Search results

1 – 10 of over 2000
Article
Publication date: 13 July 2015

Ilan Bijaoui and David Regev

This paper aims to focus on two main and related issues: evaluating whether the required entrepreneurial capabilities are present according to Gladwell’s law of the few in the…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to focus on two main and related issues: evaluating whether the required entrepreneurial capabilities are present according to Gladwell’s law of the few in the Western Negev region of Israel and identifying the economic development model that can generate a viral development.

Design/methodology/approach

In this paper, McClelland’s classification was used to evaluate the level of motivation in the region and Gladwell’s law of the few classification was used to understand the potentially positive effect of each entrepreneur on the others and on economic development in general. To evaluate the personal and business capabilities of each entrepreneur, two groups of parameters, one describing the personal profile and the other describing the business behavior of the entrepreneurs, were used.

Findings

Most entrepreneurs are ready to cooperate with the open incubator and to contribute to generating common business interest, but mavens and connectors have few of the required personal characteristics and business attitudes. Only the salesmen have the required personal profile, but they lack the necessary business attitude. Highly motivated entrepreneurs, at need-for-power level, have both the required personal profile and business attitude. They are the ones who could generate growth, and a portion of them have the characteristics to become mavens, connectors and salesmen.

Practical implications

The willingness to cooperate with a neutral organization and generate common economic interest is present in the Western Negev, but the following actions are required to achieve viral development: persuade and support entrepreneurs at the highest level of motivation to be a part of the few, i.e. mavens, connectors and salesmen; improve the business attitude of mavens, connectors and salesmen; and plan the work program of the open incubator in cooperation with entrepreneurs at the need-for-power level: mavens, connectors and salesmen.

Originality/value

Viral economic development can occur if the few mavens, connectors and salesmen in a given sector or region have the required positive personal profile and business attitude, and if most of the entrepreneurs are ready to cooperate with a neutral organization, the open incubator and join efforts with others to generate new common business interests.

Details

Journal of Research in Marketing and Entrepreneurship, vol. 17 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1471-5201

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 24 October 2008

Danilo Cruz and Chris Fill

There has been little evidence of any work undertaken to measure the effectiveness of viral marketing campaigns. This paper aims to report on research undertaken to determine the…

22513

Abstract

Purpose

There has been little evidence of any work undertaken to measure the effectiveness of viral marketing campaigns. This paper aims to report on research undertaken to determine the key criteria that viral marketing practitioners believe should be used to measure the success of viral marketing campaigns.

Design/methodology/approach

Semi‐structured interviews were undertaken with some of the premier web masters, those leading the development of much of the UK's viral marketing activities.

Findings

Two forms of viral marketing were identified, “random” and “placed virals”. The paper presents a viral marketing evaluation framework that identifies three key objectives and their particular evaluation criteria. Financial objectives and the need to measure the return on investment were identified as previously undocumented key issues.

Research limitations/implications

The small size of the sample prevents generalization but the findings suggest that further research is necessary to confirm these findings and to explore the topic in greater detail.

Practical implications

Using the framework to measure the success of a campaign can help clients and agencies be more accountable and effective with respect to viral campaigns.

Originality/value

The determination of the evaluation of critieria of viral marketing campaigns is important because it is undertaken from a practitioners' perspective and is a topic not previously explored.

Details

Marketing Intelligence & Planning, vol. 26 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0263-4503

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 11 November 2013

María-José Miquel-Romero and Consolacion Adame-Sánchez

The purpose of this paper is to identify the antecedents that may determine the opening of e-mails from companies that endeavour to promote their products, and what may motivate…

4808

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to identify the antecedents that may determine the opening of e-mails from companies that endeavour to promote their products, and what may motivate individuals to forward such messages to others.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper presents exploratory research to approach the nature of the viral process and descriptive research for testing the proposed hypotheses.

