Smaller businesses should consider using viral marketing methods in order to reduce advertising costs and attract new customers, according to an expert.
A spokesperson for entertainment, recreation, gaming and humour website Kontraband claims that viral marketing offers obvious cost benefits, because it is cheaper than more conventional methods of advertising, and it can be easily tracked to find out how many people have seen it.
The spokesperson suggests that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) would benefit more from "grass roots" viral methods, such as viral forums or blogs, than those used by larger brands to generate PR. User generated content is becoming increasingly popular on the Internet and a growing form of online advertising.
Advocating viral marketing, the Kontraband employee said: "It is something that everyone should consider and it is something you can just do yourself. It doesn't cost money, it just costs time. If you have the time to do it you can do it as much as you want."
A recent study by the Internet Advertising Bureau indicated that more than £2 million was spent in the UK on Internet advertising in 2006, representing market growth of around 41.2 per cent during the year.
