JDELEON
Jul 31, 2000, 08:26 AM
Before you start your eBusiness, this is a set of articles I think you should read.
If you have ever heard of viral marketing and want a better grasp...
http://www.fastcompany.com/online/37//ideavirus.html http://www.fastcompany.com/online/37/ideavirus2.html
Again, these are from my favorite business magazine, FastCompany. (www.fastcompany.com)
The piece is long, but worthwhile. A nugget of wisdom from the article:
"3. Have you mastered the Hare Krishna Dinner Party Tactic?
Sooner or later, you've got to turn momentary attention into an embrace of your idea -- and then, hopefully, you convert the user into a sneezer. Permission marketing becomes a critical tool in working people through this transition -- think of it as the Hare Krishna Dinner Party Tactic.
The Hare Krishnas have grown their sect by inviting people to eat a vegetarian dinner with them. Intrigued or just hungry, people give them momentary attention and then permission to talk with them about this new way of life. Sometimes, people leave having done nothing but eaten dinner. Sometimes, people listen to what's being said and decide to embrace the ideals behind the religion. And sometimes, people become converted and turn into sneezers, volunteering to go out and invite other people over for another dinner tomorrow night.
What the Hare Krishnas do not do is to start by walking up to a stranger and proselytizing about their religion. Instead, they use a gradual technique to sell their idea and effectively turn it into a virus.
On the Web, this sort of multistep process is too often overlooked by companies facing short-term financial pressure. ( Combine this with the legendarily short attention span of entrepreneurs, and you can see why this happens. ) When I visit some cool new Web site, I'm telling its creators that I'm interested in what they have to offer. What can they do to infect me with their virus? Three things:
Get permission to follow up with me, so that over time I can easily learn about why I should embrace this idea. It might have cost a site $100 in marketing expenditures to have gotten me to visit it for the first time, but if it does not get permission to follow up with me, that money is wasted.
Make as many supporting manifestos available as possible, in whatever forms necessary, to get me over the hump from skeptic to supporter. These can include endorsements, press reviews, even criticisms and commonly made objections. Think of the Hare Krishnas at dinner. The more they can expose you to during that hour, the better chance they have of sticking.
Make it easy for me to spread the ideavirus by providing a multitude of tell-a-friend tools, as well as overt rewards for becoming a sneezer."
Perhaps you will find something useful here. If you do, sneeze that idea, pass it on.
May Angels smile upon you,
Joe
If you have ever heard of viral marketing and want a better grasp...
http://www.fastcompany.com/online/37//ideavirus.html http://www.fastcompany.com/online/37/ideavirus2.html
Again, these are from my favorite business magazine, FastCompany. (www.fastcompany.com)
The piece is long, but worthwhile. A nugget of wisdom from the article:
"3. Have you mastered the Hare Krishna Dinner Party Tactic?
Sooner or later, you've got to turn momentary attention into an embrace of your idea -- and then, hopefully, you convert the user into a sneezer. Permission marketing becomes a critical tool in working people through this transition -- think of it as the Hare Krishna Dinner Party Tactic.
The Hare Krishnas have grown their sect by inviting people to eat a vegetarian dinner with them. Intrigued or just hungry, people give them momentary attention and then permission to talk with them about this new way of life. Sometimes, people leave having done nothing but eaten dinner. Sometimes, people listen to what's being said and decide to embrace the ideals behind the religion. And sometimes, people become converted and turn into sneezers, volunteering to go out and invite other people over for another dinner tomorrow night.
What the Hare Krishnas do not do is to start by walking up to a stranger and proselytizing about their religion. Instead, they use a gradual technique to sell their idea and effectively turn it into a virus.
On the Web, this sort of multistep process is too often overlooked by companies facing short-term financial pressure. ( Combine this with the legendarily short attention span of entrepreneurs, and you can see why this happens. ) When I visit some cool new Web site, I'm telling its creators that I'm interested in what they have to offer. What can they do to infect me with their virus? Three things:
Get permission to follow up with me, so that over time I can easily learn about why I should embrace this idea. It might have cost a site $100 in marketing expenditures to have gotten me to visit it for the first time, but if it does not get permission to follow up with me, that money is wasted.
Make as many supporting manifestos available as possible, in whatever forms necessary, to get me over the hump from skeptic to supporter. These can include endorsements, press reviews, even criticisms and commonly made objections. Think of the Hare Krishnas at dinner. The more they can expose you to during that hour, the better chance they have of sticking.
Make it easy for me to spread the ideavirus by providing a multitude of tell-a-friend tools, as well as overt rewards for becoming a sneezer."
Perhaps you will find something useful here. If you do, sneeze that idea, pass it on.
May Angels smile upon you,
Joe