The term "viral marketing" originated to describe a marketing campaign used by the free e-mail service Hotmail.com. When the product was launched, every outgoing message contained an ad for Hotmail and a link to its website at the bottom of the e-mail. So when people e-mailed their friends and colleagues, they were also promoting the Hotmail Service.

Viral marketing is a marketing technique that relies on individuals to spread the message rather than traditional marketing campaigns which reach out to customers individually. Viral marketing can be simply descrembed as �word-of-mouth� advertising. The primary aim is to get people to spread the word about the business with as little effort and expense from the business as possible. The idea is that a marketing message spreads can spread like a common cold virus from one person to another.

Viral marketing includes video clips, e-books, branded software, images, text messages and so on. It can be very effective in promoting brand awareness, generating traffic flow and business.

Some viral marketing strategies include:

• Offering incentives such as free products or services.
• Including a forward button in the marketing campaign so that once someone clicks the button, it spreads and the message gets out to others.
• Making use of existing networks of people, where one person can spread the message to their friends and associates.

• Offering a free download of software, such as a calendar, e-book or other tool. This is an effective way to gain new subscribers to your website. A good idea is to also include your logo and marketing message with the download.

• Creating a free e-book or newsletter and giving them away to your visitors, webmasters or people within your target market.Producing interesting and informative articles, newsletters, e-zines or videos and allowing people to republish it on their site provided they link through to your website.Getting other sites to link to your website and using RSS Feeds to encourage repeat visitors. In doing so, remember to only link to websites that complement your products and services.

Viral marketing can be highly effective, particularly if you have something free to give away as well. The idea is that people love free products or services, and sometimes the business needs to spend money in order to make money. It is important to ensure you don�t breach any spam legislation or other regulations when developing a viral marketing campaign.