Viral Distribution for Your Blog
January 5th, 2007 | Categories: blogs, marketing, networks, strategy, widgetsDo you want maximum exposure for your blog? Do you want others to market it? Do you want to reach the widest possible audience?
I know this sounds like a 4am infomercial, but I’m simply outlining the goals, aspirations, 
and hopes of many bloggers. Now, thanks to MuseStorm, these challenges have been overcome and distributing your content is easier than ever.
Bloggers, or anyone with an RSS feed for that matter, can set-up an account and instantly create a distributable widget that others can embed. The company proclaims that they will ‘widgetize’ your feed.
Widgets are customizable by colour and type, with some restrictions.
The coolest part of the whole system is the back-end analytics. Anyone who distributes the widget can then log into the MuseStorm portal and get an in-depth look at the evolution and success (or failure) of the campaign. The three main categories of analytics include:
- Widget impressions
- Domains
- Click-throughs
In other words, these categories essentially tell you a) how many impressions your content widget has received, b) which domains are producing the impressions, and c) the total amount of click-throughs to your blog or site. Very cool.
The product is currently in BETA, but I received an invite from the company so I’m going to test it out. If you would like to embed Mapping The Web content on your blog or site, please read the ‘Note’ at the bottom of this post.
Here is a sample screenshot of how the widget may look:
NOTE: Anyone that wants to embed Mapping The Web content on their site can find the HTML code here.
January 5th, 2007 at 5:05 pm
Obvious example of link baiting.
January 5th, 2007 at 5:06 pm
January 5th, 2007 at 5:38 pm
Ha. Not quite
January 9th, 2007 at 1:21 am
Hmm… it’s a fine idea but the trick is getting others to publish the widget that you’re attempting to distribute, or am I missing something? I’ve become quite enamored with MyBlogLog of late because distribution and connectivity are pretty much tension-free.
January 9th, 2007 at 1:28 am
Eric,
You’re correct. The key is getting distribution of your widget. Many are fearful that this will drive traffic away from their web property. However, others feel that this content will add value to their site with little or no effort. A case can be made for both side.
And yes, I am addicted to MyBlogLog as well. As a side note, the company was just bought by Yahoo today. Congrats to them.
Cheers,
Aidan
January 9th, 2007 at 2:24 am
Hi Aidan,
Thanks for the post!
We are excited by the feedback we are getting from beta users and are ready to roll out the full service, with DESKTOP widget support as well pretty soon!
January 9th, 2007 at 2:30 am
Ori,
I look forward to future updates. Please keep me in the loop.
Cheers,
Aidan
March 9th, 2007 at 9:07 pm
We’re still learning about the use and power of Viral Marketing. I would think that Viral Marketing is a form of content that is used or promoted by any consumer/enduser through the posting of said content to the end users Web site. Examples being video clips posted from youtube.com, myspace.com, video.google.com etc. The use, reuse or repurposing of these videos is a form of Viral Marketing for these publishing/hosting companies. The content is repurposed on an end users site with full credits and links back to the original distributor.
This also brings up a concern over copyright law and usage. Will the content be safe to use for end users or will you be at risk of a copyright infrigement? However, if a video clip of say a TV program like “LOST” is used will ABC.com regard the usage as free promotion of it’s Hit show or see it as stolen property.
What are your thoughts?
Kind Regards,
Jean-Pierre D’Zahr
San Diego, California
March 12th, 2007 at 1:31 am
Jean-Pierre,
I don’t think any copyright-infringing material should be used to promote a website or product. If company-owned material or legimate content is being used, then so be it. Otherwise, it is unethical and illegal.
Having said that, copyright material does seem to attract by the most attention by its very nature. Promotion is much easier and successful, which makes it very appealing and attractive for marketers.
Cheers,
Aidan