Lessons Learned – Viral Marketing: Product Channel Fit and the Power of Virality

Lessons Learned – Viral Marketing: Product Channel Fit and the Power of Virality

In the world of digital marketing, viral growth is the holy grail. It's the dream of every marketer and business owner to have their product or service spread like wildfire, reaching new customers at an exponential rate. But achieving true viral growth is not as simple as it may seem. It requires a deep understanding of the key parameters that drive viral growth, namely the Viral Coefficient and the Viral Cycle Time.

The Viral Coefficient is a measure of how many new customers each existing customer is able to successfully convert. It is calculated by multiplying the number of invitations by the conversion rate. For viral growth to occur, the Viral Coefficient must be greater than 1. This means that each customer needs to bring in at least one new customer. Without a Viral Coefficient greater than 1, your product or service will not experience true viral growth.

However, while the Viral Coefficient is important, it is not the most crucial factor in achieving viral growth. The Viral Cycle Time, or the time it takes for the viral cycle to complete, is actually the key driver of growth. A shorter cycle time has a dramatic effect on customer growth.

Imagine a table that shows the effect of varying the Viral Cycle Time. As the cycle time decreases, the customer growth increases exponentially. This means that the faster your product or service can spread from one customer to another, the more likely it is to experience viral growth. In fact, the Viral Coefficient is raised to the power of t/ct, where t is the time and ct is the cycle time. This means that reducing the cycle time has a far more powerful effect on growth than increasing the Viral Coefficient.

So how can you ensure that your product or service has a short Viral Cycle Time? One way is to make your product inherently social. The most viral products are those that only work if they are shared. Think about how you can make your product or service more social, where it would work better by sharing data with friends or co-workers. By doing so, you tap into the power of social networks and increase the likelihood of viral growth.

But it's not enough to simply make your product or service social. You also need to provide an incentive for customers to share it with others. Ask yourself: is the value proposition of your product compelling enough that your customers will want to share it? If not, you need to reevaluate your product and find ways to make it more valuable and shareable.

In addition to creating a social and valuable product, you also need to consider the channel through which you distribute it. Product Channel Fit is the concept that a product is built to fit with channels, not the other way around. You need to adapt your product to fit the channels that you do not control. This means changing the things within your control to align with the external channels.

According to Brian Balfour, a company that has product channel fit will get 70% or more of their growth from one channel. It's better to prioritize and focus on one or two channels at a time rather than trying to tackle multiple channels simultaneously. You should seek to find your power law channel, the one that brings in the most growth, and optimize your product and marketing efforts around it.

However, it's important to note that Product Channel Fit is not a one-time achievement. It is always evolving and can break as new channels emerge or old channels become obsolete. Just look at the examples of Zynga, PopCap, and King. While they are still around today, they took a long time to transition to new channels and as a result, missed out on some opportunities that were captured by others.

In conclusion, achieving viral growth requires a combination of factors. You need a Viral Coefficient greater than 1, a short Viral Cycle Time, and a product that fits well with the channels through which you distribute it. To maximize your chances of success, here are three actionable pieces of advice:

• 1. Make your product inherently social and encourage sharing among users. Tap into the power of social networks to amplify your viral growth potential.

• 2. Provide a strong value proposition that motivates customers to share your product with others. Make it so compelling that they can't help but spread the word.

• 3. Focus on finding your power law channel, the one that brings in the majority of your growth. Prioritize and optimize your product and marketing efforts around this channel to maximize your chances of success.

By following these strategies, you can increase your chances of achieving viral growth and experiencing the exponential customer growth that every marketer dreams of. Remember, viral marketing is not just about luck or chance. It's about understanding the key parameters that drive growth and strategically optimizing your product, marketing, and distribution efforts to achieve maximum impact.