Viral marketing utilizes existing social networks to spread brand awareness through self-replicating viral processes, similar to how viruses spread. It can use word-of-mouth referrals enhanced by online networks. Viral promotions may come in the form of videos, games, images or text messages. Facebook is a fertile ground for viral marketing, with over 3.3 million users in India where growth is one of the fastest in the world at 354.8%. The top activities on social networks are checking what friends are doing and private messaging. Viral marketing enables the promotion and participation aspects of marketing through word-of-mouth and connections on social media.

1. Viral Marketing
Focus on Social Networks

2.  Is social in spirit
 Is distributed and diverse
 Is ‘mashable’ and extremely open to integration
 Is often unpredictable, and sometimes even
hostile
 In short, is a fertile ground for possibilities, and
at the same time, full of challenges

3.  Viral marketing - marketing techniques that use pre-
existing social networks to produce increases in brand awareness or
to achieve other marketing objectives (such as product sales)
through self-replicating viral processes, analogous to the spread
of pathological and computer viruses.
 It can be word-of-mouth delivered or enhanced by the network
effects of the Internet.
 Viral promotions may take the form of video clips,
interactive Flash games, advergames, ebooks, brandable software,
images, or even text messages.

4. Total : 3.3 Million users
Male : female -- 66:33
Age-wise Breakdown
Age Bracket Active Users
13-17 279,020
18-24 1,525,800
25-34 1,237,020
35-54 326,840
55+ 50,880
12 month growth % in India – 354.8%
(one of the fastest growing countries in terms of Facebook users)
* Source : Facebook Metrics, insidefacebook.com

6. See what my friends are up to: 86%
Sent a message to someone: 79%
Posted/updated my profile: 70%
Looked at profiles of people I didn’t know: 65%
Searched for someone that I used to know: 59%
Send a friend/connection request: 53%
Listened to music: 47%
Read a blog or journal: 51%
Wrote on someone’s profile page (e.g. wrote on a wall, posted a testimonial): 55%
Watched a video: 40%
Base: US online adult social networking site users, Source: North American Technographics Media And Marketing Online
Survey, Q3 2007

7.  Advertising
 Banner Ads
 Contextual//NewsFeed/Flyer Ads
 Social Ads
 Marketing
 Facebook & MySpace Pages and Sponsored Groups
 Causes
 Word of Mouth/Interaction
 Applications
 Widgets
 Intelligence
 Profiles and Network information
 Public Groups
 Polls & Research

8.  Social Media as well as social networking
sites enable the Promotion aspect,
especially the Word of Mouth part of it.
Subsequently, the Word-of-Mouth and
‘connectedness’ component enables the
5th P of Marketing Participation.

9.  Customer community and relationship
development
 Support campaigns reaching social
network users
 Increasing the value and extend the “shelf
life” of events
 Differentiate your service through your
customer connections

10. In discussions
To Customer
Feedbacks
Reach,
Conversion,
Retention

12.  Create a page for your employees
 Use for peer recruitment
 Share event & corporate info
 Open Discussions on your products
 Gather Feedbacks
 Invite other users to join
 Go Viral (Applications) to pull users