One of the best sessions I attended at the SCBWI 2010 Winter Conference was Viral Marketing & Social Media, presented by Jenn Bailey.
Definition of viral: an online marketing strategy that encourages people to pass along a message.
Jenn broke down how to set the groundwork for a viral campaign into six easy steps, using Paul Revere (“The British are coming!”) as an example.
Here’s the recap:
1. Pass on the message
- Build a community using social media networks
- Share your message when people are listening
- Target the people who will help get the message out
- Be a constant advocate
- Be many things to many people; think of how your other passions can build community
- Ask people to help you
2. Create a call to action
- Keep your message simple
- Relinquish control
- Let the community spread the word as they will; it’s OK, as long as they’re traveling down the same road as you
3. Plant your message in fertile soil
- Make sure your message gets to the right connection
- Ask for help from those who have the right connections
- Make it easy for others to help you
4. Encourage conversation and sharing
- When someone helps you, thank them and encourage them
- Be smart about utilizing links and embedded information
- Have passion for what you do
- Listen to your community to hear the next step/suggestion
5. Reward
- Sometimes saying thank you can be reward enough; doesn’t have to be a product
- Make those who help you feel good
- Let the community see the effect of what they did
6. Give them a sequel
- Do the campaign again
- Pick up those you missed the first time
Jenn pointed out specific “Paul Reveres” of today and explained why their online campaigns went viral.
- Cynthia Liu – The Auction
- Neil Gaiman – The Party
- John Green – The Movement
- Tammi Sauer – The Launch
She then listed reasons why campaigns sometimes flop:
- Not listening to community
- Not engaging in conversation
- Not making it easy to be involved
- Other big events happening at the same time as your campaign
Finally, she gave advice on how to use social media.
1. Have patience
- Building your social media reputation takes time
- Play nice, help others
2. Be a friend to get a friend
3. Know your audience
- You have to know what to say to get others to help you
- Smell like cookies all day long and people will want to be around you
4. Beware of TMI
5. Be yourself, everyone else is taken
- If you’re not being you, people will know
- People will know if you’re just using them
6. Listen to your “Jedi Council”
- Have friends who will tell you when you’ve got it all wrong
- Don’t listen to the entourage, but the people who will tell you when you suck
7. It’s called ‘social’ for a reason
- It’s supposed to be fun
- It’s supposed to be about interacting