Marketing buzz

Marketing buzz or simply buzz—a term used in viral marketing—is the interaction of consumers and users of a product or service which amplifies or alters the original marketing message. This emotion, energy, excitement, or anticipation about a product or service can be positive or negative. Buzz can be generated by intentional marketing activities by the brand owner or it can be the result of an independent event that enters public awareness through social or traditional media such as newspapers. Marketing buzz originally referred to oral communication but in the age of Web 2.0, social media such as Facebook and Twitter are now the dominant communication channels for marketing buzz.

In the 16th-early-20th centuries, nearly every town had its local weekly or monthly newspapers, and subscribed editions of larger publications were regularly carried by post riders to distant populations, where their key news stories from nearby county seat or capitols and far off cities were regularly read aloud in local taverns—which were much more a part of daily life than today's bars. On a predictable schedule, these subscriptions readings would occur on various nights, giving the tavern an attraction to draw in visitors, and a gathering place for men to discuss the implications of such news.

Some of the common tactics used to create buzz include building suspense around a launch or event, creating a controversy, or reaching out to bloggers and social media influencers. Social media participants in any particular virtual community can be divided into three segments: influencers, individuals, and consumers. Influencers amplify both positive and negative messages to the target audience, often because of their reputation within the community. Therefore, a successful social media campaign must find and engage with influencers that are positively inclined to the brand, providing them with product information and incentives to forward it on to the community. Individuals are members of the community who find value in absorbing the content and interacting with other members. The purpose of the marketing strategy is ultimately to turn individuals into the third group, consumers, who actually purchase the product in the real world and then develop brand loyalty that forms the basis for ongoing positive marketing buzz. The challenge for the marketer is to understand the potentially complex dynamics of the virtual community and be able to use them effectively.

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Wikipedia