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HOW VIRAL ADVERTISING CAN IMPROVE THE MARKETING EFFORTS OF INNOVATIVE APPS?

By Gil Lavie

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

THEORYTHE VIRAL INDUSTRYADVANTAGESPHILOSOPHY (Biology of memes) VIRAL ELEMENTSHUMORSEEDINGMETHODOLOGY (Cracking the code)Q&A

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LOOK AT IT AS A PROJECT Work Process – Art & Science

CREATIVE – Is the meme strong enough? (R&D)

PRODUCTION – Is the meme well executed? (Programming)

POST-PRODUCTION – (Debugging, patching)

SEEDING – Does the seeding plan cover all bases? (Marketing)

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CAN “MEMES” BE ENGINEERED?

YES Creative agencies which repeatedly crack memes quickly move to the big league. Working with them can better ensure success, but it costs a pretty penny!

NOWhat goes viral is always a fluke. Just look at “Charlie Bit Me” or “Harlem Shake” if you don’t believe.

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THEORYTHEORY

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ADVERTISINGPush vs. Pull

Conventional ads are PUSHED

We are exposed to over 3,000 marketing messages each day. Billboards, print, radio, TV, banners, pop-ups, etc.

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Viral ads are PULLED

Creativity of the ad propels exposure (Web enabled)

Something worth watching, but also worth forwarding or sharing.

VIRAL ADVERTISINGPush vs. Pull

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VIRAL ADVERTISINGThe Goal & Focus

GOAL To use consumer-to-consumer as opposed to company-to-consumer communications - to disseminate information about a product.

FOCUSTo create an environment in which consumers voluntarily market to one another, thereby voluntarily acting as brand ambassadors.

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NOT MUCH HAS CHANGED

Word-of-mouseeWOM

Word-of-mouthWOM

Viral Marketing is a technique that can CAUSE a word-of-mouse EFFECT.

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KEY VIRAL ELEMENTS

A viral campaign should be:

Humor/Funny

Sexy

Artistic

Original

Surprising

Optimistic

Emotional

Provocative

Thought-provoking

Punchy (twist)

Hermetic / To the point

High emotional thresholdHigh emotional thresholdסף רגוש גבוהה

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ADVANTAGESADVANTAGES

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VIRAL ADVERTISINGAdvantages

• Media-free (in theory)• Measurable• Voluntary• Peer-to-peer endorsement• No geographical boundaries

• Self-targeted • Lives forever• Immediate call-for-action• Less regulated / Uncensored • Individual appeal

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NEW MEDIA

NEW MEDIAIndividual Appeal

Active Viewing

OLD MEDIASocial Group Appeal

Passive Viewing

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VIRAL ADVERTISINGObjectives & Benefits

FIAT Panda.wmv

Koolanoo 1.wmv

Different Objectives lead to different Creatives

Video Video Search Search

OptimizationOptimization

Video Video Search Search

OptimizationOptimization

TargetedTargeted TrafficTraffic

TargetedTargeted TrafficTraffic

Buzz/Buzz/WOMWOM

AwarenesAwarenesss

Buzz/Buzz/WOMWOM

AwarenesAwarenesss

BrandingBranding//PositioninPositionin

gg

BrandingBranding//PositioninPositionin

gg

Call-for-Call-for-actionaction

Call-for-Call-for-actionaction

Viral Campaign

mySupermarket.wmv

JamesAllen.wmv

etoro caveman.wmv

Snapily.wmv

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THE INDUSTRYTHE INDUSTRY

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HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

2002 2007 2012 2017

Creative Production Seeding

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VIRAL ADVERTISING INDUSTRYHow it all started

Late 90’s April 2001

Viral Factory headrush.mpeg

From email forwarding of viral video commercials,to “sharing” and “liking”.

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2002

TheViralFactory.comLondon, U.K

VIRAL ADVERTISING INDUSTRYFrom then to now

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VIRAL ADVERTISING INDUSTRYWhere’s the app?

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PHILOSOPHYPHILOSOPHY

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PHILOSOPHYWhat’s a “meme”?

A “meme” is a contagious idea (joke, smart saying, new theory…) that when unleashed into a population of people, exhibits a similar growth pattern to that of a viral epidemic.

