Two faces of Viral marketing

Viral marketing is one of the forms of word of mouth marketing which aims to spread a message exponentially and build brand credibility. Most businesses use a viral marketing strategy to increase brand awareness and to achieve marketing objectives.

Despite the fact that it is an effective form of marketing and brand promotion, it has drawbacks and negative aspects, as well. Here we will discuss some advantages and disadvantages of using viral marketing.

Advantages

• Credibility is the major advantage of viral marketing compared to traditional ad techniques. When people hear a message about your company, products or services from a friend, family member or colleagues, they are more likely to believe them. It means it carries more weight than hearing a paid message from an advertiser.
• This kind of marketing strategy uses the network effect of the Internet for reaching people. It means your marketing message can reach a mass audience rapidly and effectively. There is no limitation on who you can reach.
• Viral marketing saves you a lot of money, because you truly depend on customers to help you market. It means there is no need to spend huge amounts of money to advertise and get the company name out there.
• Viral marketing gives your business a better visibility, because your product and services are being recommended, shared and discussed among your customers. This automatically creates brand advocacy for your business.

Disadvantages

• Viral marketing relies on people who are not familiar with your products and services to do the selling for you. It’s easy to spread a marketing message to a massive group, and damage can be huge if people perceive your message negatively. It may result in a misunderstanding or affect the brand.
• Association with an unknown group is another disadvantage of viral marketing campaign. The power of viral marketing relies on the transmission of messages from person to person, so during this process, messages can reach someone you would not be associated with.
• Just like any other marketing campaign, viral marketing is also hit or miss. By nature, viral marketing is often more risky and controversial than any other traditional marketing strategy. If viral marketing is done poorly, it can backfire and create negative buzz.
• Sometimes, it may difficult to control. If your message has reached a person who is not supposed to be related with it, then your viral message may be perceived as spam and lead to damage to the brand’s reputation and image.