Some Thoughts On "Viral Marketing"

Was hoping to see at least one outstanding failure at viral marketing. You know they must be out there, you just never hear about them ...

I remember reading in a book that playboy had spent a few million on a social network that was losing its ass. I think it even used ning

http://techcrunch.com/2007/08/22/new-playboy-social-network-...

The article says at that point in time you even needed a .edu to signup for the network.

"Viral" is like sex. (Gettig laid.) It's something which is very desirable, so much so that the target of the marketing/proposal often wonders if the virality is the actual point of the interaction as opposed to real utility. There are so many parallels that come to mind, I wonder if there is a general game-theoretic dynamic at work?

One parallel: it's better to be casual about being viral. It's not good to seem over-anxious.