Findings

The opening of an e-mail is determined by the value that an individual may perceive that the message might contain. Forwarding of the message is determined by its opening, and by the individual's perception about the value of the message it may provide to others, besides the need for communication with others held by the individual. Also, the higher the value perceived by the recipient with respect to the message, the better the associations given to the source of the message. When it is considered that the message may be relevant to others and when an individual has a need for interpersonal communication, better environmental conditions will be perceived to forward the message.

Research limitations/implications

The study provides a starting point for further research in the field of viral marketing where companies should play a more active role.

Practical implications

Guidelines in the development of a viral marketing campaign through e-mail are proposed.

Originality/value

Most of the studies focused on viral marketing consider the reception of a message only from another person, not from a company. This study focuses on the opening of a message from a company and its forwarding to a colleague.

Details

Management Decision, vol. 51 no. 10
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0025-1747

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 October 2010

Lina Xiong and Clark Hu

The purpose of this paper is to focus on the pricing strategy for viral marketing in the context of the hotel industry and propose three typical price‐network size schedules to be…

3063

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to focus on the pricing strategy for viral marketing in the context of the hotel industry and propose three typical price‐network size schedules to be tested. The paper further proposes controlled experiments in hotel industry context to examine the performance of those schedules.

Design/methodology/approach

A simulated hotel booking web site with basic reservation functions will be constructed. Participants should be randomly drawn and asked to encourage their friends from social networks to book with the participant to achieve a better price. Each participant will be given a special promotion code embedded with different pricing information. The number of customers attracted, total revenue and time to achieve a sell‐out was collected after the experiments.

Findings

These were the expected performance differences associated with different network pricing strategies in the viral marketing campaigns.

Research limitations/implications

Since participants do not need to pay for the booking, it is difficult to control their intentions. Also, in the quantity discount scenario, individual preference may not be met.

Practical implications

First, this paper proposed the possible pricing strategy to promote the effectiveness of viral marketing in hotel industry. Second, by initiating business with customers directly through viral marketing, hotels can have more control over the inventory and product prices.

Originality/value

Through a better understanding in viral marketing from the perspective of network discount strategies, the marketing opportunities enabled by social networks can be extended. This paper suggests that employing a price‐network size schedule that offers deduction in price as network size increases may be an effective tool in attracting potential customers to make purchases in a timely manner. This paper further suggests experiments to test typical pricing schedules that could be utilized in practices. The proposed experiments can provide a deeper insight into the implementation of viral marketing for hotel managers.

Details

Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology, vol. 1 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1757-9880

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 11 July 2023

Flavia Braga Chinelato, Cid Gonçalves Filho and Daniel Fagundes Randt

The main goal of viral marketing is to affect brands positively. But most studies concern the causes of an ad going viral, not its impact on brands. In this sense, this study aims…

1142

Abstract

Purpose

The main goal of viral marketing is to affect brands positively. But most studies concern the causes of an ad going viral, not its impact on brands. In this sense, this study aims to demonstrate and compare video ads' value drivers on brands and sharing, determining which antecedents maximize results on each, enabling the best ad performance for advertisers.

Design/methodology/approach

A survey was conducted with 368 respondents who watched viral video ads from five global companies on YouTube. The proposed model was tested using structural equation modeling in SmartPLS4.

Findings

The results of this study demonstrated that product category involvement is essential for viral advertising. Furthermore, the entertainment value is the most relevant antecedent of sharing, but it does not affect brand equity; it is the social value responsible for brand equity.

Practical implications

Marketing managers should create ads that simultaneously generate entertainment and social values, maximizing sharing and branding effects. However, if only one of the two effects (brand/share) is achieved, then the advertiser will fail to obtain maximum performance.

Originality/value

The mainstream of viral marketing research is focused on antecedents of sharing. However, sharing is not enough to provide brand effects and return on investment of advertisement. This study reveals that different consumers’ values drive sharing and brand equity, suggesting that firms should consider a dual value generation strategy regarding the performance of viral video ads. On the other hand, this research conciliates the extant literature about the phenomena with the importance of product category involvement.

