Wie konnte es passieren, dass am 9. November 1989 spät in der Nacht eine riesen Menschenansammlung zusammenkam um gegen das DDR Regime zu protestieren? Ohne SMS, kein Internet und schon gar keine Werbeplakate - ein Beispiel Mundpropaganda in ihrer ursprünglichen Form.
Mundpropaganda verbreitet sich über Netzwerke. Wer also Mundpropaganda anregen will, muss das eigene Denken von "Zielgruppe" auf "Netzwerk" umstellen. Die Netzwerke sind meist nicht sichtbar und eine Botschaft, die von Person zu Person weitergegeben wird, ist schwer nachverfolgbar. Generell kann man unterteilen in "starke Netzwerke" und "schwache Netzwerke" - The intensity of the relationship with a person is crucial. A good friend is hit more often and more trustworthy than a person that you have just met in a pub in the evening. For "weak network" simply include all the people know that a person, but that it maintains no closer relationship.
If a message is designed, then this should be spread both in weak and in strong networks. The reason for this is that strong networks are quick and intense, but often closed to outsiders. So "distribution" - especially interesting in the analysis of networks, so-called "hubs" are. These are people that are generally highly regarded enjoy (in one or more networks) to cultivate many contacts and would like to chat. How important is the role of these "hubs" used, approach is a matter - I am of the opinion that it always depends on the network and the message. Upon occasion, to spread the message of how far the (large or small network?) Individuals are especially important or less important.
Social networks are usually transparent (the way a message can be tracked) and it turns out that a "weak network" often is very powerful - someone provides a link to Twitter , two people (not forming in close contact / to the transmitter / are found in) him as an actor, and transmit it can continue a thousand times. To compare this to a virus I think is rather unfortunate, because a virus damages the transferor generally. Moreover, people like to talk further in the case of real word of mouth - not because they are infected quite passive.
When a message is passed from person to person, it changes slightly. People use different words, maybe the story even translated, and all have a subjective view of what they take. Therefore, the message must be really simple, compact and short. One idea led to consider simple - they tell someone about it with two sentences over the telephone. If not then the most important is communicated, then it must be simpler. Online is reflected especially in the micro-blogs (Twitter) again, after they are designed for short messages.
