Butterfly Effect And Internet Marketing
by: Ivan KellyIn Ray Bradbury's short story "A Sound of Thunder", a group of people
travel millions of years into the past to hunt dinosaurs. One of them
accidentally steps on and kills a butterfly, which dramatically alters
the future.
This idea was also taken up in a movie called "The Butterfly Effect",
starring Aston Kutcher, about a young man who managed to travel to
his past and, by altering earlier events, changed outcomes in his
future, including some that were unforeseen.
The butterfly effect has its roots in chaos theory, where a small
event can have a ripple effect and bring about possible dramatic
changes - the fluttering of a butterfly's wings possibly forestalling
a monsoon that would have devestated an island.
Successful internet marketing is the result of many such "trivial"
events at work.
But which ones will prove to be significant and how do we sustain,
and even build, the momentum which is generated?
One proven technique is known a viral marketing, which adopts a strategy
that encourages many people to pass on a marketing message to others.
It makes use of multiplication to "explode" the distribution of the
message by willing participants.
Hotmail used this method to get established. When the two founders set up
their free email system, all the messages that were sent by subscribers
had a text message at the bottom which identified Hotmail as the origin.
People would send emails to their friends, who would be tempted to
set up hotmail accounts and send emails to their friends...
Within 24 months, Hotmail had 22 million subscribers, eventually selling
out to Microsoft for about $400 million.
The viral marketing method is:
a. Cheap. Most approaches take just a little time to set up and then
others promote your business for you.
b. It has the potential to reach a large audience by geometrical
progression, limited only by the enthusiasm of the participants.
c. It can be effectively combined with other forms of promotion.
d. It's also possible to sell other products than the one you
originally targeted. For instance, if you are selling garden
products, those interested in flowers could also be interested in
a catalogue that contains material on lawns, trees, landscaping,
garden tools, etc.
e. A viral product is fairly easy to create. It includes ebooks,
articles, branded software, audio and videos, free reports,
or even the first three chapters of your ebook.
f. A quality product that users are willing to pass on to others is
accompanied by an implied recommendation. They are effectively
building your reputation.
Special Considerations:
1. Whatever the product is that you use, it should be of significant
value and free - or of very low cost in relation to its perceived
value. But usually it is free and easy to pass on.
2. Make it easy for people to pass on by using buttons, active links,
tell-a-friend windows, etc. Many products also combine very well
with an affiliate program when the affiliate receives some extra
benefit from promoting the viral message. For instance, by being
able to brand an ebook the affiliate gains credit when a reader
buys through a branded link.
3. Buttons and links are not interchangeable. Many email facilities
do not handle HTML well, especially those that are web-based. Codes
can be easily corrupted. Use active links in emails and save buttons
for web pages.
4. Be sure your message includes a clear call to action. There should
be no doubt about what you intend recipients to do.
5. The INCENTIVE should be clear to those you want to act.
6. Offer clear instructions so that recipients know HOW to act.
7. The action you require should be simple and obvious. Don't complicate
it or confuse the reader, such as by adding numerous links.
Viral Marketing is but one of many techniques that together have a
cumulative effect in attracting customers and subscribers to your
business - in attracting targeted visitors to your website. Momentum
is gained by aiming every element of the overall strategy at developing
the relationship with your visitors. The momentum builds as it succeeds
in identifying YOU as one of the white hats - someone who can be
trusted to provide value and a solution.
Design your strategy in such a way that there is a positive flow-on
effect into the future rather than one which diminishes after the
initial zeal and enthusiasm which launched your product.
Focus on delivering benefits to your visitors and making it easy
for them to collect. And don't step on the butterflies.
About The Author
Copyright, Ivan Kelly. Ivan Kelly managed a Direct Mail business with extensive mailing lists for ten years and has designed and promoted many websites. He also provides quality free courses on a variety of internet marketing subjects. A list of these free courses is available at: http://www.WebStartAdvisor.com |
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