Your blog could be the best in the world but nobody will know unless people get to hear about it. How can you maximise the chances of your ideas spreading?
There is a lot said about viral marketing, Seth Godin is probably the best known expert due to his excellent “Unleashing the Ideavirus” book. The concept is simple though. It just word of mouth in a new medium. A message spread via the internet though is much more so maybe it deserves another name (ignoring the lame “word of mouse”, ew!).
Word of mouth blog style
Compared to traditional word of mouth, spreading ideas via your blog has
- greater reach – ideas now spread worldwide as easily as locally
- greater speed – say something online and people see it right away
- less friction – it is so easy for someone to link to you, forward an email, etc
- no barriers – in the past only the famous could spread ideas this well, now any Joe in their underwear can reach a sizable audience
- staying power – would you buy a kryptonite lock even now? and just look at those chain letters that are still going round
Making your ideas spreadable
A post will have more of a viral effect if it is
- Easy to understand – I am as guilty as the next blogger for writing long posts but I do try to break them up into simple bite sized chunks. Plain language, short sentences, one idea/theme per post.
- Is “remarkable” in some way – You will not get buzz from your post if it is same-old. Think different.
- Easy to receive and pass along – How many blogs still make it tricky to find the permalink? Send to friend links are good. Bookmarking service links work.
- Easy to remember – Soundbites work. Tell stories. Use pictures.
- Beneficial to pass along – Even if the blogger just gets kudos from mentioning your post they and their audience have to get something out of it.
.. Lastly encourage forwarding, you don’t get if you don’t ask!
Summary
Keyword: Easy – Make it easy, worthwhile and pleasurable to spread your message and your message will spread.
I have tried to stick to my own advice here, I hope it worked! Let us know, and if you like this post, please do tell someone :O)