Tracking the results [or non-results] of effective newsletter management and viral marketing campaigns with meaningful analytics has always been an evolving challenge. Some of the best minds online have spent considerable time and resources to effectively define, create, mine, collect, categorize, analyze and manage relevant data to gauge results and shape future efforts. My recent blog post touching on some viral mistakes resulted in an interesting if hastily written comment. While there are certainly a few accidental viral miracle campaigns, we have to surmise that the majority of the ones that have really taken off have a very savvy marketing guru or team behind them pulling the strings that guide the magic. Successful campaigns begin with targeted strategic placement and slowly build to a crescendo of branding ecstasy for the producer. The viral marketing leader must understand the viral concept and the deployment sequence to achieve success – and I think timing and a little luck are always essential ingredients.

In any case, the comment sparked some later conversations in which I had the opportunity to discuss viral video efforts and results across ecommerce segments – and found that everyone with whom I spoke is still looking for a way to track campaigns in a useful quantifiable manner.

So this week I came across a press release which on first glance appears promising in this regard. Independent third-party measurement firm Visible Measures has been named a Gartner 'Cool Vendor.' With a trademarked measure of online video campaigns - True Reach(TM) - Visible Measures claims to provide an integrated view across all campaign components, including syndicated, social, and paid video placements. The company states its technologies reveal both how online viewers interact with video content and how that content spreads across 150+ of the top video-sharing destinations, from AOL Video, to YouTube, and virtually everywhere in between. The result, they claim, is client ability to quantify the ROI of their Internet video-based campaigns, providing ‘unprecedented visibility into what works,’ what doesn't, and the best practices for cost-effectively enhancing performance.

If you are searching for the means to track your online video campaigns, take a look at this cool vendor, and let me know what you discover. Visible Measures says they meet the unique challenges of measuring digital video reach and engagement. Analyze your online video audiences and how they engage - for both content assets and advertising placements. Take a look at Visible Measures, and let me know what you think and how you progress.

Gartner decides on their cool vendors by investigating their technologies or solutions; looking for innovation, provision of new capability which creates impact; have, or will have, real business impact; Intriguing, and has caught Gartner's attention or curiosity in approximately the past six months.

Additional Reading:

See it in Action – Case Studies and Demos -

Video Metrics

Viral Marketing Mistakes

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