This slideshow focuses on public relations techniques for the Web.

1. Web PR
Techniques
Brett Atwood

2. Web Distribution
• Web news sites
• “Viral marketing”
• Direct-to-consumer marketing
• Blogs and social networking sites

3. “Viral” Marketing
• One of the most effective
“new” marketing
strategies uses “viral”
techniques that spreads
through “word-of-mouth”
among “infected”
audience members

4. Goals of Viral Marketing
• Get people talking about your product, service
or campaign
• Let “word-of-mouth” spread your message
• Build trust and awareness through low-key
product/message placement

5. Viral Marketing: Pros
• Inexpensive
– Others do the distribution
• Increased Credibility
– The audience is more likely to believe something
from their peers over something originating
directly from a sales person

6. Viral Marketing for “Unconventional”
Products
• Viral marketing can be used to
promote unconventional products
and ideas
• Example: Philips “Bodygroom”
– Shaver for body hair
– Embarrassing topic for many
– Too “explicit” for mainstream media

7. Success of Campaign
• Philips launched a micro-site
• Uses humor and even explicit language to pitch
product
• Small marketing budget
• Sales increases
• Mentioned in over 1,000 blogs

8. Success of “Fred”
• Fred is a character
created by a
teenager on
YouTube
– One of the first
instances of a
YouTube artist
attracting the
attention of a
sponsor for product
placement
• At one point in 2008,
this was the # 1 –
Most Subscribed (All
Time) on YouTube

9. Viral Marketing: Cons
• Control
– You don’t control the distribution
– Randomness to who gets the message
• Context
– The context of the message can be distorted since
others are distributing it

10. Example: GM “Chevy Tahoe”
• General Motors invited
Internet users to create
or remix their own
“advertisement” for the
SUV truck “Chevy Tahoe”

11. Viral Marketing Campaign Misfires
• A Web site was created with various elements of video
that the user could use to arrange the commercial
• The user could also add their own “text” over the video

12. Goal of the GM Viral Campaign
• The goal was to let users
interact with the product in a
fun, unique way
• They would then distribute
their creation and the
message to friends and via
their blogs
• GM hoped to build brand
awareness of the new truck

13. Success? Or Not?
• 21,000 user-created ads were submitted
• 2.4 million page views
• 80% of the ads were positive
• However, 20% of ads were critical
– The media coverage focused on the negative

14. Lack of Control and Context
• Many Internet users decided to create
commercials that complained about the
environmental impact of the gas-hungry truck
• A negative association between the truck and
the environment was created

16. Backlash?
• In early 2007, Boston officials mistook “real
world” viral campaign materials for terrorist-planted
bombs!

17. Effective Ways to Use Viral Marketing
• To increase brand awareness without selling
anything.
• To sell products and services that usually
include discounts, giveaways or other
incentives
• To communicate simple messages that share
positive or negative experiences or interesting
thoughts, jokes, funny videos and other
observations.

18. Effective Ways to Use Viral Marketing
• Embed messages with programs such as
games that entice the user to get involved
• Entice individuals to get involved in recruiting
others in return for incentives.
• Recruit others as new customers to share
products

19. Successful Delivery of Viral Marketing
• The message should be credible
– Credibility increases when the message is
delivered by a known friend or associate
• The message should be compelling
– The content must be interesting enough for
someone to want to pass on word about it
• Timeliness is key
– Viral messages have a limited life span
– Interest will decrease quickly after an initial burst

20. “Online Street Teams”
• Boston-based Alt Terrain arranges “alternative media”
marketing campaigns
• “Online street teams” infiltrate chat rooms, bulletin
boards and blogs to post positive information on
clients
• They pose as fans expressing spontaneous opinions,
but they are really paid promoters

21. “Astro-turfing”
• Use caution in executing this technique
• The online community is skeptical of obvious
and aggressive sales techniques
• The process of online eavesdropping has been
given the nickname “astro-turfing”
– The name refers to a brand of artificial grass
– This is because this form of marketing is an
artificial attempt at gaining “grassroots” support

22. “Astro-turfing”
• “Astro-turfing”
techniques have been
used beyond marketing
attempts to sell a product
– They have been used to
simulate “grassroots”
political momentum

23. Dangers of Viral Marketing
• Consumers will get upset if they discover that
they have been manipulated
• A backlash could occur toward your campaign

24. Example: “Lonelygirl15”
• In the U.S., there was a
scandal involving an actress
who was paid to keep a
video journal online
– “Lonelygirl15” gained millions
of followers
– She was exposed as a fake
– Aspiring filmmakers developed
her “character” to build
interest in their movie

25. Blogging and Marketing
• Many companies are adding blogs to their
Web sites to communicate directly with their
customers

26. Example:
• Retailer Wal-Mart has been criticized by the media
for the way it treats employees
– Low wages
– Poor medical benefits
• In the past, Wal-Mart would offer a “no comment” to
many journalists
• The company suffered negative media exposure

27. Wal-Mart Woes
• Wal-Mart initially decided to go directly to the public
with its own Web site: WalMartFacts.com
– That site now redirects to the corporate Wal-Mart page
– The site was used to post responses to media attacks and to
tell its side of the story

28. Corporate Blogs
• Even McDonalds has a blog
• The company is responding to criticism over the
healthiness of fast food

29. Open Issues?
• As more corporate blogs open, there is a
question about how “open” they should be for
public feedback
• Should they allow for bulletin boards?
– Lack of control = negative comments
– Censorship = criticism from opponents

30. Marketing to Social Networking
Sites
• Social networking sites are
growing
• “Circle of friends” concept
• Examples:
– Facebook
– Instagram
– Twitter

31. Trends in Social Networking
• “Viral” trends and marketing
– These techniques are effective because they come
from trusted sources
– Customers “let in” the company and interact with
them