Big seed marketing The best of both worlds

About networks: The rhizome About customer advocacy: The lake wobegon effect About virality: No free lunch

About networks: The rhizome

About customer advocacy: The lake wobegon effect

About virality: No free lunch

1. About networks: The rhizome

1. About networks:

The rhizome

Massive Decentralized Dynamic Self-organized (at several levels) Is about People + links

Massive

Decentralized

Dynamic

Self-organized (at several levels)

Is about People + links

Network effect Value to a potential customer depends on the number of other customers who own the good or are users of the service According to Metcalfe: the value of a telecommunications network is proportional to the square of the number of connected users of the system For the web, it’s a little more complicated

Value to a potential customer depends on the number of other customers who own the good or are users of the service

According to Metcalfe: the value of a telecommunications network is proportional to the square of the number of connected users of the system

For the web, it’s a little more complicated

Links, links, links Small world network: 6 degrees of separation Scale-free network: Power law of preferential attachment

Small world network: 6 degrees of separation

Scale-free network: Power law of preferential attachment

Nodes (people) and ties (links)

Nodes (people)

and ties (links)

IM generation: “My mates are my media” They claim that they are not influenced by advertising and that they trust their peers more than the opinion leaders Connections tend to be with people they know At the very most, might extend to friends of friends But very little interest in talking to strangers (unless they have specific profiles)

They claim that they are not influenced by advertising and that they trust their peers more than the opinion leaders

Connections tend to be with people they know

At the very most, might extend to friends of friends

But very little interest in talking to strangers (unless they have specific profiles)

Even on the biggest social networks 90.6% of messages are sent to “friends” 50% of messages to friends are sent to schoolmates For reciprocal messages partners, it raises to 71% (Facebook 2007)

90.6% of messages are sent to “friends”

50% of messages to friends are sent to schoolmates

For reciprocal messages partners, it raises to 71%

Content or connection

2. About customer advocacy: The lake Wobegon effect

Customer advocacy drive growth

Treat everyone the same, even they have a low authority score

It’s hard to buy coolness

It’s hard to buy coolness

Where do you find brand advocates? On blogs, of course… (but not only)

Engage (?) Bloggers can feed the media narrative over time, don’t ignore the bloggers Traffic alone does not equal influence/ Technorati authority neither Don’t punish negative opinions Outing a blog yourself helps but is not necessary – commenting is also part of the conversation

Bloggers can feed the media narrative over time, don’t ignore the bloggers

Traffic alone does not equal influence/ Technorati authority neither

Don’t punish negative opinions

Outing a blog yourself helps but is not necessary – commenting is also part of the conversation

But the blogosphere isn’t everything Reach matters and blogs have low reach Blogs are mostly visited by bloggers Conversation is everywhere: blogs, social networks but also forums, chats…. and offline Twitter reach is about 0,2% The internet landscape is still dominated by a search engine and an email service It’s easier to engage people if your brand proposal is strong What will be your performance indicator?

Reach matters and blogs have low reach

Blogs are mostly visited by bloggers

Conversation is everywhere: blogs, social networks but also forums, chats…. and offline

Twitter reach is about 0,2%

The internet landscape is still dominated by a search engine and an email service

It’s easier to engage people if your brand proposal is strong

What will be your performance indicator?

The lake wobegon effect 80% of the CEOs think their brand offers a superior experience … . 8% of their customers agree and this is one out of many biases

80% of the CEOs think their brand offers a superior experience

… . 8% of their customers agree

and this is one out of many biases

3. About virality: No free lunch

The theory: Influence the influencer

Viral marketing is much easier to tell stories about than to implement. For every high profile example of a viral product, there are many more unsuccessful attempts that one never hears about.

Viral marketing is much easier to tell stories about than to implement. For every high profile example of a viral product, there are many more unsuccessful attempts that one never hears about.

Viral effect Burnout

Traditional marketing versus epidemic threshold Increase conversions by increasing p or N R > 1: epidemic threshold/tipping point is reached: virality works R < 1: burnout, virality fails

Increase conversions

by increasing p or

N

R > 1: epidemic threshold/tipping

point is reached: virality works

R < 1: burnout, virality fails

Best of both worlds By embracing a big seed strategy , you can leverage on 3 variables Reach (number of contacts) Persuasion power Reproduction rate

By embracing a big seed strategy , you can leverage on 3 variables

Reach (number of contacts)

Persuasion power

Reproduction rate

Maximize reach Forget about the hype. Watch the figures!!! Select few sites with large reach In order to avoid waste, chose high selectivity's and/or targeted solutions Watch accumulation statistics Avoid too much contacts per person

Forget about the hype. Watch the figures!!!

Select few sites with large reach

In order to avoid waste, chose high selectivity's and/or targeted solutions

Watch accumulation statistics

Avoid too much contacts per person

Maximize persuasion Find the right balance between visibility and irritation Keep your brand always visible Segment your approach Manage the length of the text rather than the font size Pre-test several creatives if possible Rich media (with interaction) offers more impact and higher memorization Internet is a media with a high emotional potential Context (more than content) matters!

Find the right balance between visibility and irritation

Keep your brand always visible

Segment your approach

Manage the length of the text rather than the font size

Pre-test several creatives if possible

Rich media (with interaction) offers more impact and higher memorization

Internet is a media with a high emotional potential

Context (more than content) matters!

Maximize reproduction rate Trust the strength of your message and the motivation of your influencers Be surprising, provocative, unexpected, smart and go were people are communicating and give them tools

Trust the strength of your message and the motivation of your influencers

Be surprising, provocative, unexpected, smart and go were people are communicating and give them tools

Take aways Use specific monitoring tools, it will help you in your communication strategy The communication channel might be different of the market intelligence channel Don’t overstimate your viral power: Most campaigns have too low Reproduction rates to rely only on virality Keep the critical mass you need in mind Marketing combines persuasion, reach and reproduction Know you target group’s network(s) and know their specificities Use existing networks instead of trying to create new ones Think user inititiated

Use specific monitoring tools, it will help you in your communication strategy

The communication channel might be different of the market intelligence channel

Don’t overstimate your viral power: Most campaigns have too low Reproduction rates to rely only on virality

Keep the critical mass you need in mind

Marketing combines persuasion, reach and reproduction

Know you target group’s network(s) and know their specificities

Use existing networks instead of trying to create new ones

Think user inititiated

Thank you. Philippe Deltenre Microsoft Advertising [email_address] [email_address]