Innovation
Even though we may long for the simplicity and purity of how we remember the past, that has never stopped the human race from striving to conquer the next frontier. And, as every conquest must start with a first step, we respect and revere the trailblazers who followed their dreams and paved the way for progress. It's these first steps that we remember and celebrate: first dates; first man on the moon, first time we downloaded a new U2 song for free on Napster or saw a grainy video of the "Blair Witch" and needed to learn more about it.
Maslow believed that humans have a need to increase their intelligence. This cognitive need manifests as the expression of the human need to learn, explore, discover and create to get a better understanding of the world around us. Ads that appeal to our desire to see something new taps into this need to explore and discover. This is followed closely by our desire to be in-the-know and on the forefront of that new thing; hence, we are driven to share our new-found knowledge with our peers.
Early web marketing innovations such as BMW Films paved the way for first-of-its-kind ad creative to secure a spot in the cultural Zeitgeist. Our industry's beloved Honda Cog is another prime example of the human love of discovering something unique. Even more recently, projects like LonelyGirl15 and films such as "Cloverfield" used unique means of online subterfuge to garner early enthusiasm and word of mouth. And indie-film pioneers like Kevin Smith used the power of online to transform die-hard fans into MySpace activists by rewarding those who helped him spread the "Clerks 2" message with a personal film credit.
Involvement
Of course, not everyone can be the groundbreaker. But the rest of us still want to feel included, or at least feel that we aren't going to be left behind when our peers evolve and start to walk upright.
Our need to participate is the foundation of one of the key principles that marketers should strive to convey in any campaign: letting us know what's in it for us. If people can find a place for them in your brand activities, they are much more likely to pay attention to those brands.
Mash-up campaigns have been particularly successful on this front, as they allow users to play with official campaign assets -- like movie trailer footage or commercial clips -- and add their own unique touches. Advergames like Get the Glass also let users directly interact with brands and reward them for the time spent playing.
Another tactic to garner involvement is online and mobile voting. When watching a show like "American Idol," viewers like to feel like they are part of the action, that their opinions matter and that they have the skills to recognize true talent, so they will go out of their way to send that text message and deliver their preferences to the receptive "Idol" format. In addition, by rewarding participation in these mash-up and dial-in opportunities with prizes or additional behind-the-scenes information, brands can amp up users' interest in the brand -- and their willingness to pass the message along.
Personalization
Once we've satisfied the universal needs that make us human, we have the luxury of satisfying the need to feel unique and special. Maslow described this as moving from physiological need to self actualization need, which includes the need to be creative and to be recognized and valued for who you are.
One of the most recognized campaigns that leverages this need for personalized attention was Burger King's Subservient Chicken, which allowed viewers to directly interact with the web mascot and think up personalized commands that it would follow. There was no list of tasks users could ask the chicken to perform, and while the chicken certainly had a roster of tricks he was programmed to show, users could be rewarded with a little-seen move for thinking out of the box.
Last year's "The Simpsons Movie" offered the ultimate personalized encounter with its world: a Simpsonizer engine that let fans create their own Springfieldian likeness, which could then be inserted into the background of the website's many play areas. Within the first day of the Simpsonizer's debut, core and casual fans alike passed the world along so virulently that the site was unavailable for long spans of time.
Conclusion
Though marketing, like the human race, has certainly evolved, few would deny that there's still a spark of magic -- perhaps even a divine intervention -- in why one campaign seed grows and another dies out. There's the science of adapting the potential elements of success -- like humor and innovation -- to meet your particular marketing challenge, and then there's the art -- the unquantifiable "it" factor that puts something like "Flavor of Love" on the map. And that's why a true formula for viral success will likely remain as unattainable as the true and definitive meaning of life. But of course, there's a Darwinian reward in this industry for experimenting with a new, potentially successful pathway -- even if you never find that same road again.
Jodi Harris is managing editor at iMedia Connection.