I said in my previous post that I enjoy reading blogs, and I do. I have a few linked in my sidebar (Heather B. Armstrong is a fave of mine,) but Seth Godin is also one of my go-to resources. Seth is someone that I've learned a lot from in my academic career, whether it's about 'remarkable marketing' in his book, The Purple Cow, or whether it's a gem of a blog entry like this one.
In this blog entry, he talks about what makes an idea viral.
Now, viral can be defined in many different ways. There are campaigns, like those seen for films like The Dark Knight and most recently, Inception- or there are those for music. One musical viral campaign that I am particularly enraptured with lately is that of iamamiwhoami [WARNING: NOT A WORKSAFE LINK,] the anonymous, explicit artist (believed to be folk singer Jonna Lee,) posting coded videos on an anonymous YouTube account. Seth Godin talks about why these particular ideas and campaigns are so successful.
If it's easy to swallow, tempting and complete, it's a lot more likely to get a good start.
This statement defines Godin's post. It also defines many of the previously listed viral campaigns in some way. Of course, there's the mystery element, but the campaigns themselves are 'encapsulated' in a certain way and are easily defined. The why so serious? campaign for The Dark Knight was largely successful because people knew what it was about and wanted to know more. The iamamiwhoami campaign was simple: anonymity. It was an easy to digest idea; a blonde, disguised girl in the midst of a bunch of explicit, coded images. There was a puzzle to figure out, and it's still in progress. (I might know who the performer is, but that doesn't mean I have figured out her message just yet!)
Godin talks about making ideas appealing and simple. If an idea is highly visual and memorable, he says, it's easier to remember and identify. If it doesn't require much effort to remember, the effort for it to be talked about will be made, and it's only been proven true with recent viral campaigns in the industry.
.. Now, if anyone could tell me what exactly all the coding in the iamamiwhoami videos means, I would be eternally grateful!
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