They look like ordinary people but something is not quite right. No one can tell unless they know the secret. In the famous sci-fi movie above (can you name it?) pods (seeds) are planted from an unknown space invader to take over the bodies of humans.
Taking a cue from the film, marketeers are seeding the internet. What is seeding? It is a marketing concept that primarily involves finding the target market’s opinion leaders to be word-of-mouth advocates for a product or service. But the concept also includes hiring “ordinary Joes” to spread good cheer and recommend these products and services in chat rooms, forums, blogs, and via online product reviews, as well as on the street, to friends, relatives and anyone whose ear can be bent. With the success of YouTube, it also involves seeding these venues with videos thought to have viral-appeal.
But in order for seeding to be most effective, the advocates do not disclose the fact of their compensation. Seeders are marketing ninjas. It is taking root in the blogging community with Pay Per Post. So beware the person online touting the latest computer property valuation model. It just may be the word-of-mouth of a being from marketing space.
According to the seeding blueprint, if you can sway the 10% opinion leaders of your target market, the other 90% will follow. So much for the wisdom of crowds. See the complicated sheep herding chart below.
Seeding companies are sprouting up all over. Strange as it may seem, seeding was learned from drug dealers. No, not those folks, the legal ones, the pharmeutical companies. The code name was Phase IV trials.
Sources: Paul Mardsden, Seed to Spread-Using Seeding Trials to Accelerate Sales; Wikipedia; other unnamed sources (ssshh).
Related Posts:
Word of Mouth Rules
Word of Mouth Advertising
