23 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}
23 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}

Had one of those light bulb ideas.. feedback appreciated

by thedog
20 replies
Hey Warriors, I've been soaking up allot of this IM information of late. Last night before I dozzed off, I had, what I'm pretty sure, is an original and lucrative idea that I'm sure would create allot of buz... think milliondollarhomege.com

Anyway, I'm going to keep a level head, and just keep researching the idea to see if it really hasn't been done, and work out the logistics etc...

I guess I'm here to get your feedback on how to go about generating that buz early on... I mean, like the milliondollarhomepage, it would be pretty easy to clone, so, reaching as many people as possible early is key.

So, say I've developed my site, yes it's a site. I've tested it and it's ready to go... what next? From my limited IM experience, I would

1) Send a link to all my facebook friends, asking them to send it on... it's not spam, and I'm pretty sure 99% would be quite happy to see it in their inbox.

2) Tweet it, asking the same.

After this, I'm thinking along the lines of getting media involved, but who, and how?

That's all I really have... any more suggestions? I don't want to pay for advertising, it would cheapen it.

This is all pie in the sky at the moment, but I'd love to hear some feedback on how best to get this to the people... oh, SEO cant really help... as it's not something people would search for.

Sorry if I'm being vague... if you have any questions please feel free, I'll answer them if I can.
#appreciated #bulb #feedback #ideas #light
  • Profile picture of the author Angelz
    You are asking us how to make something viral. If we all knew how to make anything go viral, we would all be millionaires. Going viral takes something special and unique. It is also usually about luck. To go viral based on skill, you need a lot of experience, and a lot of resources. It is much easier to go viral if you have 500 facebook accounts stacked with random real people as friends, a twitter account with 50,000 real followers, a youtube account with a few thousand subscribers etc. But even then, we arent talking guaranteed viral, just a much better chance.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3227613].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author jtprattmedia
      I think there are points in time where things work and then the opportunity fades away. Viral or not, every "success" brings along with it a copycat or two - but then it's over.

      There was a time when you could sell a grilled cheese on ebay with the image of Jesus and get a few thousand dollars. Those days are now gone. I don't think anything like million dollar homepage is viable now.

      You need to think of the "next" thing....

      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3227634].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author thedog
        Originally Posted by jtprattmedia View Post

        I think there are points in time where things work and then the opportunity fades away. Viral or not, every "success" brings along with it a copycat or two - but then it's over.

        There was a time when you could sell a grilled cheese on ebay with the image of Jesus and get a few thousand dollars. Those days are now gone. I don't think anything like million dollar homepage is viable now.

        You need to think of the "next" thing....
        Completely agree, some of these fads have an expiration date.

        However, this is nothing like grilled cheese Jesus, or Milliondollar homepage, I was just giving MDHP as an example of a great idea.

        This is better
        Signature

        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3227651].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author thedog
      Hey Angelz, yes, I know it sounds like a naive request...

      Here's the thing, I really don't think it would take much for this idea to go viral on it's own... obviously, I can't tell you what it is, but imagine a friend of yours sent you a link to a site, and you just went, wow, that's awesome, and sent it to allot of your friends.

      If this was the reaction, which I think it could be, for most people, my main worry is how best to give it legs before it's cloned.

      I'm sure there are those out there with lots of social network accounts...

      Would I buy a list?
      Signature

      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3227640].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author webapex
    My first reaction is it's the sort of ambitious promise only a real marketing millionaire could use in a name, it would trigger many people's BS filters if not associated with a major guru name. I'd think noSweat100aday is the kind of title that would attract regular guys.

    On the other hand, I'm amazed at the number of people who line up to buy lottary ticks, only if the payoff is over 100 Million, it seems there are some who only want to invest in huge payoff possibilities.
    Signature

    “An expert is a person who has made all the mistakes that can be made in a very narrow field” Niels Bohr

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3227674].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author YoichiSpeaks
      I guess if you don't want to spend any money, the best way to reach is social media marketing.

      Or build a squeeze page to generate a list, then send them the link.

      .
      Signature
      Join Our Exclusive Affiliate Marketing Discord Group - Inside Info That Can Get Us Banned In This Industry" https://discord.gg/KbbhNxRc
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3227702].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author thedog
      Originally Posted by webapex View Post

      My first reaction is it's the sort of ambitious promise only a real marketing millionaire could use in a name, it would trigger many people's BS filters if not associated with a major guru name. I'd think noSweat100aday is the kind of title that would attract regular guys.

      On the other hand, I'm amazed at the number of people who line up to buy lottary ticks, only if the payoff is over 100 Million, it seems there are some who only want to invest in huge payoff possibilities.
      I hear ye, it's got absolutely nothing to do with selling a product to people.

      Hmm, maybe I'm coming off as of an arrogant know it all, this really isn't my intention, compared to most on here, I know very little.

      As I said, this is all a bit pie in the sky, so lets just talk about hypotheticals.
      Signature

      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3227721].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Gary McCaffrey
    I believe being cloned is less of a worry than you think it is, as long as you're first.

    If it's the type of thing you think will go viral on it's own, then just build it and let it loose. Remember, TMDH started with the owner just emailing his contact list on his email account.

    Post it on whatever forums you use, email all the contacts you have, share it on facebook and ask others to pass it on. Have share buttons on the site etc.

    Just do it!
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3227761].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author WillR
    The truth is you can share it with as many people as you want but whether it goes viral is another story. Many people have tried and failed at getting things to go viral. There is no formula. One fairly common theme you will notice with a lot of things that have gone viral is that they never planned to go viral in the first place - it just happened.

    1. Your idea has to be something people WANT to share with other people. If this isn't the case then you will never go viral no matter how hard you try.

