Viral marketing via WOM - street style

Hey digitalpoint community forums. I am in need of opinions from everyone here.. I am looking to get my website out there but don't have a zillion trillion dollars to spend it on marketing so I am looking to do it the street way - Word of mouth marketing on public transportation bus/train.

I currently live in NYC - NY and I have a website dedicated for Blackberry users which the niche is HUGE at the moment.. I have come down 2 it and decided that I don't have much of a choice but to do the viral marketing my self on the train as the internet seo and all that mumbo jumbo DOES NOT do the trick anymore..

I would like everyone .5cents on how you think viral street marketing as a campaign will work.

 

The amount of people you can reach each day on the streets that actually have an interest in your website is very small compared to how many you can reach online.

Even if you mention your site to 100 people every day, how many of them are going to have an interest in Blackberries? Out of those, how many of them will actually remember to visit your site once they get home from work?

Not all marketing costs money.

If your site is interesting and has a target market, submit it to some social bookmarking sites, mention it on Facebook or other social networks, write articles and drive people back to your site, etc.

This will get people that are actually interested in your topic to your site as opposed to some random guy off the train.

Just my opinion.

 

Where I live almost everyone on the train has a Blackberry - What I planned to do is give out a small gift card to 1 lucky blackberry user on the train.. If you think about it the minute someone hears free there attention is turned.

To get them to join the site - I plan to give 1lucky person who signs up to the site with a special code $100 in itunes music.

From my experience at this moment - using online marketing to such a specific niche will only do so much. Blackberry messenger is social enough of an application and people can spread the word of my site virally in a matter of minutes with it so it will be like making goods on the goods..

 

Oh I see what you mean.

You weren't very specific in your first post so I thought you just meant you would go up to a bunch of people and say "hey check out my website" which probably wouldn't go over too well.

With an incentive though, you should be able to get some people but at the same time, I don't think they will virally spread it because they want to be the one to win the $100 gift card and the more people join your site the less of a chance they have to win so they wanna keep the competition low.

Maybe put some flyers up at really crowded places like the train station, malls, grocery stores, etc. advertising your $100 gift card. I think that would work better than just talking to people and hoping they tell their friends.

 

You can attach your site name to items that people usually use. The javelin pens are simple items but with a cool style..with your brand on it, you get more exposure.

 

Well what I am hoping is that a chain reaction is caused - let's say a train car has 80 blackberry messenger users - I talk to them and pass out my paper with yatta yatta on it.. I'm hoping that people start to request each others pin# and if not they will join the site because either 1 girl would like to see 1 guy on the train or visa versa..

It's what's happening right now on my site.. guy finds girl.. he tells his friends and they join. I'm hoping that by doing this in the public that the real time action picks up...

 

Yeah it seems like a good plan. It's always good to think outside the box with IM and building up a site.

I'm not too familiar with Blackberry messenger and this Pin thing though. Is a Pin like their "screen name" for the Blackberry?

So your site is basically a place for people with Blackberries to meet other people that own the same type of phone as them and get to know each other?

 

I think your kind of already limiting your site by saying SEO etc does not work. Honestly it does still work... Plus are not the same 80 - 100 people going to be on the same train same time every day as you commute? Plus I don't know about you but I do not want to be pitched to on a train going from one place or another. I think you need to open up and find other avenues as well and not just this one.

With the $100 gift idea ok cool however if your limiting it to 1 person per day why in the world would I share your site with others and create more competition in the drawling and end up not winning? Think about something everyone can get for free off your site by becoming a member and that would instead be more inclined to spread viral.

 

Consider using facebook, twitter, myspace networking by searching the keyword "blackberry" on pages from people within your area code.

Us that info and connections that you make by networking and adding friends to do local meetup mixer parties at local resturants, ect. You can organize the meetup events with something like: meetup.com

 

Your more likely going to get some random off the internet to be interested in a $100 itunes voucher

Also what is so attractive about your site? You need more content to attract users

 

You can use a viral tell a friend and let your users to promote your website :

http://www.super-tell-a-friend.com/