What do Bono, Kevin Bacon and Ed Wiley, a grandfather from West Virginia, have in common? The answer is that they use viral marketing for their non-profit causes. Of course it can work for Bono and Kevin Bacon because they can use their celebrity status to promote their causes, but if it can work for a WV grandfather, it can work for your non-profit organization. How? You have to be creative, be creditable and build curiosity.
Bono’s “The One Campaign” to fight extreme poverty, used curiosity to create a buzz about his organization’s message. How can you compete with Bono when it comes to publicizing your organization? Take a closer look at the viral marketing campaign. What do they ask you to do on their home page? Sign the Declaration, tell a friend, wear their white wristband or t-shirt, check out their blog, join One Facebook/Myspace, sign up as a volunteer, or find a One Event near you. Your organization can benefit by studying other organizations successful viral marketing campaigns.
How does playing six degrees of Kevin Bacon relate to your non-profit organization? It doesn’t, but the concept makes perfect sense. It’s also a creative way to market your non-profit. Visit http://sixdegrees.org to register your organization and to get a Six Degrees Charity Badge for your website to market your fundraising efforts. (They were clever enough to get Kevin Bacon as their spokesman.) On this site you can create a badge in a few minutes that you will be able to place anywhere online. Complete the following steps listed below and on their website, and the site create the badge for you:
- Upload photos and video.
- Write a sentence about your cause.
- Select your charity.
- They create the badge.
- You place it wherever you want online and the badge tracks donations in real time.
That leaves us to Ed Wiley, a grandfather from West Virginia. His concern for his granddaughter’s health, after she was continually home from school early because she was sick, led him on a journey he’ll never forget. He soon learned that it was the coal silo located close to the school that was making not only her, but many of her classmates sick. His credibility as a former coal company employee, and long time resident of Coal River Valley, WV gave him the necessary support he needed to spearhead Pennies of Promise, which has a goal of building a new school for Marsh Fork Elementary School children. In order to raise money and awareness Ed walked from Charleston, WV to Washington, DC in September 2006. He also used sixdegrees.org as a part of his viral marketing campaign, as well as his website, www.pennieforpromise.org that journals his walk every step of the way. He received media attention in every town that he passed through on his journey. Most of the media coverage showed young children handing him bags of their spare change. A 20 minute video was made his journey and placed on YouTube. This grandfather didn’t leave any marketing stone unturned.
“A picture is worth a thousand words.” How many times have you heard that quote? It’s worth repeating because pictures can tell the story of your cause. People remember pictures. If you visit the links of the organizations that are listed above, you will notice that every marketing campaign includes pictures to help the viewer identify with the specific cause. Blackbaud, a software company that design products for non-profit organizations, has a blog with vivid pictures to illustrate two great examples of viral marketing. I promise it’s worth the look to see “Drive one day less and look how much carbon monoxide you’ll keep out of the air we breathe.” And “Over 200,000 lakh children live in places you can never imagine. Help the Children. Donate.” http://www.blogbaud.com/blog/category/viral-marketing/ Those are two pictures I won’t forget, and that’s the point.
Are you ready to brainstorm and research your next viral marketing campaign?
