Viral marketing missteps reach "epidemic" proportions

JupiterResearch reports viral marketing efforts have failed to effectively reach the mass audiences advertisers had anticipated. Despite the growing popularity of such social media sites as MySpace and You Tube, viral marketing campaigns are consistently proving ineffective in delivering and sustaining a brand over time, due mainly to misdirected tactics.

The new report says only 15% achieved the goal of prompting consumers to promote their messages for them in the past year. Although targeting influentials was the most popular technique to stimulate viral behavior, viral marketers plan to decrease use of this tactic by 55% within the next year. While social media sites eliciting user generated content would seem to provide a perfect vehicle for viral marketing campaigns, those initiating the campaigns must dig deeper to understand the tendencies of the appropriate audiences.

"Viral marketers often send one campaign to all influentials," explained Emily Riley, Analyst at JupiterResearch. "Different influential groups not only respond very differently to advertising campaigns, but also influence others in very different ways."

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