Here is a presentation of a review of material to help with decisions on what actions can be taken so that users of a www service themselves recommend it to others. It can be used by the marketer as a checklist for preparation of online activities or for their evaluation. The goal of this material is the grouping of the most frequent practices. Although they may seem obvious, not many can take credit for their intensive and successful application. Each of the solutions presented is illustrated with a link to a specific article or case.
a. Supply the users with tools, that require the employment of the help of their friends to utilize the premium features. Users of linkedin.com can attempt to obtain positive job references i.e. from their co-workers or clients, which can elevate the position of their profile in the results of searches for professionals. In a social service hahpi.com one can attempt to get an analogous entry called the “friend feedback”.
Users with endorsements on their profiles are three times as likely to be found in searches. Ask your colleagues to speak for you
http://www.linkedin.com/endorsements?goback=%2Eprf
Case: Linkedin.comWe just added a new feature to hahpi.com called “Friend Feedback”. This feature allows you to enter some info on your friends
http://www.hahpi.com/whatsnew.html
Case: Hahpi.com
b. Afford the users the opportunity for auto-promotion and auto-presentation in the service and outside of it. Users take well to showing the world and other users the results of their activity in the service or the proof of their popularity. Apply popularity rankings and give tools, thanks to which users can display the results of their efforts in the service beyond its scope. Promote the input of users put towards the growth of your service i.e. by creating or developing functional and look’n’feel extensions, promotional activities.
More importantly, it allows third-party sites to stream the videos off YouTube’s servers and even gives them props by featuring the URLs of the most active referrers to each clip.
http://www.fool.com/news/commentary/2006/…
Case: Youtube.comGrono.net: Many people want to be able to boast about the greatest number of friends and invite as many people as possible
http://www.chip.pl/arts/n/sub/article_172054.html
Case: Grono.netSnap case – contest for the best service promotion idea.
http://blog.snap.com/2006/05/15/10-tips-to-best-launch-snap/Browsing through LinkedIn, I discovered (…) those for whom a high number of personal connections is clearly a benchmark for popularity.
http://www.e-reiss.com/Articles/Are%20you%20LinkedIn.aspx
Case: Linkedin.com
c. Give users tools to show off their association with the service. Those include online tools (i.e.: a code which can be pasted into the page/email signature, which will display a button linking to the user profile or inform of the users online status), as well as promotional gadgets (i.e.: t-shirts).
Others buy stacks of cheap CDs, burn copies of the software, and hit the streets in Fox costumes, passing them out, guerrilla-marketing style.
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/aug2006/…
Case: Spreadfirefox.comPeople have been asking for some kind of Pandora “create station” module or a banner that they can put up.
http://blog.pandora.com/pandora/archives/2006/02/pandora_21_pand.html
Case: Pandora.comIn two days they contacted almost 100 sites, asking if owners would put a “Download Firefox” button on their homepage. A staggering 85% said yes.
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/aug2006/…
Case: Spreadfirefox.com
d. Give users an opportunity to earn money thanks to the service: directly and indirectly. Directly, as in the case of revver.com, where the authors of uploaded videos are paid royalties in exchange for clicks on ads placed at the end of the film. Indirectly, as in the game ogame.pl, where the user’s task is to develop the career of their character and other users “develop careers” so that they can sell them to another user.
They see that the path to profitability is as simple as the uploading process.
http://www.fool.com/news/commentary/2006/
Case: Cafepress.com; Lulu.com; Zazzle.comLogin and password will be sent right after receiving payment on my account at Lukas bank
http://aukcja.onet.pl/show_item.php?item=124528751
Case: Ogame.plFor the first time ever — allows online viral video creators to get paid for their work
http://www.tmcnet.com/usubmit/2005/oct/1199125.htm
Case: Revver.com
e. Build a coalition, interest group. Directly and primarily invite heavy users to the service, who will benefit most from it. For example, in the case of e-bay.com auction service, the heavy users were the small entrepreneurs; google.com contextual advertising system has become popular very fast thanks to webmasters; social service myspace.com went with musical bands, who were attracted with simple tools supporting their promotion. Exploit the missionary user. Create an ideology, which will draw users around your service. Get an enemy!
Then, bands started flocking to the site as a way to showcase their music.
http://www.fool.com/news/commentary/2006/commentary06032806.htm…
Case: Myspace.comeBay galvanized home-based retailers
http://www.fool.com/news/commentary/2006/commentary06032806.htm…
Case: E-Bay.comGoogle has empowered the community of hobbyist and dedicated webmasters
http://www.fool.com/news/commentary/2006/commentary06032806.htm…
Case: Google.comIn two days they contacted almost 100 sites, asking if owners would put a “Download Firefox” button on their homepage. A staggering 85% said yes.