– Richard Dawkins, “Selfish Gene”, 1976

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PhilosophyMore on memes

A meme is like a gene, only it’s a unit of culture. The same principles of evolution should apply to it:

Has a Host Transfers Information Competes for Survival Success drives it (It doesn’t care for the truth) Replicates (When jumping from mind to mind) Mutates Evolves

A meme is the mutating replicator in human cultural evolution.– Richard Dawkins

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PhilosophyThe science of Memetics

Based on Universal Darwinism, Memetics can be simply understood as a method for scientific analysis of cultural evolution. 

It’s not yet officially recognized as an academic science.

Competing FieldsSociobiology – Social behavior has resulted from evolution.

Evolutionary Psychology – Examines traits such as memory, perception, language from evolutionary perspective. Human behavior is a result of psychological adaptations that evolved to solve problems in our environment.

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MEGA MEMES

GOD

Capitalism

Communism

Evolution

Democracy

MarriageLove

Sex

EugenicsSocial

Darwinism

Multi-culturalism

Creationism

Islam

Survivalof fittest

NaturalSelectionFreud

Christianity

Resurrection

VirginMary

Judaism

HolyLand

Food

Liberty

Zionism

DNA

FreedomOf

Speech שוויוןבנטל

OpenSource

Atheism

Adaptations

Politics

Technology

Secularism

Inventions

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HUMORHUMOR

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HUMOR IS VIRAL

Studies show that funny content is shared more than sexuality, animals, violence, children…

Think of jokes…

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SCIENCE OF HUMORNo emotional attachment to the object (Accidents/pain, Religious fanatics)

Object must be personified to be funny (Ex. clouds, landscapes)

Relates to aggression (sarcasm) and fight or flight response (Ex. Lion Cat)

Relates to love & sex (Oxytocin), play (tickling), fear (death), feeling of superiority (identity), risk-taking (fight or flight).

Helps us fall in love, overcome fear (death), forms our identity (superiority), fights depression (optimism), lowers stress (comic relief).

Theory of Surprise – Plato

Theory of Incongruity – A result of contradictions Evolutionary reward system for creative problem solvingMirth עליצותReal vs. Ideal (world view, perceptions, interpretations, expectations…)

Source: INSIDE JOKES, Using Humor to Reverse-Engineer the Mind – Hurley, Dennett, Adams (2011)

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COMPUTATIONAL HUMOR

Computer-generated joke:

What kind of murderer has a moral fiber?

A cereal killer

The survey also found that men preferred more aggressive jokes,

as well as sexual innuendo, while women preferred word play. 

Source: Laugh Lab, Richard Wiseman, The World’s Funniest Joke

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METHODOLOGYMETHODOLOGY

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METHODOLOGY (1)Example: Scuba Accident

Host MemesScuba accidents, funny bald guys, fear of baldness,

bald jokes, word play…

Humor Contradiction - A guy about to die should not be thinking

about his hair loss. Self-deprecation, word play…

Viral Elements Funny

Surprising

Original – 1st time connecting h/air in underwater situation

Provocative – Disguised as a scuba accident

Hermetic – No flaws in the logic. It really could happen.

Social Context Is now the time? קרקע פוריה

Since R>1, more paid seeding will generate more views

Merck Scuba - English.wmv

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METHODOLOGY (2)Example: Backgammon

Host MemesBackgammon, music (Flamenco), dance, relationships, sex,

tricks, gambling, chance, show-off…

Humor Contradiction - A girl doesn’t behave that way. Our

expectation contradicts what “really” happened.

Self-deprecation

Viral Elements Funny

Sexy

Fantastic – World of fantasy, surreal

Surprising – Twist

Original – 1st time for this trick

Provocative – Bizarre enough

Hermetic – No flaws in the logic. Use of Product & Slogan.

Social Context Is now the time? אליפות העולם בשש בש

Over 50 user-generated uploads…Tricky play.wmv

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METHODOLOGY (2)Example: Orange Video

Host MemesDogs, talking dogs, action, technology…

Humor Contradiction – Dogs don’t talk and if they did, they

wouldn’t be mafia.

Viral Elements Funny

Fantastic – World of fantasy

Surprising

Original – 1st time connecting dog in mobile video call

Provocative – A little bit considering it’s Orange

Hermetic – It “really” could happen.

