comes to standard content forms, it does not get better than the 'How To'. Your 'How To' content can be video, audio, or print - whatever your audience responds to.

#7 Funny Story (or meaningful/touching story)

Humor tends to be the most popular type of viral content found online. However, a touching story, life lesson, or an inspirational story also spreads quickly. If you have a story to share, craft it well, make it public and then share.

#8 Controversy

Loud opinions about situations always stir up a controversy. Many people will want to weigh in and share their opinion too. Reports are a great way to create viral marketing content that is controversial. Blog posts work quite well too because they provide people with a format to respond. One way to capitalize on controversy is to create a free report, promote it and discuss it on your blog. This way you are reaching your audience quickly and the viral report will spread quickly.

#9 Sweepstakes, Contests and Giveaways

Finally, the last type of content that can easily go viral is a contest or sweepstakes. This is because everyone likes to get something for free and everyone likes to win. The bigger the prize, the more quickly word will spread. For example, if you are giving away an iPad on your blog, you will likely gain a ton of traffic. People will be linking to your blog and there will be quite a commotion. Give away a free report and you are not going to have as much activity. The key to capitalizing on this type of viral content is to build your opt-in list at the same time.

Creating viral content is the first step to a successful campaign. You will also want to integrate it into your overall marketing strategy. Use every tool available to get the word out quickly.

Whether you are marketing a business, service, or yourself, learning new marketing and communication strategies and using online tools can help give you that 'edge' to get ahead of your competition.

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Viral Traffic Is How Anyone Can Use Viral Marketing To Increase Web Site Traffic For Free

These are two qualities for web site traffic a web site must use to blaze the trail in the cut-throat and competitive nature synonymous with Internet Marketing and home based business. The sheer number of sites and businesses duking it out online today means each marketing strategy must be implemented for success. Viral Marketing is one of the most effective and vital viral marketing is beginning to shape the internet marketing niche like no other strategy for traffic promotion and 

increasing web site traffic for free.

Viral Marketing Basics

Viral Marketing is also referred to as Viral Advertising and is a strategy in marketing that increases general awareness of somone's products, services, company, business or brand. There are forms of media that creates viral buzzworthiness in public perception without necessarily having to promote the product, by capitalizing on the other diverse uses of any "pass-it-on" type methods that would get one addicted and encouraged to actually relay it, all the while with the company's advert naturally occurring as part of the viral marketing message.

The more popular the medium of advertising and enjoyed by the public at large, the more viral marketing components a viral advertising campaign is said to have and more valuable in spreading 

the word of mouth necessary for sales of the products. Viral Traffic is when people who see the viral marketing message visit the web site in record numbers as a result of the viral advertising.

Viral marketing is already one of the most widely acclaimed forms of internet marketing and advertising for one main reason... the low expense. To bypass being tagged as unwelcome email, viral marketing relies on the anticipation of one spreading the news with the products. If a person notices the name of the someone they already know sending them email, they will not block and will open it. This results in even more viral traffic. Viral traffic is thought by most to be the best way to increase web site traffic for free.

A lot of businesses give perks like freebies and money off for helping to encourage their viral marketing. This counts on the amount of people a viral marketing online advertising campaign generates from a single recipient in calculating their reward. The more viral traffic, the more rewards for producing the viral traffic.

How You can Use Viral Marketing to Increase Web Site Traffic for Free and Explode Sales

The primary benefit of using Viral Marketing is all of the free publicity gained and the number of new and unique web site visitors to your website for free that are going to look at your business offer.

Almost every website and company is catching on to the benefits of Viral Marketing and viral Advertising. Without using it, you are defeating yourself by missing out on the viral traffic that gives you the ability to increase web site traffic for free.

Viral Marketing is the best way to get people to know about your products, site and business. You get them to push your viral marketing message for you. By generating just one good idea, a fun game, a good storyline, you can easily move ahead of all of your competition with some serious viral traffic.

All of the most successful online companies are recommending to business owners to use viral marketing to advertise their products. Only a fool would let the opportunity to increase web site traffic for free by using viral advertising pass them by.

Right now, you have the opportunity to put this phenomenon to work for you and for free to watch your website grow in popularity and make sale after sale on autopilot using viral advertising for free!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/613972