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/aug2006/…
Case: Spreadfirefox.comThis group, who would later form the Mozilla Corporation, comprised die-hard believers in the so-called open-source method
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/aug2006/tc20060830_824598.htm…Antigrono: http://grono.blogspot.com, http://www.hackgrono.blo.pl, http://www.gronohack.cba.pl
f. Organize contests/rankings for the most active users and reward the winners. Reward the users for inviting and encouraging to use the service.
A contest for those who first register or the most active users.
http://www.bubbler.pl/page.php?view=17
Case: Bubble.plPromotion from major Hollywood studio and video-sharing service encourages users to submit funny and creative personal video content
http://www.hiphoppress.com/2006/06/revvercom_asks_.htmlCase: Revver.comThe aim of the Recommendation program is the promotion of the 100 most active artists based on the number of people recommended by them.
http://pl.millionartists.com/referralProgram.php
Case: Pl.millionartists.comEvery person, who registers in the Store (…) and recommends 1 or more persons – will receive a rebate with their next purchase
http://www.womenssecret.pl/information.php?info_id=7
Case: Womenssecret.pl
g. Include a contextual recommendation tool as part of the service, which the user will always have ”at their fingertips” when using the service. Make it available as often as possible adjusting it to specific content. If the goal of the service is hosting movies, than besides the standard, constant “Send to a friend” form, repeat this message following the film.
Hotmail’s free email service spread like wildfire in the early days because each message that went out via Hotmail contained an offer for the recipient to receive a free email account with the service.
http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/3-19-2004-51871.asp
Case: Hotmail.comGive direct tool like “Send to a friend” or “Forward to a group”.
http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/3-19-2004-51871.asp
Case: Hotmail.com
h. Integrate your service with other services/tools. Linkedin has a special program, which after download and installation acts as an extension of MS Outlook and allows to send invitations to all contacts in the address book. Auction service Ĺšwistak made it possible to import comments obtained by the user through Allegro. Offer products together with partner services. This will contribute to the perception of the service as important and will help to increase reach.
LinkedIn’s Outlook Toolbar brings the power of the LinkedIn Network to your email — and new features make it easy to manage your communications and keep in touch with your LinkedIn connections and other contacts.
http://www.linkedin.com/static?key=outlook_toolbar_download&trk=ftr_ol
Case: Linkedin.comThe click-to-call capability will allow a user to click on a link or icon within a product or service advertisement to initiate an Internet voice call to participating eBay merchants or Google advertisers directly from either company’s respective sites, using Skype or Google Talk.
http://www.clickz.com/showPage.html?page=3623319
Case: Skype.comI value eBay more than I would if it were still a standalone auctioneer because it also chugged down PayPal, Half.com, and Skype.
http://www.fool.com/news/commentary/2006/commentary06032806.htm…
Case: E-Bay.comNokia and Flickr have joined forces to enable your Nseries device to work seamlessly with your Flickr account - no downloads, nothing to install.
http://www.flickr.com/nokia/
Case: Flickr.com
i. Limit the accessibility of the service through a system of invitations. Lack of possibility of open registration will allow for an elitist effect – users will seek to join the service on their own and will be more selective with choosing the people they invite.
LinkedIn’s Outlook Toolbar brings the power of the LinkedIn Network to your email — and new features make it easy to manage your communications and keep in touch with your LinkedIn connections and other contacts.
http://www.linkedin.com/static?key=outlook_toolbar_download&trk=ftr_ol
Case: Linkedin.comThe click-to-call capability will allow a user to click on a link or icon within a product or service advertisement to initiate an Internet voice call to participating eBay merchants or Google advertisers directly from either company’s respective sites, using Skype or Google Talk.
http://www.clickz.com/showPage.html?page=3623319
Case: Skype.comI value eBay more than I would if it were still a standalone auctioneer because it also chugged down PayPal, Half.com, and Skype.
http://www.fool.com/news/commentary/2006/commentary06032806.htm…
Case: E-Bay.comNokia and Flickr have joined forces to enable your Nseries device to work seamlessly with your Flickr account - no downloads, nothing to install.
http://www.flickr.com/nokia/
Case: Flickr.com
i. Limit the accessibility of the service through a system of invitations. Lack of possibility of open registration will allow for an elitist effect – users will seek to join the service on their own and will be more selective with choosing the people they invite.
It is also invitation-only: users must be invited to join by a member.
http://72.14.221.104/search?q=cache:K6mIvYyeuVEJ:en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orkut…
Case: orkut.comFirefox Day: Choose only one person, think it through – choose someone, who does not have Firefox and who, in your opinion, will benefit from it.
http://www.worldfirefoxday.com/pl/?utm_source=google…
Case: Spreadfirefox.com
3kliknięcia