Propósito

El objetivo principal del marketing viral es influir positivamente en las marcas. Pero la mayoría de las investigaciones se refieren a las causas de que un anuncio se vuelva viral, no a su impacto en las marcas. En este sentido, esta investigación tiene como objetivo demostrar y comparar los impulsores de valor de los anuncios de video en las marcas y su viralización, determinando qué antecedentes maximizan los resultados en cada uno, permitiendo el mejor rendimiento publicitario para los anunciantes.

Diseño/metodología/enfoque

Se realizó una encuesta con 368 participantes que vieron anuncios de video virales de cinco empresas globales en YouTube. El modelo estructural se analizó mediante ecuaciones estructurales basada en mínimos cuadrados utilizando SmartPLS4.

Hallazgos

Los resultados demostraron que la participación en la categoría de productos es esencial para la publicidad viral. Además, el valor de entretenimiento es el antecedente más relevante de compartir, pero no afecta el valor de la marca; es el valor social responsable del valor de la marca.

Implicaciones practices

Los gerentes de marketing deben crear anuncios que generen simultáneamente entretenimiento y valores sociales, maximizando los efectos de uso compartido y de marca. Sin embargo, si solo se consigue uno de los dos efectos (marca/participación), el anunciante no conseguirá obtener el máximo rendimiento.

Originalidad/valor

La corriente principal de la investigación de marketing viral se centra en los antecedentes de compartir. Sin embargo, compartir no es suficiente para proporcionar efectos de marca y ROI de publicidad. Este estudio revela que los diferentes valores de los consumidores impulsan el intercambio y el valor de la marca, lo que sugiere que las empresas deberían considerar una estrategia de generación de valor dual con respecto al rendimiento de los anuncios de video virales. Por otro lado, esta investigación concilia la literatura existente sobre los fenómenos con la importancia de la participación de la categoría de productos.

目的

病毒式营销的主要目标是对品牌产生积极的影响。但大多数研究关注的是广告走红的原因, 而不是它对品牌的影响。在这个意义上, 本研究旨在证明和比较视频广告对品牌和分享的价值驱动因素, 确定哪些前因能使每一个因素的结果最大化, 为广告商带来最佳的广告效果。

设计/方法/途径

对368名受访者进行了调查, 他们在YouTube上观看了五家全球公司的病毒视频广告。在SmartPLS4中使用结构方程模型 对提议的模型进行了测试。

研究结果

结果表明, 产品类别的参与对于病毒式广告来说是至关重要的。此外, 娱乐价值是分享的最相关前因, 但它并不影响品牌资产; 对品牌资产负责的是社会价值。

实践意义

营销经理应该创造同时产生娱乐和社会价值的广告, 使分享和品牌效应最大化。然而, 如果只实现两种效果(品牌/分享)中的一种, 广告商将无法获得最大的绩效。

原创性/价值

病毒式营销研究的主流是关注分享的前因后果。然而, 分享并不足以提供品牌效应和广告的投资回报率。本研究揭示了不同消费者的价值观对分享和品牌资产的推动作用, 表明企业应该考虑关于病毒视频广告表现的双重价值产生策略。另一方面, 本研究将现有的文献与产品类别参与的重要性结合在一起。

Article
Publication date: 18 July 2008

Dennis Pitta

The purpose of this paper is to describe a practice that has implications for promoting new product innovations in a variety of industries. The ultimate objective of product…

2209

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to describe a practice that has implications for promoting new product innovations in a variety of industries. The ultimate objective of product promotion is to build an emotional bond to the customer. The product featured in the case can aid companies in building share of heart.

Design/methodology/approach

The case describes the development and targeting of a new software product, the gydget. It tracks the product from the internal development process to its promotion and use by customers. The company, Gydget.com, is a real organization based in California, USA. The author is indebted to several company representatives for insight into the firm's operations.

Findings

The case describes how the company fine‐tuned product benefits to exploit the communication potential of new personal webspaces. Specifically, the company designed its product to exploit the viral marketing strategic process and followed that strategy to introduce it. In addition, it demonstrates how gydgets can aid in the promotional phase of the new product development process as well as promotion in general. The product makes viral marketing possible and can help companies develop emotional bonds to their customers. The case also provides information and a solid action approach to increasing the effectiveness of product promotion.

