Viral marketing, also known as word-of-mouth advertising, convergence marketing, buzz marketing, network marketing, or referral advertising, is the skillful promotion of a product, brand or services with strongest influence in the online market. A fertile source for viral marketing is through blogs, online forums, IRC (Internet Relay Chat), instant messaging, UseNet newsgroups, and emails. Main purpose of this marketing strategy is utilizing several pre-existing social networks to generate positive impacts on the minds of maximum number of readers.

Professional viral marketing helps to create exponential increase in the exposure and influence of the message from a single reader to thousands and millions of other readers; just like a biological virus that is spread from persons to person. Higher the pass-along rate higher is the percentage of viral marketing impact. If someone forwards an extremely mind blowing article or blog to large number of their friends or associates, the pass-along rate increases extensively. This is a viral marketing success. Thus in actual fact, an appropriately running article, forum or blog can be used expansively for the purposes of generating social networking, viral marketing, and ultimately building solid traffic.

There are numerous free knowledge sharing sites and free web-based e-mail service providers (e.g.: hotmail, gmail, etc) that were formed with the purposes of viral marketing or advertising. The Internet marketing is today packed with a number of online discussion forums where people get the opportunity to share information, exchange pictures or music and take part in discussions on a wide array of topics. Viral marketing utilizes the every possible communication network in the Internet.

With viral marketing, free faqs, free information, free weekly/monthly e-newsletters, free email services, short-form editorials, free IT consultancy or business advices are mostly given away. This marketing strategy can attract audience by giving away amusing video clips, advergames, flash games, SMS etc.

Like any other marketing strategies, viral marketing has some advantages and disadvantages. The advantages are low costs, high credibility, high efficiency, great reach, and opportunity to continuous promotion adjustments. The main disadvantages of the viral marketing are the chance of working in association with unknown groups, spamming threats, brand dilution, etc.

About the Author: Article is written by Sabu Lal N G, working for www.outsourcestrategies.com