Social Context Is now the time? הייפ על דור שלישי...הבורר

Divergence from Orange’s Brand DNA

Orange 3G.wmv

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SEEDINGSEEDING

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SEEDING THEORY

1,00010,000

0.10

0.50

0.90

0.95

0.99

0

100,000

200,000

300,000

400,000

500,000

600,000

700,000

800,000

900,000

1,000,000

Additional viewers

R

R - Reproductive Rate

0.100.500.900.950.99

1,0001,1112,00010,00020,000100,000

10,00011,11120,000100,000200,0001,000,000

SeedBase

R – Reproductive Rate

N ÷ (1-R)

When R>1, it’s an epidemic becauseon average each person forwards tomore than one person.

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SEEDING THEORYGladwell vs. Watts

Malcolm Gladwell – Influencers start trendsInfluential marketing (Katz & Lazarsfeld 1955)Two-step Flow Law of the Few – Spread of memes made simple

Duncan Watts – Influencers can’t start trends Social Context - High connectivity-Low resistance (Ex. Wild fire)Accidental Influentials

Sources: “Viral Marketing for the Real World” & “Accidental Influentials” Harvard Business Review 2007, Duncan Watts & Jonah Piretti“Is the Tipping Point Toast?”, Fast Company

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SEEDING THEORYDuncan Watts

Global cascades (epidemics) don’t require few influentials, but a critical mass of easily influenced connected people.

In simulations, most trends started with the average Joe, but when influencers started them, they spread further!

Don’t try to engineer success through Influentials.

Susceptibility is crucial for trend starting.

Whether everyone is easily persuaded is more important than how persuasive the early adopters are.

Sources: “Viral Marketing for the Real World” & “Accidental Influentials” Harvard Business Review 2007, Duncan Watts & Jonah Piretti

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SEEDING THEORYDuncan Watts

Big-seed Marketing combines viral marketing tools with old-fashioned mass media to yield more predictable results than “purely” viral approached.

Sources: “Viral Marketing for the Real World” & “Accidental Influentials” Harvard Business Review 2007, Duncan Watts & Jonah Piretti

“Reliably designing messages to exhibit viral properties is extremely difficult, as is predicting which particular individuals will be responsible for spreading them”

Companies are NOT like epidemics, they can create enormous seeds.

Big-seed Marketing

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SUMMING IT UPSUMMING IT UP

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SEEDING THEORY?"אז מה זה "ויראלי

Returns the investment (ROI)

Reproductive Rate (R) ~ 0.90

Posted on at least 1 blog organically

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HOW MUCH CAN A GOOD MEME SAVE?

0

20

40

60

80

100

Weak Meme StrongMeme

Mega Meme

Production Cost Paid Media Earned Media

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WHAT’S YOUR MEME?Building the umbrella concept

VTAGO Post your special moments and tag with friendsSpecial moments? Embarrassing situations.

Frimper Speed video datingDating? Show the exaggerated misery of blind dates

Pixplit Collaborative split photosINHERENTLY VIRAL APP & FORMULA FOR HUMOR!!! Hilarious split personality situation?Split screen video - Spit screen photo series with quotes

SmileCaster Fund Your Cause & Receive VideosSmile is a huge meme to play with

EatWith Dine in homes around the worldFood?

Pick one point and exaggerate the heck out of it!!!

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GUARANTEEING VIRAL SUCCESSCheck List & Shortcuts

Never compromise on the creative meme. Jokes are public domains. Use Internet celebs that have followers (seed base). Product Placement (existing popular content). Synergize photos with relevant quotes (LOL cats).

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THE END

Gil Laviegil.lavie@gmail.com

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Definitions

Advertising – Defined: Paid non-personal communications from an identified sponsor using mass media to persuade or influence an audience.

Viral Advertising – Defined: Unpaid peer-to-peer communication of provocative content originating from an identified sponsor using the Internet to persuade or influence the audience to pass along the content to others.

In reality, the paid-for views generate unpaid views. These unpaid views are known as earned media.

* Wells, Moriarty and Burnett

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VIRAL ADVERTISINGIs there a problem?

TODAYA Share replaced Email ForwardA Like became a public announcement

Problems: Trust. Privacy.Facebook is a single identity. We have many identities.Facebook documents everything. Phone calls go by. Emails are deleted.Irony and Sarcasm is dangerous. No intonation in text.(Example, “Obama Style”, Irony Mark, USENET pledge)

Solution: Facebook Lists and Google Circles are not quite there yet. Example: Café sceneSnapChat, Facebook PokeFacebook “phone” and Video Calling