Research limitations/implications

As in all case studies, the specific conditions found in one organization may not be found more generally in others. Readers are cautioned that the conclusions drawn in the case may have limited applicability.

Practical implications

The case depicts a professional implementation of product development and market selection. Additionally, it describes the value of viral marketing strategies and shows how its product can be used in viral marketing.

Originality/value

The case is a unique implementation of product development and promotion. It offers lessons that may be applied to other companies faced with generating publicity in similarly competitive, consumer environments. Practitioners of one‐to‐one marketing know that mass customization is the cornerstone of building relationships with individual customers. In that context, mass customization takes the form of differentiating a product or service to fit a particular consumer's needs more effectively than the original product. Ultimately, the value of any product lies with the customer. The closer the product or service benefits match the needs of a specific individual, the higher the brand value for that person. The one‐to‐one approach sharpens the focus and simplifies perceiving what mix of benefits customers will value. In general, as products are developed, their benefits and the communication about those benefits are refined to meet the needs of the target audience. The development stage in a one‐to‐one approach matches those needs precisely. One implication of the “perfect product” for developers is high acceptance by the consumer. In some cases, the product or provider may gain some share of the consumer's heart, the highest level of value.

Details

Journal of Product & Brand Management, vol. 17 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1061-0421

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 3 August 2015

Michael Beverland, Angela Dobele and Francis Farrelly

Viral marketing draws heavily on the success of a few mythic campaigns. However, the viral metaphor limits previous perspectives as to why consumers engage with content and…

4637

Abstract

Purpose

Viral marketing draws heavily on the success of a few mythic campaigns. However, the viral metaphor limits previous perspectives as to why consumers engage with content and importantly, why they pass it on. The paper aims to discuss this issue.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors explore why consumers engaged with Kraft’s “How do you love your Vegemite?” campaign using multiple sources of evidence including interviews, blog post comments, and firm market research.

Findings

The choice to engage with content is driven by consumers’ desire for self-authentication, in particular the desire to express one’s identity through an authenticating act, and express membership of a collective via an authoritative performance. In so doing, the authors identify the limits of adopting an epidemiological metaphor for campaigns reliant on consumer agency.

Originality/value

This study is unique because it proposes an alternative focus to a fundamental metaphor and has both conceptual and practical value.

Details

Marketing Intelligence & Planning, vol. 33 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0263-4503

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 10 January 2020

Nuzulul Kusuma Putri and Ernawaty Ernawaty

Today, viral marketing is popular as a highly effective marketing strategy with a low cost for mass targeting. This is suitable for the Universal Health Coverage campaign which…

1128

Abstract

Purpose

Today, viral marketing is popular as a highly effective marketing strategy with a low cost for mass targeting. This is suitable for the Universal Health Coverage campaign which seeks to attract the whole nation’s population to voluntarily register with social health insurance. It uses the target market itself as a weapon and the marketing content as a bullet. This study aims to determine the exact viral marketing content for the Universal Health Coverage campaign in Indonesia.

Design/methodology/approach

Viral marketing content is formulated based on the feelings of the target market toward social health insurance. Qualitative content analysis was conducted to identify the media framing and the audience’s response. Two of the biggest online news websites were analysed to determine the media framing. The audience’s response was identified through a Facebook group discussion.

Findings

This study shows that negative media framing makes people question the benefit of participating in social health insurance. Considering the local wisdom of Indonesia, helping poor people through social health insurance would be the best viral marketing content.

Research limitations/implications

Because of the limited number of sources focused on the audience’s responses that have been analysed, the variations in the audience response could not be captured completely. Researchers should also analyse other audience channels (social media and messenger application) besides Facebook.

Practical implications

The paper includes implications for the future marketing agenda of insurance providers in relation to engaging the community.

Originality/value

This study operationally introduced how to use the media channel selected and audience framing in designing an effective viral marketing content in health-care marketing.

