“New media has created a new marketing environment where the old rules of marketing no longer apply.”

- Cindy Gordon, VP New Media and Marketing Partnerships, Universal Orlando Resorts

How are you different? How are you relevant? Who loves your brand? Answer these questions with confidence and you can harness the speed and efficiency of online tools to allow your fans to spread news of your product. The key idea is that other individuals, not you, are spreading the word.

In addition to having a product or service that is buzz-worthy, what are some of the ingredients you need to reach word-of-mouse status? According to David Meerman Scott in his recent ChangeThis manifesto - The New Rules of Viral Marketing: How Word of Mouse Spreads Your Ideas for Free:

Great Web content in the form of a video, blog entry, interactive tool, or e-book that provides valuable information (or information that is groundbreaking, or amazing, or hilarious, or involves a celebrity)

+

a network of people to light the fire and links that make your content very easy to share

“‘Make Your Message Memorable.’ Simply put, you have little chance that something will go viral unless, like a disease, it can be spread easily mouth-to-mouth. For that to happen, your message has to be super tight and easy to transmit in as few words as possible. ‘1,000 songs in your pocket’ is the answer to ‘what is an iPod?’ Before that, the Macintosh was introduced as ‘The computer for the rest of us.’”

- Steve Chazin, author of Marketing Apple

Is word-of-mouse guaranteed? Not by a long shot says Meerman Scott, and I agree. If you think like a venture capitalist or film producer, you will have an easier time taking a lot of bite size content to market and see some of it take off. Some of the ideas shared in the eBook are:

• invite people from outside the organization to brainstorm with you - they will have less bias towards certain aspects of the execution and provide insights on how to make it more fun and different

• develop a host of ideas, instead of working on just one. There is a bell curve in everything, including content-driven marketing initiatives. If two out of ten work out, you will gain a lift from those two so care for them. Don’t persist in backing ideas that are not taking off.

• have no buts, please. Since you don’t know what will work, stop trying to guess or talk yourself out of not pursuing an idea. My favorite example in the manifesto is the IBM mockumentaries on page 20.

• be a storyteller - give yourself license to create a compelling, engaging story that entertains your audience. Try different things. I find that much of the problem with corporate white papers and brochures, aside from not being exciting to read, is that they are cookie cutter.

• try video - we are visual creatures. Three minutes of home made narrative that is light, clear in its simplicity, and playful can do more for your brand than the most expensive message. If it works out, it could become a series.

• tell everyone. For example, although the contributors to this blog are well known, this site is relatively young still. If you’ve found the content her useful, help spread the word.

Word-of-mouse or viral marketing is not about buying access. Meerman Scott concludes:

The best word-of-mouse efforts promote your organization and its products and services by delivering great online content (video, an e-book, a great blog post, an interesting photo or graphic) that is directly tied to your products, services, and ideas. Successful viral marketing campaigns sell your ideas in a creative way that people want to share with their friends, colleagues, and family members.

Chances are you know someone who reads product labels while eating, especially when eating alone. It’s natural to be curious about what you eat. I’ve seen people engrossed in that kind of reading. H.J. Heinz Company knows a thing or two about interacting with its customers through a label.

Although Heinz tomato ketchup has been around since 1875, it’s still a staple on the tables of your favorite diners and fast food places, and chances are in your refrigerator. In fact, the product is so well known, that it might running the risk of being taken for granted - part of the décor. Many of us are passionate consumers of the famed ketchup. You might not be surprised to learn that Heinz receives letters and emails from its customers.

Do you remember a while back the “Talking Label” campaign? How about the “Say something Ketchuppy” contest? I do, they were both fun initiatives that featured catchy phrases and quotes on the product’s most prized real estate - the labels. What better vehicle for a viral campaign than this already visible (and famous) space? If you’re like me, for some items, you pay attention to the label.

Heinz was at it again last year with a “Top This TV” online contest. They allowed customers to enter videos submissions of a TV ad - the winner would take a spot in the 2007 Emmy Awards. Linking the site to YouTube for submission was a good step to popularize the contest. And that it did.

The Winner

Who won the first prize? “Heinz the Kissable Ketchup” by Andrew Dodson of Wheelersburg, Ohio was aired during the Emmies and Andrew got to take home the $57,000 prize. Four runner-ups took each $5,700 each in prize money and got to brag about their spots being aired during The Today’s Show. That is 5 people selected from over 6,000 entries resulting in 10 million online views – about 120,000 hours of people interacting with the brand, according to Smith Brothers Advertising, the agency that worked on the campaign.

Heinz picked a smart time frame to run the contest – the Fourth of July week-end. Ready with your ketchup bottles?

The Results

Base volume growth was about 4% and according to Heinz North America, sales have gone up by 13% year-over-year after the campaign was over. The contest was so successful, that Heinz repeated it with “Take 2″ in December 2007.

Now, could you pass me the ketchup? Or maybe we should say could you pass it on?