Viral Marketing is seen as something of an art form in execution rather than something which is easily replicated.

At it's core, viral marketing is all about want getting a prospect and/or customer to spread your marketing message. Usually this is done without an incentive because the viral creative is so strong though not always.

There is a lot of terminology in the field of Viral Marketing so let's take a moment to demystify some of the terms so you can understand in essence - what is viral marketing.

AIDA
Attention, Interest, Desire, Action – This is a classic marketing formula which holds true for any viral marketing campaign. The biggest problem marketers face today is grabbing the ATTENTION of their prospects as there are so many competing demands and messages out there we all face on a daily basis. Without someones attention, they will not pass your message on so this is crucial.

Agent:
See Distribution Agent

Buzz Marketing
This is a synonym for Viral Marketing, you may also hear other terms like stealth marketing, guerrilla marketing, social media marketing and word of mouth marketing to mention but a few.

BWN
The Bored At Work Network – This phrase was coined by Jonah Peretti (Director of R&D at Eyebeam). Huge group of “workers” who have the capacity to spread a viral message far and wide very quickly – message has to resonate with them though, that said, your message could be controversial to work in this fashion too.

Connector
Someone who is in a position to influence a network of people. They know/have access to a lot of people (possible distribution agents - see below). “Important/Influential” people are to be found within or on the periphery of their network. Their opinions are regarded highly by their network.

Contagious
Is your message worthy of spreading? Remember, you may think it's great but why would someone else pass it on? See Also – Copulation Rate

Copulation Rate
Speed of viral marketing campaign growth. ‘1’ is the magic number when a viral campaign is self sustaining. Achieving a copulation rate of 1 is extremely difficult and you can have great success with your viral marketing campaign by trying to reach a copulation rate as close to 1 as possible.

Copulation Rate Formula
#Referrals / #Distribution Agents

Creative(s)
The items you are using to help spread your viral message. This could be a video, mp3, pdf, WOMA, game, music, thought provoking report etc…. Remember the #1 Viral Principle: Why should someone pass this on?

Distribution
How many people will an infected person make contact with/spread the message to

Distribution Agent
Someone or something actively passing the message on.

Infection
How likely is a contacted person to become a distribution agent?

Influencer
See Also Connector and Maven

Maven
An authority/expert figure others look to and listen to. Thought leaders whom connectors also look to for pointers/messages to spread.

Salesmen
Persuaders who are able to convince people of the value of a product/service/marketing message.

Seed/Seeding
How large a marketing push you start with. This is a factor of the number of distribution agents you already have, the type and number of viral vehicles you use.

Smoothness
How easy is it for your distribution agents to pass your viral message on? In an online world, the ideal is 1 click to pass on the message. Make it as simple as possible – help your message spread.

Stickiness
Once you have succeeded in getting the attention of a prospect, you need to hold their attention – this is the ‘stickiness factor’.

Tracking
Observing your viral marketing results. You need to test and track to know what is working and what is not

Viral Vehicle
See Creative(s)

WOMA
Word Of Mouth Advertising. This is how you want your message to be spread - from one person to another, of course we live in an online world so word of mouth is normall word of mouse.

I hope the above has helped demystify some of the world of viral marketing for you. With viral marketing, you need to make sure you are clear on your objectives and clear on why your message stands out above others if you are to have a success on your hands.