    2. You need some viral component built into your site. Something that makes it drop dead easy for people to share it. Giving people a good reason to share it will also help your viral exponent.

    3. You need a ton of luck.

    4. Before you go wasting too much time or money I would go and run your idea past some friends and family. Often the ideas we have in our heads are not really as great as we first thought they were. Get some honest feedback before you waste too much time.
    Signature

    .


    .

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3228460].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author thedog
      Originally Posted by WillR View Post

      The truth is you can share it with as many people as you want but whether it goes viral is another story. Many people have tried and failed at getting things to go viral. There is no formula. One fairly common theme you will notice with a lot of things that have gone viral is that they never planned to go viral in the first place - it just happened.

      1. Your idea has to be something people WANT to share with other people. If this isn't the case then you will never go viral no matter how hard you try.

      2. You need some viral component built into your site. Something that makes it drop dead easy for people to share it. Giving people a good reason to share it will also help your viral exponent.

      3. You need a ton of luck.

      4. Before you go wasting too much time or money I would go and run your idea past some friends and family. Often the ideas we have in our heads are not really as great as we first thought they were. Get some honest feedback before you waste too much time.
      Cheers WillR, Ye, I've always run an idea past my close friends, and ask for honest feedback. I will of course with this one.

      As for points 1 and 2, I would have to say a most definitely, as for luck, well that's another thing.
      Signature

      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3228580].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author tritrain
    Ask yourself where does your market like to hang out.

    If you could reach them effectively via videos, then YouTube and others could be your focus. Facebook game players? Play the games that they like to play and join the Add Me groups. Are they mostly women? Join forums and sites that cater to women.

    The big thing is for you to gain their respect and trust. If and when you can do that then they will tend to click thru and buy via your links.
    Signature
    Domains for sale - see seopositions.net
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3228523].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author paulie888
    What exactly is your website going to be about? Without knowing the niche and topics covered, it'd be hard to determine if this subject matter is even ripe for going viral. Some topics/niches just aren't very likely to go viral, and without us knowing the general subject matter covered on your website it'd be hard to offer any concrete advice.
    Signature
    >>> Features Jason Fladlien, John S. Rhodes, Justin Brooke, Sean I. Mitchell, Reed Floren and Brad Gosse! <<<
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3228576].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author thedog
      Originally Posted by paulie888 View Post

      What exactly is your website going to be about? Without knowing the niche and topics covered, it'd be hard to determine if this subject matter is even ripe for going viral. Some topics/niches just aren't very likely to go viral, and without us knowing the general subject matter covered on your website it'd be hard to offer any concrete advice.
      Hey paulie888, I'm sorry, I can't go into it... I'm not even sure if it's 100% viable, although I'm going on the basis that it is and am just looking for constructive feedback on how to expose as much people to it, early on.

      tritrain offered great advice, on joining relevant groups on facebook... I'm such a green horn, this is something I didn't even consider.

      So, If this really is possible, I want to have all these basis covered before I do anything.

      I've been working online for over 13 years, as a web designer, and I've never seen anything like it...
      Signature

      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3228594].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author WillR
        Originally Posted by thedog View Post

        I've been working online for over 13 years, as a web designer, and I've never seen anything like it...
        That line always scares me. In most cases there is a good reason why you can't find anything like it. Because others have been there before and had no success with it.

        I hope you're isn't one of those. Best of luck!
        Signature

        .


        .

        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3232890].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author JoshuaG
          Social sites are where its at for getting stuff to go viral.
          Digg, stumble, slashdot, popular blogs...
          Signature

          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3233492].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author paulie888
        Originally Posted by thedog View Post

        Hey paulie888, I'm sorry, I can't go into it... I'm not even sure if it's 100% viable, although I'm going on the basis that it is and am just looking for constructive feedback on how to expose as much people to it, early on.

        tritrain offered great advice, on joining relevant groups on facebook... I'm such a green horn, this is something I didn't even consider.

        So, If this really is possible, I want to have all these basis covered before I do anything.

        I've been working online for over 13 years, as a web designer, and I've never seen anything like it...
        You would be able to gauge response to your idea pretty quickly in the relevant groups on Facebook, and you should also set up a Fan page. It shouldn't take too much time to determine if your idea has merit, and it's great that it won't cost you anything either.
        Signature
        >>> Features Jason Fladlien, John S. Rhodes, Justin Brooke, Sean I. Mitchell, Reed Floren and Brad Gosse! <<<
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3233570].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author rosetrees
          Sites like milllion dollar homepage worked because the press took up the idea - it was publicised on tv, newspapers, magazines, radio.

          I suggest you try contacting a few journalists and see if any of them will run with your idea.

          It can work. I have two sites that get interest from the press. One I and a friend actively promote (sadly there's no money in that site for either of us) and the other the press find and contact me (also a site with no monetisation). Apparently I am about to be quoted as an "expert" in an ex-pat magazine in Dubai.

          If I could marry up press interest with sites that I can monetise I'd be laughing.
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3233597].message }}
          • Profile picture of the author thedog
            Well, after a little more digging, I found a site already doing it, sort of, since 2000!

            I also now remember visiting this site, about 8 years ago, there was a bit of buz about it... crazy that I forgot.

            Anyway, it's a similar model, but the model I've been thinking about would be an improvement, and is a little different.

            hmmm, I guess the internet is so vast, it really is hard to come up with an original idea..

            Improving on a current idea could always work.
            Signature

            {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3236927].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author krisbeckers
    I would try to make a video about it an post it on you tube. Nice way to make it viral. You can do this with powerpoitn and free video software if you want to keep it cheap.
    Signature

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3233495].message }}

Trending Topics