ChangeThis: New Ideas on Marketing and Creativity

The latest issue of ChangeThis, the online journal that "The No Asshole Rule" author Bob Sutton says looks "more interesting than the typical Harvard Business Review," trains its wide lens on the subject of viral marketing, with a piece by David Meerman Scott.
"The New Rules of Viral Marketing: How Word-of-Mouse Spreads Your Ideas for Free" starts off with a case study of Universal Orlando Resort's influencer marketing campaign for its new park, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.The very reason that made the campaign right for a viral approach made that same approach necessary. "If we hadn't gone to fans first, there could have been a backlash," said Cindy Gordon, Universal Orlando's vice president of new media and marketing partnerships.

These elements proved crucial to the success:

• Passionate fan base.
• Existing online communities that could spread the message.
• Online communities made it relatively easy to find seven key influencers.
• Insider edge lent the campaign credibility and a cool factor. The midnight webcast that launched the product was shot live from the set of Dumbledore's office.