Details

International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Marketing, vol. 14 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1750-6123

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 27 August 2019

Morteza Hendijani Fard and Reza Marvi

In the preceding decades, due to the advancement of social media, traditional marketing has become less significant. Managers and entrepreneurs are seeking novel, effective and…

4515

Abstract

Purpose

In the preceding decades, due to the advancement of social media, traditional marketing has become less significant. Managers and entrepreneurs are seeking novel, effective and efficient ways both for new and technological products/services. Drawing on the theory of reasoned action, information adoption model and technology acceptance model, the purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of viral marketing on purchase intentions of mobile applications users in Iran.

Design/methodology/approach

Statistical population includes those Iranian users who have used two social networks (Facebook, Instagram, Line, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Telegram, Twitter, Viber, WeChat and WhatsApp) at least. Invalid questionnaires are excluded and 624 are used for the data analysis. Structural equations modelling is used to test the proposed model.

Findings

The findings show that the most effective factor on apps perceived usefulness is argument quality of information, followed by source credibility and quantity of information. Perceived usefulness is also predicted by perceived ease of use through the indirect effect of argument quality. Furthermore, it is also found that purchase intention is affected by perceived ease of use, followed by perceived usefulness through attitude towards the purchase.

Research limitations/implications

This research is limited to the Iranian mobile apps market. Future studies on viral marketing in app markets should collect data from multiple industries and multiple countries in order to achieve a more comprehensive perspective on the effects and consequences of viral advertising. Furthermore, rather than social networks, similar research can be conducted on different communication channels of the internet such as blogs, e-mails, chat rooms, online communities, discussion boards, corporate websites, e-commerce and social commerce websites (e.g. Amazon). It is also suggested that the conceptual model of the research can be extended considering other useful factors on purchase intentions than attitude (e.g. subjective norms and perceived behavioural control). Furthermore, future research should consider the role of mobile apps features in forming purchase intentions.

Practical implications

For the firms that develop mobile applications (particularly in Iran’s app market), increasing sales requires exploiting social media viral marketing to effectively change potential customers’ perceptions about usefulness and ease of use of their products. The findings suggest that a viral marketing strategy should be developed with high argument quality, followed by high source credibility and a large amount of information on social media.

Originality/value

This is one of the earliest studies investigating the viral effects of social networks on purchase intention in the mobile applications context. Although very few papers practically recognised the impact of viral marketing on purchase intention, the effect of this concept on mobile applications purchase intention had remained unknown.

Details

International Journal of Emerging Markets, vol. 15 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1746-8809

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 29 November 2019

Tony Conway and Tanya Hemphill

“Growth hacking” is a “data-informed” marketing approach that uses digital marketing tools and tactics as well as traditional marketing channels to help technology companies show…

2353

Abstract

Purpose

“Growth hacking” is a “data-informed” marketing approach that uses digital marketing tools and tactics as well as traditional marketing channels to help technology companies show “proof-of-concept” and sustainability before gaining funding. The purpose of this study was to identify and understand the relevance and importance of growth hacking and identify what growth hacking tools and techniques are used by such organisations.

Design/methodology/approach

The main research method for the collection of primary data was in-depth interviews with both industry experts (senior professionals working for growth hacking agencies) and individual growth hacking practitioners who work for technology start-ups based in the UK. Interviews included the use of dimension cards with key growth hacking terms to act as visual cues to facilitate focus and prompt reflection.

Findings

In addition to a data analysis element, growth hacking also requires people to spot emerging opportunities before anyone else does. This makes it very difficult to find people with the right skill-set. It is also important to use traditional marketing methods to bridge the gap between the physical and digital world.

Originality/value

This study shows that growth hacking is a mind-set and process that can help technology start-ups grow quickly with a limited marketing budget. The research offers guidelines and frameworks for start-ups to understand the growth hacking process. The concept has direct synergy with agile marketing and this might be a term/ methodology with which people in the UK may feel more comfortable given the negative connotations of the word “hacking”.

Details

Journal of Research in Marketing and Entrepreneurship, vol. 21 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1471-5201

Keywords

1 – 10 of over 2000